Bia agus Cócaireacht (Food and Cooking)

Food and cooking vocabulary helps us share recipes, discuss meals, and talk about Irish cuisine. These words and phrases will help you describe food preparation and express your culinary preferences in Irish.

Kitchen Vocabulary

People and Places

• Cisteanóir (kish-tan-oar) = Cook
• Cistin (kish-tin) = Kitchen
• Bialann (bee-a-lan) = Restaurant
• Siopa bia (shup-a bee-a) = Food shop

Cooking Equipment

• Sorn (sorn) = Stove
• Oigheann (eye-an) = Oven
• Friochtán (fri-ukh-tawn) = Frying pan
• Pota (pot-a) = Pot
• Scian (shkee-an) = Knife
• Forc (fork) = Fork
• Spúnóg (spoo-nogue) = Spoon

Common Ingredients

Basic Ingredients

• Plúr (ploor) = Flour
• Siúcra (shoo-kra) = Sugar
• Salann (sal-an) = Salt
• Im (im) = Butter
• Uisce (ish-ka) = Water
• Bainne (ban-ya) = Milk
• Uibheacha (iv-akha) = Eggs

Vegetables and Fruits

• Prátaí (praw-tee) = Potatoes
• Cairéad (ka-raid) = Carrot
• Oinniún (in-yoon) = Onion
• Cabáiste (ka-bawsh-ta) = Cabbage
• Úlla (oo-la) = Apples
• Oráistí (or-awsh-tee) = Oranges

Meat and Fish

• Mairteoil (mart-yoal) = Beef
• Muiceoil (mik-yoal) = Pork
• Sicín (shi-keen) = Chicken
• Bradán (bra-dawn) = Salmon
• Iasc (ee-ask) = Fish

Cooking Verbs

• Cócaireacht (ko-kir-akht) = Cooking
• Bruith (brih) = Boil
• Bácáil (baw-kawl) = Bake
• Frioch (fri-ukh) = Fry
• Róst (roast) = Roast
• Griolladh (gril-a) = Grill
• Meascadh (mas-ka) = Mix
• Gearradh (gyar-a) = Cut
• Teascadh (chas-ka) = Chop

Meal Times

• Bricfeasta (brick-fast-a) = Breakfast
• Lón (loan) = Lunch
• Dinnéar (din-air) = Dinner
• Suipéar (sup-air) = Supper
• Béile (bay-la) = Meal
• Sneaic (snack) = Snack

Traditional Irish Dishes

• Stobhach Gaelach (stow-akh gay-lakh) = Irish stew
• Boxty (box-tee) = Potato pancake
• Coddle (cod-el) = Dublin coddle (sausage stew)
• Colcannon (kol-kan-un) = Mashed potatoes with kale/cabbage
• Arán sóide (ar-awn so-da) = Soda bread

Useful Phrases

• Is maith liom ___ (Iss mah lum ___) = I like ___
• Is breá liom ___ a ithe (Iss braw lum ___ a ih-ha) = I love to eat ___
• Is é ___ mo bhéile is fearr (Iss ay ___ muh vay-la iss far) = ___ is my favorite meal
• Conas a dhéanann tú ___? (kun-as a yay-nan too ___?) = How do you make ___?

Sample Recipe Conversation

A: An féidir leat arán sóide a dhéanamh? (On fay-dir lat ar-awn so-da a yay-nam?) = Can you make soda bread?

B: Is féidir! Ar dtús, meascaim plúr, salann agus babhla amháin. (Iss fay-dir! Ar doos, mas-kim ploor, sal-an ah-gus bow-la a-wawn.) = Yes! First, I mix flour, salt and baking soda.

A: Agus ansin? (Ah-gus an-shin?) = And then?

B: Cuirim bainne leis, bácálaim san oigheann é ar feadh daichead nóiméad. (Kir-im ban-ya lesh, baw-kawl-im san eye-an ay ar fyad dai-kad no-mad.) = I add milk to it, bake it in the oven for forty minutes.

Exercise: Talk about Cooking

Share your cooking experience by:

1. Listing five cooking ingredients in Irish
2. Describing how to make a simple dish
3. Using cooking verbs in sentences
4. Sharing your favorite meal times

Example answer:

1. Prátaí, oinniún, sicín, salann, im
2. Chun prátaí bruite a dhéanamh, gearraim na prátaí, cuirim iad i bpota le huisce agus salann, agus bruithim iad ar feadh fiche nóiméad.
3. Bácálaim arán gach Satharn. Friochaim uibheacha le haghaidh bricfeasta.
4. Is é dinnéar mo bhéile is fearr. Ithim dinnéar ar a sé tráthnóna de ghnáth.

(1. Potatoes, onion, chicken, salt, butter. 2. To make boiled potatoes, I cut the potatoes, put them in a pot with water and salt, and boil them for twenty minutes. 3. I bake bread every Saturday. I fry eggs for breakfast. 4. Dinner is my favorite meal. I usually eat dinner at six in the evening.)