When it comes to meals, cooking, and food in Spanish, there are some important words to learn. Here’s an easy guide to help you understand and use these words.

Food and Drink Vocabulary

1. Meals
   It helps to know the names of different meals so you can share what you like or don’t like:

   • Desayuno (breakfast)
   • Almuerzo (lunch)
   • Cena (dinner)
   • Merienda (snack)

2. Food Items
   Here are some common words for food:

   • Fruta (fruit) - like manzana (apple) or plátano (banana)
   • Verdura (vegetable) - like zanahoria (carrot) or lechuga (lettuce)
   • Carne (meat) - like pollo (chicken) or res (beef)
   • Pescado (fish) - such as salmón (salmon) or atún (tuna)
   • Grano (grain) - like arroz (rice) or pan (bread)
   • Postre (dessert) - like helado (ice cream) or pastel (cake)

Cooking Verbs

Knowing some cooking verbs helps you talk about what you do in the kitchen:

• Cocinar - to cook
• Hervir - to boil
• Freír - to fry
• Hornear - to bake
• Asar - to roast
• Pelar - to peel
• Cortar - to cut
• Mezclar - to mix
• Servir - to serve

Food Preferences

It's good to share what you like and don’t like about food. Here are some useful phrases:

1. Likes

   • Me gusta (I like)
     • Example: Me gusta el pollo. (I like chicken.)
   • Me encantan (I love - plural)
     • Example: Me encantan las frutas. (I love fruits.)

2. Dislikes

   • No me gusta (I do not like)
     • Example: No me gusta el marisco. (I do not like seafood.)
   • No me encantan (I do not love - plural)
     • Example: No me encantan las verduras. (I do not love vegetables.)

3. Other Expressions

   • Prefiero (I prefer)
     • Example: Prefiero el té al café. (I prefer tea to coffee.)
   • Soy alérgico/a a (I am allergic to)
     • Example: Soy alérgico/a a los frutos secos. (I am allergic to nuts.)

Descriptive Adjectives for Food

Adjectives help us describe food. Here are some to remember:

• Delicioso/a - delicious
• Soso/a - bland
• Picante - spicy
• Dulce - sweet
• Amargo/a - bitter
• Salado/a - salty

Example Sentences

Here are a few sentences to show how to use this vocabulary:

• En la cena, me gusta comer pollo asado con arroz.
  (For dinner, I like to eat roasted chicken with rice.)

• Prefiero el helado de chocolate porque es muy dulce.
  (I prefer chocolate ice cream because it’s very sweet.)

• No me gusta el pescado, pero me encanta el pollo.
  (I do not like fish, but I love chicken.)

With this vocabulary, you can join in conversations about meals, your cooking likes, and what you enjoy in the kitchen. Keep practicing these words and phrases to get better at talking about food in Spanish!