Spanish for food and cooking

Ordering tapas, shopping at the market, cooking from a recipe: the language of food, from the bar to the kitchen.

36 sentences · 3 dialogues · 19 words

Why this field

In Spain food is a reason to spend time together: tapas at the counter, the long lunch, the conversation that carries on at the table afterwards. If you can join in here, you are right in the middle of things.

Recipes and menus are also rewarding to learn from: short sentences, clear verbs, and at the end you can see and taste whether you understood correctly.

What you will be able to do

Goals by level. Tick what you can already do — the tick stays in this browser only.

A1I can say what I like to eat and drink and order simple dishes.
A1I can ask for fruit and vegetables at the market.
A2I can order a set lunch and ask about ingredients or allergies.
A2I can talk about what I have eaten or cooked.
B1I can understand a simple recipe and explain it step by step.
B1I can complain politely when something is wrong with a dish.

Core vocabulary

19 words from the word lists, ordered by level. A coloured edge shows what you have already practised.

el desayunobreakfastA1
la cenadinner, supperA1
el panbreadA1
el pescadofish (as food)A1
la carnemeatA1
la verduravegetablesA1
el postredessertA1
la cartamenuA1
tener hambreto be hungryA1
la tapathe tapa, the small servingA2
la raciónthe large sharing plateA2
la propinathe tipA2
picantehot, spicyA2
vegetarianovegetarianA2
la alergiathe allergyA2
el ingredientethe ingredientB1
la sarténthe frying panB1
la cebollathe onionB1
el ajothe garlicB1

Practise as flashcards Card box Mixed round

Typical situations

Short dialogues to read along and repeat. Say one part first, then the other.

At the market

You are buying fruit and vegetables at a market stall.

Stallholder
Buenos días, ¿qué le pongo?Good morning, what can I get you?
Customer
Un kilo de tomates y medio kilo de naranjas.A kilo of tomatoes and half a kilo of oranges.
Stallholder
Muy bien. ¿Algo más?Very good. Anything else?
Customer
Sí, una lechuga. ¿Cuánto es todo?Yes, a lettuce. How much is that altogether?
Stallholder
Ahora le digo. Aquí tiene la bolsa.I’ll tell you in a moment. Here’s your bag.
Customer
Gracias, hasta luego.Thanks, see you.

The set lunch

You are having lunch in a small restaurant.

Waitress
Hola, ¿ya sabe qué va a tomar?Hello, do you know what you’d like?
Customer
Sí. De primero, la ensalada, y de segundo, el pescado.Yes. The salad to start, and the fish for the main course.
Waitress
¿Y para beber?And to drink?
Customer
Agua sin gas, por favor. ¿El postre va incluido?Still water, please. Is dessert included?
Waitress
Sí, postre o café. Hoy tenemos flan casero.Yes, dessert or coffee. Today we have home-made crème caramel.
Customer
Perfecto. Ah, tengo alergia al marisco. ¿El pescado lleva algo?Perfect. Oh, I’m allergic to shellfish. Is there anything in the fish?
Waitress
No se preocupe, se lo pregunto al cocinero.Don’t worry, I’ll ask the chef.

A recipe over the phone

You ring a friend because you want to make a tortilla.

Lena
Carmen, ¿cómo haces tú la tortilla de patatas?Carmen, how do you make Spanish omelette?
Carmen
Es fácil. Primero pelas las patatas y las cortas finas.It’s easy. First you peel the potatoes and slice them thinly.
Lena
¿Y la cebolla? ¿Lleva cebolla?And the onion? Does it have onion in it?
Carmen
En mi casa, sí. La fríes con las patatas a fuego lento.In my house it does. You fry it with the potatoes over a low heat.
Lena
¿Y cuándo añado los huevos?And when do I add the eggs?
Carmen
Cuando las patatas estén blandas. Luego le das la vuelta con un plato.When the potatoes are soft. Then you turn it over with a plate.
Lena
Lo intento esta noche y te cuento.I’ll try it tonight and let you know.

Sentences to say aloud

The label says where a sentence belongs. The speaker next to it reads it aloud.

Me gusta mucho el pescado.I really like fish.
A1neutral With gustar the food is the subject: me gusta el pescado, me gustan las naranjas.
No como carne.I don’t eat meat.
A1neutral
Tengo hambre. ¿Comemos algo?I’m hungry. Shall we get something to eat?
A1casual
¿Me trae la carta, por favor?Could you bring me the menu, please?
A1polite la carta is the menu; the fixed lunchtime menu is el menú.
Un vaso de agua, por favor.A glass of water, please.
A1neutral
Para beber, una cerveza.A beer to drink.
A1neutral
¿Qué hay de postre?What is there for dessert?
A1neutral
Medio kilo de tomates, por favor.Half a kilo of tomatoes, please.
A1neutral
¿A cuánto están las naranjas?How much are the oranges?
A1neutral This is how you ask the price per kilo at the market: ¿A cuánto está…?
El pan está muy rico.The bread is really good.
A1neutral
Para desayunar tomo café con leche y una tostada.For breakfast I have white coffee and a piece of toast.
A1neutral
¿Cocinas tú hoy o cocino yo?Are you cooking today or shall I?
A1casual
Una ración de croquetas para compartir.A plate of croquettes to share.
A2neutral
Ponme una caña y una tapa de tortilla.Give me a small beer and a tapa of tortilla.
A2casual At the counter the tú imperative is completely normal and not rude.
De primero, sopa; de segundo, pollo con patatas.Soup to start; chicken and potatoes for the main course.
A2neutral
¿Este plato es picante?Is this dish spicy?
A2neutral
¿Tienen algún plato vegetariano?Do you have any vegetarian dishes?
A2neutral
Tengo alergia a los frutos secos.I’m allergic to nuts.
A2neutral
¿Nos cobra, por favor? Pagamos por separado.Could we have the bill, please? We’ll pay separately.
A2polite
Ayer cenamos en un bar de tapas muy bueno.Last night we had dinner at a very good tapas bar.
A2neutral
He hecho una tortilla de patatas para la cena.I’ve made a Spanish omelette for dinner.
A2neutral
De pequeño no me gustaba nada la verdura.As a child I didn’t like vegetables at all.
A2neutral
La propina no es obligatoria.Tipping isn’t compulsory.
A2neutral
Voy a comprar pescado fresco en el mercado.I’m going to buy fresh fish at the market.
A2neutral
Primero se pela la cebolla y se pica muy fina.First you peel the onion and chop it very finely.
B1neutral The se makes the sentence impersonal, like English “you” or “one” — typical of recipes.
Calienta el aceite en la sartén a fuego medio.Heat the oil in the frying pan over a medium heat.
B1neutral
Añade el ajo y remueve un par de minutos.Add the garlic and stir for a couple of minutes.
B1neutral
Sal y pimienta al gusto.Salt and pepper to taste.
B1neutral
¿Me podría decir qué ingredientes lleva este plato?Could you tell me what ingredients are in this dish?
B1polite
Perdone, pero la carne está poco hecha y la pedí muy hecha.Excuse me, but the meat is underdone and I asked for it well done.
B1polite
Si tuviera más tiempo, cocinaría todos los días.If I had more time, I would cook every day.
B1neutral
Esta receta me la enseñó mi abuela.My grandmother taught me this recipe.
B1neutral
Si hubiera sabido que eras vegetariana, habría preparado otra cosa.If I’d known you were vegetarian, I’d have made something else.
B2neutral
Es imprescindible que la masa repose al menos una hora.The dough absolutely must rest for at least an hour.
B2neutral
Lo bueno de las tapas es que puedes probar un poco de todo.The good thing about tapas is that you can try a little of everything.
B2neutral lo + adjective turns it into a noun: lo bueno, “the good thing”.
Aunque no lo parezca, este guiso lleva poquísima sal.It may not seem like it, but there’s hardly any salt in this stew.
B2neutral

What matters here

Tapas are for sharing.
A ración is a larger portion for several people, a media ración half of one.
raciónmedia ración
You praise food with estar rico:
¡Qué rico está! — ser rico would mean “to be rich”.
estar rico¡Qué rico está!ser rico
Recipes are often written with impersonal se or with the tú imperative:
Se pelan las patatas. / Pela las patatas.
setúSe pelan las patatas.Pela las patatas.
Tipping is optional and usually small; people tend to leave a little change on the table.

Quick quiz

6 questions on the words and sentences of this field. The word questions count in your progress like any other exercise.

Try it yourself

Read the meaning, say the sentence aloud in Spanish, then open it to compare.

I really like fish.
Me gusta mucho el pescado.
The bread is really good.
El pan está muy rico.
Could we have the bill, please? We’ll pay separately.
¿Nos cobra, por favor? Pagamos por separado.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Sal y pimienta al gusto.

Keep learning

The grammar behind it

Word lists that go with it

Practise

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Every sentence on this page was written for EveryLingua. There are no quotations from films, series, books or songs here, and no titles or names of artists — the page shows how people talk in this field, not what somebody once said.