Vegetables in Spanish

Spanish Vocabulary for Preparing Vegetables

Rich culinary traditions fill Spanish-speaking cultures, from Spain to the Caribean to Central and South America. Learning recipes in Spanish will give you a hands-on connection to the cultures and help you practice the language. You’ll have an easier time communicating by learning vocabulary relating to preparing vegetables in Spanish, like chopping, cooking, and seasoning. Use these common vocabulary words when preparing recipes:

• Cocinar (to cook)
• Hervir (to boil)
• Hervir a fuego lento, estofar (braise, stew)
• Freír (to fry)
• Asar/hacer a la parrilla (to grill)
• Encurtir (pickle)
• Asar (to roast, bake)
• Saltear (sauté, stir-fry)
• Cocer/cocinar al vapor (to steam)
• Rellenar (to stuff, to fill)

How to Discuss Vegetables in Spanish

When the topic of vegetables comes up, you can prepare in advance by learning certain verbs, words, and phrases commonly used in conversations or recipes. It can also help to become familiar with traditional recipes made with vegetables in the Spanish-speaking world, to help order in a restaurant, or to connect with your friends.

When talking about food like vegetables or fruits in Spanish, keep these sentences in mind.

• Cocina las papas en en agua salada. (Cook the potatoes in salt water.)
• Las alcapurrias puertorriqueñas son rellenas de carne de res y pimiento morrón picadito. (Puerto Rican alcapurrias are filled with beef and bell pepper.)
• La tradicional salsa chimichurri argentina se prepara con perejil, orégano, ajo, cebolla, aji o pimiento picante, vinagre y aceite. (Traditional Argentinian chimichurri is prepared with parsley, oregano, garlic, onion, chili pepper or hot pepper, vinegar, and oil.)
• Cortar los pimientos y la cebolla en tiras y saltear en una sartén con aceite hasta que estén tiernos. (Cut the peppers and the onion in strips and sauté in a frying pan with oil until they are tender.)
• El kivevé es un plato de la cocina tradicional paraguaya se prepara en base a calabaza. La calabaza que se usa tradicionalmente en este platillo es el andaí. (Kivevé is a dish from the traditional Paraguayan kitchen made with a pumpkin base. The pumpkin traditionally used in this dish is the “crookneck pumpkin.”)
• El secreto para hacer las berenjenas fritas crujientes es dejarlas un mínimo de 2 horas remojadas en leche y cortadas bastante finas. (The secret to making crispy fried eggplant is to leave them for a minimum of two hours soaked in milk and cut quite thin.)
• Poner en una sartén con un poco de aceite de oliva a fuego lento los pimientos, los tomates, la cebolla, y el ajo. (Put the peppers, tomatoes, onion, and garlic in a frying pan with a little olive oil on low heat.)
• El tumbet es una comida típica de Mallorca que consiste en la mezcla de berenjenas, pimientos rojos, y patatas con una capa de salsa de tomate. (Tumbet is a typical food from Mallorca that consists of a mix of eggplant, red peppers, and potatoes with a layer of tomato sauce.)