Essential Spanish Food Vocabulary and Cultural Insights

Food Vocabulary: Adjectives and Nouns

Food Adjectives (1)

• Baked: Horneado
• Boiled: Hervido
• Fattening: Engordante
• Free-range: De corral
• Fresh: Fresco
• Fried: Frito
• Grilled: Asado
• Home-made: Hecho en casa
• Low-fat: Bajo en grasa
• Raw: Crudo
• Roasted: Asado
• Seasonal: Estacional
• Vegetarian: Vegetariano

Food Nouns

• Light meals: Comidas ligeras
• Main course: Primer plato
• Side dish: Acompañamiento
• Starter: Entrante
• Sweet: Dulce

Food Adjectives (2)

• Appetizing: Apetitoso
• Bland: Insípido
• Delicious: Delicioso
• Edible: Comestible
• Hard: Duro
• Revolting: Repugnante
• Soft: Suave
• Spicy: Picante
• Tasteless: Sin sabor
• Tasty: Sabroso
• Tender: Tierno
• Tough: Duro

Adjective-Noun Collocations

• National dish: Plato nacional
• Ready-cooked meals: Comidas preparadas
• Savoury fillings: Rellenos salados
• Staple diet: Dieta básica
• Takeaway food: Comida para llevar

Grammar: -ing Form vs. To-Infinitive

• Forget: Olvidarse de
• Mean: Significado de
• Regret: Lamentar
• Remember: Recordar
• Try: Tratar de

Letter: Spanish Food Traditions

To: Robert Thomson
From: Natalia Jimenez
Subject: Spanish Food

Hello Robert,

I hope you are doing very well and that your course is going great. I am very happy to write to you to explain different aspects of Spanish food.

The schedule in Spain is different from that of other countries; we eat five meals a day. We usually have breakfast at 9:00 am, a mid-morning snack at 12:00 pm, lunch at 2:00 pm, a snack at 5:00 pm, and dinner at 9:00–10:00 pm.

Our diet is diverse and healthy. We usually eat a lot of bread with tomato and olive oil. Above all, a very famous aspect of our culture is tapas, which are small portions of different foods. For example, the potato omelette (tortilla de patatas), which contains egg, onion, and potato. Another very traditional dish is paella, which is rice with chicken and vegetables, although the ingredients vary depending on the region.

I want you to have a great time when you come to Spain, and I hope you enjoy our meals. Please write to me and tell me about your experience.

Bye,
Natalia