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Last updated:
February 21, 2022
62 Delicious Words to Master German Food Vocabulary
If you really want to improve not only your German language skills, but also your understanding of Germany itself, it’s time to sit down with a knife and fork.
This article will introduce you to more than 60 important German food vocabulary words for your shopping, cooking and dining needs.
I’ll also give you some study tips to incorporate these words and German food culture as a whole into your life.
Contents
- Basic German Dishes and Food Culture
- Tips for Top Chef Status in Your German Kitchen
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- Get Familiar with German Food Measurements
- Be Aware of Grammatical Gender and Plurals
- Make Grocery Shopping a Learning Experience
- Cook German Recipes
- 62 Useful German Food Vocabulary Words for Hungry Language Learners
-
- Typisch Deutsche Lebensmittel (Typical German Foods)
- Essen Beschreiben (Describing Food)
- Grundnahrungsmittel (Basic Foods)
- Obst und Gemüse (Fruits and Vegetables)
- Tierprodukte (Animal Products)
- Süsses (Sweets)
Download:
This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you
can take anywhere.
Click here to get a copy. (Download)
Basic German Dishes and Food Culture
Every German likes a hearty, traditional, home-cooked meal. Preferably some Sauerbraten (a type of pot roast), Bratwurst (German sausage) or Käsespätzle (a German noodle dish), but there’s a lot of variety between regions. Typical German food is rather heavy and often includes meat, accompanied by some side dish such as noodles, potatoes or dumplings in all forms.
While German food remains popular, we can also see a trend toward a more international cuisine. One of Germany’s favorite dishes is Spaghetti Bolognese, which is meaty but not very German. If you don’t like meat, don’t worry—you’ll be able to find vegetarian options.
For those who like it sweet, Germany’s cuisine is also filled with delicious cakes and pastries. You can also find an incredible range of chocolates, cookies and candies on the store shelves.
Typically, Germans start their day with a nice breakfast, consisting of a bread roll or a slice of wholegrain bread with ham and cheese, or butter and jam, all washed down with a strong cup of coffee. Some people prefer healthier options such as cereal with fruit.
Lunch is considered the main meal of the day. Dinner is usually a smaller, cold meal including an assortment of deli meats and sausages, cheese, German wholegrain bread and a variety of vegetables.
However, with today’s busy lifestyles many people eat their warm meal in the evening.
Many families keep traditions up by having a fancy, home-cooked German family lunch on weekends.
Tips for Top Chef Status in Your German Kitchen
Get Familiar with German Food Measurements
Before you get out your measuring cups, it’s important to know that Germans use the metric system. Gramm/g (grams), Liter/l (liters) and Kilogramm/kg (kilograms) are the main measurements you need for grocery shopping and cooking in Germany. They also use Celsius/C instead of Fahrenheit.
Don’t worry, you don’t need to buy new scales and measurement tools—you can simply use a conversion chart or an online conversion tool.
Some German recipes also use the U.S. measurements TL/Teelöffel (teaspoon) and EL/Esslöffel (tablespoon).
Be Aware of Grammatical Gender and Plurals
As you probably know, all German nouns come with an article. We’ve got the masculine der, the feminine die, the neutral das and the plural die.
Be aware that some foods, such as das Obst (fruit) der Reis (rice) and die Butter (butter) don’t have a plural word. If you need to use them in plural, you can simply use the singular article plus the singular noun. For some other German words, such as der Zucker (sugar), das Gemüse (vegetables) and der Käse (cheese), the plural form is the same as the singular, but the article changes.
The easiest way to memorize food vocabulary with the correct articles is to label items around your house with the article included. In other words, think of the article as a permanent part of the word itself.
Don’t have the time or patience to draw up all those labels yourself? Just grab some Vocabulary Stickers, which are fun, durable vocabulary labels for household items including food and kitchen words. The best part is they all come color-coded according to the article, which makes them that much more memorable.
If you’re interested in learning more about German cuisine in action, you can check out some recipe videos on FluentU, for treats like Chocolate Cream Bars or Pflück-Schnecken (Plucking-Snails), an imaginatively named pastry. With interactive captions that give you in-video definitions, pronunciations and further usage examples, you’ll have all the ingredients you need to cook up authentic German learning.
Make Grocery Shopping a Learning Experience
Every trip to a German food market will automatically turn into a great learning experience. Just take your time, read the different labels and try to memorize the names of different items.
Even if you haven’t had the chance to visit Germany yet, you can still turn your grocery shopping into a fun vocabulary game at home. Just write your shopping list in German with the help of your German textbook or dictionary and then try to find the right items at the store.
Pro tip: being able to talk about quantities comes in handy during grocery shopping or when ordering food at a restaurant. When asking for a quantity “of” something, Germans simply skip the “of.” For example:
ein Stück Kuchen – a slice of cake
drei Kilogramm Äpfel – three kilograms of apples
100 Gramm Schinken – 100 grams of ham
eine Scheibe Käse – one slice of cheese
zwei Säcke Kartoffeln – two bags of potatoes
ein bisschen Zucker – a bit of sugar
ein Glas Wasser – a glass of water
Cook German Recipes
What would you like to cook today? Some hearty meat dish or maybe some sweet German dessert?
German recipes are a great way to test your vocabulary knowledge. If you don’t feel confident about it yet, don’t worry, you can still use your dictionary.
The website Essen & Trinken (Eat & Drink) provides you with a great variety of easy recipes, for every taste.
Typisch Deutsche Lebensmittel (Typical German Foods)
A small selection of foods that you’ll eat a lot when in Germany:
Das Schwarzbrot/die Schwarzbrote
German bread, typically of dark brown color and made with wholemeal rye flour. You’ll find a huge selection of Schwarzbrot in German bakeries and grocery stores.
Die Brezel/die Brezeln
A type of baked bread product made from dough shaped into a twisted knot.
Der Leberkäse (no plural)
Also called Fleischkäse, this is a German meatloaf and common snack food in the south of Germany.
Der Quark (no plural)
Quark is a type of fresh dairy product, somewhat similar to soft fresh cheese. It can be used for everything from cake recipes to dips and low fat spreads.
Das Sauerkraut (no plural)
Sauerkraut is cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria. In Germany it’s a very common side dish.
Die Bratwurst/die Bratwürste
A German sausage usually made from pork and often served with Sauerkraut.
Die Weißwurst/die Weißwürste
A traditional white sausage from Bavaria, made from minced veal and pork back bacon.
Der Süße Senf (no plural)
Sweet mustard that comes from the south of Germany and is very common with sausages.
Essen Beschreiben (Describing Food)
lecker (delicious)
süß (sweet)
sauer (sour)
bitter (bitter)
salzig (salty)
scharf (spicy)
leicht (light)
schwer (heavy)
Grundnahrungsmittel (Basic Foods)
| Singular | Plural | Translation |
| das Brot | die Brote | bread |
| der Reis | – | rice |
| die Nudel | die Nudeln | noodles |
| der Zucker | die Zucker | sugar |
| der Honig | die Honige | honey |
| die Marmelade | die Marmeladen | jam |
| das Mehl | – | flour |
| das Öl | die Öle | oil |
| der Essig | die Essige | vinegar |
| das Salz | die Salze | salt |
| der Pfeffer | die Pfeffer | pepper |
Obst und Gemüse (Fruits and Vegetables)
| Singular | Plural | Translation |
| der Apfel | die Äpfel | apple |
| die Banane | die Bananen | banana |
| die Orange | die Orangen | orange |
| die Zitrone | die Zitronen | lemons |
| die Erdbeere | die Erdbeeren | strawberry |
| die Himbeere | die Himbeeren | raspberry |
| die Brombeere | die Brombeeren | blackberry |
| die Kartoffel | die Kartoffeln | potato |
| die Karotte | die Karotten | carrot |
| die Zwiebel | die Zwiebeln | onion |
| der Knoblauch | – | garlic |
| die Erbse | die Erbsen | pea |
| die Bohne | die Bohnen | bean |
| die Tomate | die Tomaten | tomato |
| die Gurke | die Gurken | cucumber |
| der grüne Salat | die grünen Salate | lettuce |
| der Spinat | die Spinate | spinach |
| der Kohl | die Kohle | cabbage |
Tierprodukte (Animal Products)
| Singular | Plural | Translation |
| die Milch | die Milche | milk (hardly ever used in plural) |
| die Butter | – | butter |
| das Ei | die Eier | egg |
| der Käse | die Käse | cheese |
| der Schinken | die Schinken | ham |
| die Wurst | die Würste | sausage |
| das Schweinefleisch | – | pork |
| das Rindfleisch | – | beef |
| das Hühnerfleisch | – | chicken |
| das Putenfleisch | – | turkey |
| der Fisch | – | fish |
Süsses (Sweets)
| Singular | Plural | Translation |
| die Schokolade | die Schokladen | chocolate |
| das Bonbon | die Bonbons | candy |
| die Eiscreme | die Eiscremes | ice cream |
| der Keks | die Kekse | cookie |
| der Kuchen | die Kuchen | cake |
Feeling hungry yet? I bet you do.
So, let’s prepare some German food then!
Download:
This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you
can take anywhere.
Click here to get a copy. (Download)
n
a Essen nt , (for animals)
Futter nt
(=nourishment) Nahrung f
(=foodstuff) Nahrungsmittel nt
(=groceries) Lebensmittel pl
the food is awful here das Essen hier ist scheußlich
dog and cat food Hunde- und Katzenfutter
food and drink Essen und Trinken
milk is a food rather than a drink Milch ist eher ein Nahrungsmittel als ein Getränk
canned foods Konserven pl
I haven’t any food in the house ich habe nichts zu essen im Haus
to be off one’s food keinen Appetit haben
they also do food at the pub in der Kneipe gibt es auch Essen
the very thought of food made her ill wenn sie nur ans Essen dachte, wurde ihr schon schlecht
b (fig) Nahrung f
food for thought Stoff m zum Nachdenken
angel food cake n (US) Biskuitkuchen m
baby food n Babynahrung f
basic food n , basic foodstuffs pl Grundnahrungsmittel pl
comfort food n Essen nt , das als Trost dient
devil’s food cake n (esp US) schwere Schokoladentorte
dog food n Hundefutter nt
fast food n Fastfood nt , Fast Food nt
he lives mainly on fast food er ernährt sich hauptsächlich von Fastfood or Fast Food or von Schnellgerichten
fast-food chain n Fastfoodkette f , Fast-Food-Kette f , Schnellimbisskette f
fast-food outlet n Fastfoodlokal nt , Fast-Food-Lokal nt , Schnellimbiss m
fast-food restaurant n Fastfoodrestaurant nt , Fast-Food-Restaurant nt , Schnellimbiss m
fine-food shop n Feinkostgeschäft nt
finger food n Appetithappen pl
food additives pl chemische Zusätze pl
food aid n Lebensmittelhilfe f
food chain n Nahrungskette f
to get into the food chain in die Nahrungskette gelangen
food court n (US) Imbiss-Bereich m (in einem Einkaufszentrum etc)
food parcel n Lebensmittelpaket nt
food poisoning n Lebensmittelvergiftung f
food processor n Küchenmaschine f
food rationing n Lebensmittelrationierung f
food stamp n (US) Lebensmittelmarke f
food value n Nährwert m
frozen food n Tiefkühlkost f
frozen food compartment Tiefkühlfach nt , Gefrierfach nt
health food n Reformkost f
health food shop , (Brit) health food store (esp US) n Reformhaus nt , Bioladen m , Naturkostladen m
junk food n Junk food nt inf , ungesundes Essen
pet food n Tierfutter nt
skin food n Nahrung f für die Haut
I’ve composed a list to help you understand what you’re buying in der Supermarkt (the supermarket). I’ve listed basic everyday food below and I’ve also added the plural to each one. The general rule when saying an object is plural in the nominative and accusative cases is that the gender changes to “die”: for example der Apfel is just one apple, but many apples would be die Äpfel.
Obst
Fruit
die Banane(n) Banana(s)
der (die) (Ä)Apfel Apple(s)
die Feige(n) Fig(s)
die Traube(n) Grape(s)
die Birne(n) Pear(s)
die Ananas Pineapple(s)
die Wassermelone(n) Watermelon(s)
die Orange(n) Orange(s)
Gemuse
Vegetables
die Karotte(n) Carrot(s)
die Kartoffel(n) Potato(es)
die Zucchini(s) Courgette(s) – for all the American readers it would of course be zucchini, an easy one to remember!
die Paprika(s) Pepper(s) (as in bell pepper) – put the colour before just as you would do in English. For example die rote (red) Paprika, die gelbe (yellow) Paprika, die grüne (green) Paprika.
der Mais Sweetcorn (there is no plural for this, and therefore remains “der”)
der (die) Maiskolben Corn on the cob(s) – note that the “n” stays at the end when it’s singular too!
die Zwiebel(n) Onion(s)
der (die) Knoblauch(zehen) Garlic(cloves)
die Bohne(n) Bean(s)
die Erbse(n) Pea(s)
Fleisch
Meat
Here a lot of the words have no plural variation. For example in English you would say “the beef” whether it was singular or plural, which is the same in German in this case.
das Rindfleisch Beef
das Schweinefleisch Pork
der Speck Bacon
das (die) Hähnchen Chicken(s)
Milchprodukte
dairy
der (die) Käse Cheese
die Milch Milk
der (die) Joghurt(s) Yoghurt(s)
die Butter Butter
der Quark Quark
alles Andere
Everything else
der (die) Chip(s) Crisp(s) – or chips to the American readers!
die Pommes Chips/Fries
der Reis Rice
die Nudel(n) Pasta – although a lot of German’s now say pasta as well.
der (die) Kamillen/Pfefferminz/Früchttee(s) Chamomile/peppermint/fruit tea(s)
der Kaffee Coffee
der Thunfisch Tuna
die Sardelle(n) Anchovy(ies)
der (die) Lachs(e) Salmon
das (die) Öl(e) Oil
das Mehl Flour
der Honig Honey
die Nu(ü)ss(e) Nut(s)
das (die) Brot(e) Bread
If you want to know any other translations of food leave a comment below and I’ll be happy to answer it!
Tschüss,
Larissa
To moisten the food we recommend Backs Glut-Amin or Backs Omega Plus oil.
Zum Anfeuchten des Futters empfehlen wir Backs Glut-Amin oder Backs Omega-Plus-Öl.
To dry the food we recommend Backs VI-SPU-MIN.
Zum Abtrocknen des Futters empfehlen wir Backs VI-SPU-MIN.
Why should we never refreeze food?
Food of the week: Brunch at Parker Bowles.
FOOD DER WOCHE: Brunch im Parker Bowles.
Restaurants, food, and beverages.
The composition of the food refers to the form of powder.
Die Angaben zur Zusammensetzung des Futters beziehen sich auf die Pulverform.
Consequently, every part of the food receives the same heating temperature.
Already the different shape of the food, e. g.
Schon die andere Form des Futters, z.
Use them for covering food and to maintain food moist while cooking.
Zum Abdecken von Gerichten und Aufrechterhaltung der Feuchtigkeit des Gerichtes beim Kochen.
Endocrine Disruptors and Food.
Food and water consumption if relevant.
Futter- und Wasserverbrauch sofern relevant.
You prefer Italian food and only opt for Chinese on occasion.
Man isst am liebsten italienisch und nur in Ausnahmefällen chinesisch.
AZIMUT Food and water dispenser. Capacity from 0,6 to 5,5 L.
AZIMUT Futter- und Wasserspender. Fassungsvermögen von 0,6l bis 5,5l.
Tom isst gerne italienisch.
I like Italian food better anyway.
Ich esse sowieso lieber italienisch.
Her favourite food is French fries and apple sauce.
and she has to die.
Am liebsten isst sie Pommes und Apfelmus. Und sie muss sterben.
Ich esse chinesisch.
Ich esse gerne Chinesisch. Chinesisch.
You just said Mexican food and I grew a third butt cheek.
Du sagtest du isst Mexikanisch und mir wächst eine dritte Pobacke.
What’s your very favorite food in the whole wide world?
Was isst du am liebsten in der ganzen Welt?
Ich esse gern koreanisch.
We had such good food here, I still can’t believe it.
Wir haben hier so gut gegessen, ich kanns immer noch nicht glauben.
Sturdy food or water crock with high edge.
Stabiler Futter- oder Wassernapf mit hohem Rand.
Travel Dog Water and Food Storage.
Travel Dog Futter- und Wasseraufbewahrungsdose.
Dog blanket, food& water bowl in your room.
Hundedecke, Futter-& Wasserschüssel am Zimmer.
I enjoy food and basically eat everything.
Ich esse gerne und bin eine typische Allesesserin.
The mother got baby milk, food and vitamin supplements for a long time.
Die Mutter bekam Babymilch, -nahrung und Vitaminpräparate für einen langen Zeitraum.
Food and alcoholic beverage services from 11am to 11pm.
Essen- und Getränkeservice(mit Alkohol) von 11.00 bis 23.00 Uhr.
BOBO the Penguin’s favourite food is fish, with a portion of ice-cream for dessert.
Am liebsten isst Pinguin BOBO Fisch und als Nachspeise eine Portion Eis.
Which habitat, food and activity demands do the animals have?
Welche Lebensraum-, Futter- und Beschäftigungsansprüche stellen die Tiere?
Results: 105008,
Time: 0.0473
English
—
German
German
—
English
Этот материал – словарик по теме “Еда и готовка на немецком языке”. Здесь будут приведены все основные слова, связанные с продуктами питания и их приготовлением. Кроме того, мы напишем о том, как описывать вкус еды, и приведем примеры предложений по теме.
Основные продукты
Для начала приведем список базовых продуктов на немецком языке. В скобочках указано множественное число существительного.
das Essen – еда;
das Brot (мн. ч. die Brote) – хлеб;
das Weißbrot – белый хлеб;
das Mehl – мука;
das Öl (мн. ч. die Öle) – масло;
die Butter – сливочное масло;
die Margarine – маргарин;
die Milch (мн. ч. die Milche, редко используется) – молоко;
der Käse (мн. ч. die Käse) – сыр;
das Ei (мн. ч. die Eier) – яйцо;
der Reis – рис;
der Pilz (die Pilze) – гриб (грибы);
der Fisch – рыба;
das Fleisch – мясо;
das Schweinefleisch – свинина;
das Rindfleisch – говядина;
das Hühnerfleisch – курятина, мясо курицы;
das Putenfleisch – индюшатина, мясо индейки;
die Wurst (мн. ч. die Würste) – колбаса;
der Schinken (die Schinken) – ветчина;
der Zucker (мн. ч. die Zucker) – сахар;
das Salz (мн. ч. die Salze) – соль;
der Pfeffer (мн. ч. die Pfeffer) – перец;
der Essig (мн. ч. die Essige) – уксус;
der Senf (мн. ч. die Senfe) – горчица;
das Ketchup (мн. ч. die Ketchups) – кетчуп.
Напитки (die Getränke)
das Wasser – вода;
der Kaffee – кофе;
der Tee – чай;
das Bier – пиво;
der Wein – вино;
der [Obst]saft – (фруктовый) сок;
die Limonade – лимонад.
Сладости (die Süßigkeiten)
die Schokolade (die Schokladen) – шоколад;
die Marmelade (die Marmeladen) – джем, повидло;
der Honig (die Honige) – мёд;
das Bonbon (die Bonbons) – конфета;
die Eiscreme (die Eiscremes) – мороженное;
der Keks (die Kekse) – печенье;
der Kuchen (die Kuchen) – пирог; торт.
Овощи (das Gemüse)
die Kartoffel (die Kartoffeln) – картофель;
die Zwiebel (die Zwiebeln) – лук;
der Knoblauch – чеснок;
die Karotte (die Karotten) – морковь;
der Kohl (die Kohle) – капуста;
die Tomate (die Tomaten) – томат (томаты);
die Gurke (die Gurken) – огурец (огурцы);
die Erbse (die Erbsen) – горох;
die Bohne (die Bohnen) – боб; фасоль;
der Salat (die Salate) – салат;
der grüne Salat (die grünen Salate) – салат-латук;
der Spinat (die Spinate) – шпинат.
Фрукты (das Obst)
der Apfel (die Äpfel) – яблоко;
die Birne (die Birnen) – груша;
die Orange (die Orangen) – апельсин;
die Zitrone (die Zitronen) – лимон;
die Banane (die Bananen) – банан;
der Pfirsich (die Pfirsiche) – персик;
die Pflaume (die Pflaumen) – слива;
die Traube (die Trauben) – виноград.
Ягоды (die Beeren)
die Erdbeere (die Erdbeeren) – клубника, земляника;
die Himbeere (die Himbeeren) – малина;
die Brombeere (die Brombeeren) – ежевика;
die Kirsche (die Kirschen) – вишня.
Распространённые блюда
die Bratkartoffel – жареная картошка;
das Kartoffelpüree – картофельное пюре;
die Pommes Frites – картофель фри;
die Nudel (die Nudeln) – лапша;
das Kotelett [kɔt’lɛt, ‘kɔtlɛt, kotə’lɛt] – отбивная;
die Pizza – пицца;
die Suppe – суп.
Как описать вкус еды
lecker [ˈlɛkɐ] – вкусный, аппетитный; вкусно, аппетитно;
süß [zyːs] – сладкий;
sauer [ˈzauɐ] – кислый;
bitter [ˈbɪtɐ] – горький; горько;
salzig [ˈzalʦɪç] – солёный;
scharf [ʃarf] – острый;
fade – безвкусный; пресный;
zart – нежный;
frisch – свежий;
roh – сырой;
saftig – сочный;
leicht [laiçt] – легкий;
schwer [ʃveːɐ] – тяжелый.
Примеры описаний:
Lecker! – Вкусно!
Es ist köstlich. – Это вкусно.
Sehr saftig. – Очень сочно.
Es ist heiß! – Горячо!
Sehr gut. – Очень хорошо.
Ich finde es scharf. – Для меня это остро.
Ich finde es ein bisschen fade. – Мне это (блюдо) кажется немного пресным.
Die Suppe riecht / schmeckt sehr lecker. – Суп очень вкусно пахнет / имеет очень хороший вкус (schmecken – иметь вкус, riechen – пахнуть).
süß schmecken – иметь сладкий вкус
Die Trauben sind noch nicht süß. – Виноград пока ещё не сладкий.
Dieses Bier ist mir zu bitter. – Это пиво для меня слишком горькое.
Die Suppe ist mir zu salzig. – Суп слишком соленый для меня.
Глаголы, связанные с едой и готовкой
essen – есть;
trinken – пить;
Hunger haben – быть голодным;
Durst haben – испытывать жажду (хотеть пить);
satt sein – быть сытым, насытиться.
kochen – готовить, варить;
braten – жарить;
backen – печь;
verquirlen – взбивать, смешивать (ингредиенты блюда, напитка);
zusetzen – добавлять;
schneiden – резать; отрезать;
schälen – очищать (от кожуры, кожицы, скорлупы и т. п.);
spülen – мыть;
riechen – нюхать; пахнуть.
