SaltShaker

If you got here from an external link, the online dictionary no longer exists. It was always a precursor to the publshed work, which is available by clicking on one of the links in the righthand column here. What I am going to use this page for are corrections and additions. The plan is to keep enriching the dictionary as I discover more palabras or additional definitions that I simply wasn’t aware of, or left out for one reason or another, or, mea culpa, made mistakes on, in the current edition. Since I purposely had the book laid out with plenty of white space to scribble notes in, there should be room to add these items in to your copy. I do plan to release a second edition, probably a year or so after the first, with all these updates - I’m going to list these by month as I add them, so that it makes it easier to find stuff you haven’t added yet, should you care to come back and see what’s changing. And, of course, if you have any corrections or suggestions for inclusion of your own as you discover them, please pass them on to be added in.

May 2008

acuyo - Mexican pepperleaf, an herb with an anise flavor (México)
chaya - tree spinach, an herb native to the Yucatán (México)
pota - large/giant squid (Perú)
tentempié - snack

April 2008

barbilla - chin
calcio - calcium
cemita - chili-spiced pork or beef and avocado sandwich, traditional street food from Pueblo, Mexico, often flavored with papalo, sometimes referred to as a cemita poblano
cloruro - chloride
enranciar - to turn rancid
jambonon - platter of mixed cold cuts, cured meats, cheeses and seasonal fruits
mentón - chin
nitrato - nitrate
nitrito - nitrite
papada - dewlap or second chin of an animal, chin/neck fat
papalo - herb with a taste similar to cilantro but with a peppery bite, traditional in the cuisine of Pueblo, Mexico; summer cilantro
ponerse rancia/o - to turn rancid
podrir - to rot
potasio - potassium
pudrir - to rot
ranciar - to turn rancid
sal nitritada - curing salt

March 2008

ajipuerro - hyacinth bulb, lamponi (Italian)
ajotrino - hyacinth bulb, lamponi (Italian)
barrilla - saltwort
bisalto - snowpea
cardo - cardoon
chino - chinoise or china cap (fine mesh strainer)
cortatrufas - truffle slicer
cortaverduras mandolina - mandoline slicer
endíbia escarola - escarole
endíbia rizada - frisée
escorzonera - salsify
espárrago argenteuil - white asparagus
excavar - to scoop out, to hollow out
fuente - serving dish
fuente de agua potable - drinking fountain, water cooler
fuente de soda - soda fountain, ice cream counter or cafe
grasa dorsal - fatback
guisante capuchino - snowpea
llenarse - to stuff oneself, e.g., “me llene!” - “I’m stuffed!”
machacador - press, like a garlic press or a potato ricer
mandolina - mandoline slicer
mastuerzo - watercress (also slang for “oaf”)
mondapatatas - potato peeler (obscure and rarely used)
prensa de café - coffee press, French press
sacabolas - melon baller
tijeras - scissors
vaciar - to scoop out balls, e.g., melon balls
 vacia/o - empty
 vaciador - melon baller

February 2008

chambota - slow cooked mix of eggplant, red bell peppers, and onions in olive oil, usually roasted or grilled and then left to permeate with the oil, herbs, and spices
entreverado - mixed grill of offal (Colombia)
médula - bone marrow
mayonesa/salsa cortada - broken mayonnaise/sauce
pajarilla - spleen
sangrita - spicy tomato juice based blend usually mixed with tequila (Mexico)
vasar - kitchen shelf

January 2008

acedera - sorrel (Cuba, Spain)
acharas - vegetable pickles , often mixed (Cuba)
acompañamiento - side dish, garnish
ahuañe - Patagonia dish of grated potato cooked wrapped in leaves of a local bush called pengue (Argentina)
ajo porro - leek
albérchigo - apricot
alfóncigo/alfócigo/alfónsigo - pistachio
almeixa - prune
amalgamar - to mix thoroughly to obtain a homogenous mixture
apio criollo - Andean root vegetable somewhere in between a white carrot and a celery root, must be cooked to eat (Arracacia xanthorriza - Venezuela)
arracacha - Andean root vegetable somewhere in between a white carrot and a celery root, must be cooked to eat (Arracacia xanthorriza - Colombia, word originally from Quechua)
asado pejerrey - eye of round of beef (Perú)
cahuote - cayote (northeastern Argentina)
calabaza cabello de ángel - cayote
cerner/cernir - to sieve, to sift
chacarero - sandwich of grilled steak with steamed green beans, cheese, and tomatoes (Chile)
chuañe - Patagonia dish of grated potato cooked wrapped in leaves of a local bush called pengue (Argentina)
cocuy - sugarcane liquor (Venezuela)
contorno - side dish, garnish
cura - avocado (Venezuela)
custe - eye of round of beef (México)
huelquen - Patagonian grated potato cake (Argentina)
impregnar - to soak, to impregnate
manteca fundida - melted butter
manteca pomada - creamed butter
manteca quemada - brown(ed) butter
mucha-cho - eye of round of beef (Colombia)
 muchacho redondo - eye of round of beef (Venezuela)
olle - sugarcane liquor (Guatemala)
onoto - annatto (Venezuela)
pagua - avocado (Cuba)
pollo ganso - eye of round of beef (Chile)
desprender - to remove, to unmold
pulpa chorizo - eye of round of beef (Uruguay)
racacha - Andean root vegetable somewhere in between a white carrot and a celery root, must be cooked to eat (Arracacia xanthorriza - Colombia - word originally from Quechua)
salón - eye of round of beef (Ecuador)
virraca - Andean root vegetable somewhere in between a white carrot and a celery root, must be cooked to eat (Arracacia xanthorriza - Perú)
yuyo - seaweed (short for cuchayuyo) (Perú)
zanahoria blanca - white carrot; also Andean root vegetable somewhere in between a white carrot and a celery root, must be cooked to eat (Arracacia xanthorriza - Ecuador)

December 2007

cacho - piece (e.g., pizza)
cal - lime (chemical)
cuñape - yuca/tapioca flour and cheese bread (Bolivia)
pizza de cancha/pizza canchera - pizza that’s sold, often at ambient temperature, by the slice, at the futbol/soccer stadium (cancha also refers to a playing field) (Argentina)
doradura - literally “gilding”, used in pastry work to refer to a glaze prepared from milk, egg yolk, sugar, and a pinch of salt
frangipani - frangipane, almond pastry cream
horma - mold, pattern - used to refer to a whole cheese - “una horma de cheddar” (Rio de la Plata)
masa de hojaldre - puff pastry
pectina - pectin
pinchar - to prick, to pierce
tirarse - to stretch out

November 2007

aguamiel - mead
bambula - cheesecloth
bamia - okra (Argentina)
biznaga - barrel cactus used to make dulce de biznaga, a candied cactus pulp (Mexico)
carozo - pit or stone of a fruit (Rio de la Plata)
chiles en nogada - Independence Day celebratory dish of poblano peppers filled with ground meat, nuts, and candied fruit, with a creamy cheese and nut sauce, topped with pomegranate seeds (Mexico)
costeleta - chop, e.g., pork or lamb chop
desgasificar - to deflate (e.g., souffle or bread dough)
dulce de biznaga - candied barrel cactus (Mexico)
fermentar - to ferment, to rise (dough)
gombo - okra (Mexico)
ocra - okra (Spain)
quigombo - okra
sopletar - to torch; to spray (Argentina, Chile, Uruguay)
 soplete - torch; spray bottle (Argentina, Chile, Uruguay)
subir - to rise (e.g., dough, souffle)
tamizar - to sift
tacho - pan (slang, Rio de la Plata); rubbish bin, wastebasket
tindalización - tindalization, tyndallization - a form of repeated sterilization to prevent bacterial spore growth - often used in the canning process

October 2007

embudo - funnel
gallineta nórdica - ocean perch, red rockfish
pipedrón - peppermint (Argentina)
trigo mote - parboiled and hulled wheatberries
yacón - jicama (Andes)
zaragatona - psyllium

September 2007

bérbero - barberry
bifera - stovetop grill pan for steaks, etc.
bizcocho/biscocho - sponge cake, cake, biscuit, pastry, cookie; bun (Rio de la Plata) (also slang for “really cute” or “really sexy” - “Que biscocho!”)
 plancha de bizcocho - sheet cake
chicharro - horse mackerel, scad, saurel
choto - kid, young goat (also slang in Rio de la Plata area for idiot or crazy); roasted small intestine, see chinchulin (Uruguay)
difusor de calor - heat difuser
fresno alpestre - rowan or mountain ash berry
ginseng - ginseng
grosella blanca - gooseberry
grosella colorada - red currant
grosella verde - gooseberry
jurel - horse mackerel, scad, saurel
lulun - naranjilla (Mexico)
maca - bruise (on fruit); Peruvian ginseng
maka - Peruvian ginseng
mariscos - shellfish, seafood
mirto - myrtle
paloma - pigeon, squab
petaca - flask (for drinking) (also refers to a variety of other things - tobacco pouch, suitcase, makeup compact, washing trough, and buttocks, so be careful of context)
pichón - young pigeon, squab, young bird
roseta - round bread loaf (Argentina)
rosetas - popcorn
surel - horse mackerel, scad, saurel
tomate arbol - tree tomato
toronjo - naranjilla (Colombia)
zapallo loche - butternut squash, winter squash

August 2007

atar - to tie
 atado - literally “tied”, but as a noun used to mean a “bundle”
chimichurri - hamburger with the works (Dominican Republic)
colgar - to hang (for culinary purposes, used in regard to hanging meat for aging)
garra - claw (bird)
grumo - lump (e.g., in gravy)
huele - smell, odor
killi - quirquiña, Bolivian coriander
loto - lotus
 raí­z de loto - lotus root
machacar - to crush
 machacada/o - crushed
merkén/merquén - ground spice mixture of dried and toasted cacho de cabra chilies, coriander seed, salt, and pepper (Chile)
nata ácida/agria - sour cream
navaja - razor clam
oler - to smell
paisana - while literally meaning a female peasant, used to refer to a coarse cut of vegetables, roughly a 1-inch dice
panopea - geoduck
perilla - shiso, beefsteak plant
pilón - sugar loaf (Mexico); pestle
soplete - torch [this is correct in the Spanish to English section, but isn’t defined in the English to Spanish side of the book]
tararira - freshwater dogfish, wolf-fish, or tiger fish
trahira - freshwater dogfish, wolf-fish, or tiger fish
tuétano (del hueso) - bone marrow
yuyo - herb, weed, condiment; wall rocket or wild arugula (Diplotaxis muralis)