Latest / Learn Spanish with Fexingo / Spanish Cooking Verbs: Chop and Dice
Transcript
- Lucas: Welcome back to the kitchen. It is good to be here again with you. Luna: Yeah. I missed our little cooking sessions. Last time we were grating cheese, right? Lucas: That is right. We did a lot of mixing and stirring. Now we need to get the vegetables ready first. Luna: Okay. So we start with the chopping? That sounds fun. Lucas: It is the foundation of many dishes. Let us start with the most important one. Listen closely. Lucas: Picar la cebolla. Luna: Picar la cebolla. Lucas: Exactly. Picar means to chop or mince. La cebolla is the onion. Luna: Oh, I love onions. But my eyes always water when I do this. Lucas: I know. It is very common. Just try to keep your focus on the knife. Lucas: Let us say it again together. Picar la cebolla. Luna: Picar la cebolla. Lucas: Perfect. You are getting faster now. Luna: Thanks. Okay, what about the tomatoes? Those are slippery. Lucas: They can be. For tomatoes, we usually just cut them into slices or chunks. Lucas: Listen to this phrase. Cortar los tomates. Luna: Cortar los tomates. Lucas: Good. Cortar is to cut. Los tomates are the tomatoes. Luna: Cortar los tomates. That seems easier than chopping an onion. Lucas: It is. You just slice them gently. Do not press too hard. Lucas: Repeat it with me. Cortar los tomates. Luna: Cortar los tomates. Lucas: Very clear pronunciation. I like that. Luna: Okay, so we have chopped onions and cut tomatoes. What next? Lucas: Now we want them to look neat. Uniform pieces cook better. Lucas: We say: Hacer cubos pequeños. Luna: Hacer cubos pequeños. Lucas: Yes. Hacer is to make or to do. Cubos are cubes. Pequeños means small. Luna: Make small cubes. Oh, I see. Like little dice shapes. Lucas: Exactly like dice. It makes the dish look professional. Luna: Hacer cubos pequeños. I can do that. Lucas: You certainly can. Let us practice the whole rhythm. Lucas: Hacer cubos pequeños. Luna: Hacer cubos pequeños. Lucas: Great. Almost there. One last big step for today. Luna: Oh no. Is it harder? My arms are tired from chopping. Lucas: No, it is actually the best part. This is called the base flavor. Lucas: Preparar el sofrito. Luna: Preparar el sofrito. Lucas: Correct. Preparar is to prepare. El sofrito is that delicious fried tomato and onion base. Luna: So we take our chopped onions and cut tomatoes, and we prepare the base? Lucas: Yes. You put them in the pan with oil. Then everything smells amazing. Luna: Preparar el sofrito. That sounds wonderful. Lucas: It really is. Let us run through all four phrases quickly. Lucas: First, picar la cebolla. Luna: Picar la cebolla. Lucas: Second, cortar los tomates. Luna: Cortar los tomates. Lucas: Third, hacer cubos pequeños. Luna: Hacer cubos pequeños. Lucas: And fourth, preparar el sofrito. Luna: Preparar el sofrito. Lucas: You are doing so well. It feels natural now. Luna: I feel like I am already standing at the stove. Lucas: That is the goal. To make you confident in the kitchen. Luna: Do you think we should make dinner tonight using these words? Lucas: We could. It would be a good way to remember them forever. Luna: Okay. I will buy the onions. You bring the knives. Lucas: Deal. I will handle the cutting board. Luna: This was really helpful. Thank you, Lucas. Lucas: Thank you for practicing with me. Keep these phrases close. Luna: I will use them every time I cook. Lucas: Before we finish, I want to mention something about the show. Luna: Sure. What is on your mind? Lucas: If Fexingo has been helping you make actual progress with this language... Luna: It definitely has for me. The repetition really works. Lucas: We do not have ads. A small group of listeners supports us directly. Luna: Yeah, I saw some comments about that earlier. Lucas: If you can, please check out buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo — that's F. E. X. I. N. G. O. Luna: It keeps the episodes coming. And it helps keep the quality high. Lucas: Every bit helps. But only if you want to. No pressure at all. Luna: I might just do that later. Thanks for mentioning it. Lucas: Of course. Now, let us go back to our imaginary kitchen. Luna: Right. Back to the food. Lucas: Remember to say picar la cebolla before you start crying. Luna: Ha. I will try. Cortar los tomates next. Lucas: Then make sure you are making those tiny cubes. Luna: Hacer cubos pequeños. Got it. Lucas: And finally, enjoy the smell of your sofrito. Luna: Preparar el sofrito. Yes. Lucas: You have mastered the basics of chopping today. Luna: I feel ready to cook a real meal. Lucas: I believe you. Practice these until we meet again. Luna: See you next time. Bye for now. Lucas: Bye. Keep chopping.