German Cooking Vocabulary: 175 Words and Phrases

Rebecca Henderson Date Published: 1 Nov 2023 Date Modified: 22 Aug 2024

Cooking and baking are a crucial part of any culture, and German-language culture is no exception.

From bratwurst to black forest cherry cake, it offers a variety of sweet, salty and savory foods.

Whether you enjoy cooking or baking, or simply want to feast on the results, it’s essential to know how to talk about food and its preparation.

In this post, you’ll learn 175 German words and phrases related to cooking. Plus, find out where to find authentic German recipes!

Dishes and Utensils
Kitchen Tools
Cooking and Baking Verbs
Cooking Measurements
Baking Ingredients
Cooking Ingredients
Adjectives Related to Cooking and Food
Miscellaneous Cooking and Baking Terms
Where to Find Authentic German Recipes
And One More Thing...

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

Dishes and Utensils

Here are some terms to help you set the table and serve your German dishes:

German	English
*der Teller*	plate
*die Schüssel*	bowl
*die Tasse*	cup
*das Weinglas*	wineglass
*der Becher*	mug
*die Teetasse*	teacup
*die Untertasse*	saucer
*die Teekanne*	teapot
*der Löffel*	spoon
*die Gabel*	fork
*das Messer*	knife
*die Serviette*	napkin
*die Tischdecke*	tablecloth
*das Tischset*	placemat

Kitchen Tools

Let’s look at the different vocabulary for the essential tools of cooking and baking:

German	English
der Spatel	spatula
die Kelle	ladle
die Zange	tongs
die Schaufel	scoop
der Schneebesen	whisk
die Schere	scissors
die Pfanne or die Bratpfanne	(frying) pan / skillet
der Schongarer	slow cooker / crock-pot
der Topf	pot
der Kochtopf	saucepan
der Deckel	lid
das Sieb	strainer
das Schneidebrett	cutting board
das Backblech	baking sheet
die Backform	baking pan/tin
die Reibe	grater
die Alufolie	tinfoil/aluminum foil
das Backpapier	parchment paper
der Zahnstocher	toothpick
der Ofen	oven
der Grill	grill
der Herd	stove
die Mikrowelle	microwave
die Heißluftfritteuse	air fryer
die Küchenmaschine	food processor
der Kühlschrank	refrigerator
der Tiefkühlschrank	freezer
die Geschirrspülmaschine	dishwasher

Cooking and Baking Verbs

We’ve got the table set and the stove ready! How do we refer to our actions when cooking and baking? Here’s a list to start you off:

German	English
backen	to bake
braten	to roast
kochen	to cook
frittieren	to fry
grillen	to grill
sautieren or anschwitzen	to sauté
köcheln	to simmer
kochen	to boil
dämpfen	to steam
schmoren	to stew/to braise
flambieren	to flambé
mischen	to blend
vermischen	to mix
rühren	to stir
schaufeln	to scoop
schneiden	to cut
hacken	to chop
abschneiden	to slice
vorbereiten	to prepare
putzen	to clean
vorheizen	to preheat
auspressen	to squeeze
messen	to measure
schmecken	to taste
schälen	to peel
wieder aufwärmen	to reheat
marinieren	to marinate
pürieren	to puree
auftauen	to defrost
zerdrücken	to mash
einlegen	to pickle
überziehen	to glaze
abgießen	to drain
kneten	to knead
filetieren	to fillet
einweichen	to soak
bröseln	to crumb
ausrollen	to roll out
auflösen	to dissolve

For more context—including visuals and example situations—you can look up these vocabulary on FluentU.

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Cooking Measurements

Authentic German recipes call for measurements in metric, rather than U.S. standard. My Best German Recipes offers a great resource for converting from metric to standard. This site also has fluid ounce-milliliter, cups-grams and Celcius-Fahrenheit conversion tools.

Here are some measuring terms to help you when cooking and baking:

German	English
die Tasse	cup
der Teelöffel	teaspoon
der Esslöffel	tablespoon
das Pfund	pound
die Unze	ounce
das Gramm	gram
das Milligramm	milligram
das Kilogramm	kilogram
der Milliliter	millileter
der Liter	liter
die Prise	pinch (as in a pinch of salt)
das Pint	pint
das Quart	quart
die Gallone	gallon

Baking Ingredients

Here’s a list of your common baking ingredients:

German	English
die Butter	butter
das Mehl	flour
der Zucker	sugar
der braune Zucker	brown sugar
der Puderzucker	confectioner's/powdered sugar
das Ei	egg
die Milch	milk
die Creme	cream
das Backpulver	baking powder
das Natron	baking soda
die Würze	seasoning
das Gewürz	spice
der Zimt	cinnamon
der Muskat	nutmeg
der Ingwer	ginger
die Schokoladenstückchen	chocolate chips
der Vanilleextrakt or der Vanillearoma	vanilla extract
die Schlagsahne or die Sahne	whipped/heavy cream
der Teig	dough
die Melasse	molasses
die Rosinen	raisins
der Joghurt	yogurt

Cooking Ingredients

Here are some terms for common cooking ingredients. Try these out next time you’re making dinner!

German	English
das Fleisch	meat
das Rindfleisch	beef
der Truthahn	turkey
die Wurst	sausage
das Hähnchen	chicken
der Speck	bacon
das Schweinefleisch	pork
der Fisch	fish
das Steak	steak
der Aufschnitt	cold cuts
der Knoblauch	garlic
die Zwiebel	onion
die Tomate	tomato
der Mais	corn
der Brokkoli	broccoli
die Brechbohne	green bean
der Sellerie	celery
der Kürbis	pumpkin / squash
der Tofu	tofu
die Nudeln	noodles / pasta
die Pasta	pasta
der Reis	rice
der Käse	cheese
die Soße	sauce
der Essig	vinegar
der Senf	mustard
das Öl	oil
das Salz	salt
der Pfeffer	pepper

Adjectives Related to Cooking and Food

There are many descriptive adjectives we can use when cooking, baking and eating. Here are the main ones in German:

German	English
lecker	tasty/yummy/delicious
salzig	salty
gebrannt	burnt
süβ	sweet
herb	tart
sauer	sour
scharf	spicy
würzig	tangy / aromatic
saftig	juicy
frisch	fresh
mild	mild
knusprig	crispy
herzhaft	hearty
zart or mürbe	tender
aromatisch	aromatic
geschmackvoll	flavorful
gesund	healthy
fettig	greasy
kalorienreich	high in calories
kalorienarm	low-calorie
exotisch	exotic
vegetarisch	vegetarian
vegan	vegan

Miscellaneous Cooking and Baking Terms

In case you haven’t learned enough vocabulary yet, here are a few more terms related to cooking and baking:

German	English
das Rezept	recipe
das Teufelsdutzend or dreizehn Stück	baker's dozen
die Portion	portion
die Zutaten	ingredients
die Mahlzeit	meal
der Appetit	appetite

Where to Find Authentic German Recipes

If you enjoy cooking and are learning German, why not combine the two? Here are a few great resources to start exploring German cooking and learn some names of dishes you’re interested in trying:

The Oma Way is a great website for not only great recipes but also a slice of German-American life from an Oma (grandmother) with plenty of cooking experience herself. Enjoy crafts and festivities along with the food.
Quick German Recipes is also focused on cooking “the Oma way.” Focused on foods of all types, this website allows you to choose from a variety of recipes and even shop at the same time.
GermanFoods.org is another great resource for similar cooking content. Recipes are listed by category and even holiday and region.
Allrecipes is a popular recipe site that offers many recipes for German food, including 17 different traditional German cakes!
Susi’s Bakery is a website that offers content in both English and German. This is a great way to practice your German reading and pick up some new vocabulary while making some authentic German dishes.

Remember, the more German words you memorize and the better understanding you have of German culture (which is inseparable from food), the more native you’ll sound—and feel!

Next, you can check out this helpful guide for useful phrases when ordering food in Germany.

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

And One More Thing...

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Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)