Culinary Vocabulary

Food

By Lorena Fernández

Almojábana: Type of bread made with cheese and flour.

Arepa: Corn flour pattie that can come plain or stuffed with other ingredients. Popular as a breakfast food, can be found in Venezuela also.

Arequipe: Caramel made out of milk and cinnamon.

Arracacha: Elongated tuber that is brown on the outside and yellow on the incide.

Auyama: Though in the dictionary it means pumpkin, Colombians call auyama a type of squash with green peel and orange insides.

Batata: Sweet potato.

Bocadillo: A sweet made out of the guayaba fruit. Sometimes people call bocadillo a small snack.

Buñuelo: A deep-fried dough served as dessert with syrup on top.

Caldo corto: Broth made out of legumes and herbs. It is used to cook fish and sea food.

Cañon: Pork meat.

Caspiroleta: Drink made out of milk, eggs, brandy, cinnamon and sugar.

Changua: Soup made out of milk, onion, cilantro and egg.

Chicharrón: Fried pig’s skin.

Cuchuco: Barley and pig meat soup.

Curuba: Acid fruit of yellow skin and lots of small seeds.

Guasca: Edible leaf.

Malta: Sweet drink made out of barley, not fermented.

Merengues: Also known as besitos, or kisses, these sweets are a combination of egg whites and sugar beat and baked. They are found all over Latinamerica.

Muchacho relleno: Literally stuffed boy, the dish is actually stuffed beef.

Oblea: Thin sheet made of flour and water, baked in a round mold. It’s served with jams and sweet sauces or caramel.

Pasabocas: Finger foods served in social gatherings. Generally come in a toothpick or over a small cracker.

Patacón: Found in other adjacent countries, this side dish is made from plantains cut and squashed before going to the fryer.

Pocillo Tintero: A small cup of coffee.

Ponqué: Basic cake made out of flour, butter, eggs and sugar.

Salpicón: Drink made out of juice of varying flavor with diced fruit. It can also mean a beef or fish stew.

Tinto: Black, strong coffee.

Zapote: A fruit of green peel and fibrous, orange insides with one big seed in the middle.