Inklingo

How to Say "grill" in Spanish

The most common Spanish word for “grill” is “barbacoa” — use 'barbacoa' when referring to the entire outdoor cooking structure or appliance, often a brick or metal unit with a lid.

English → Spanish

barbacoa

bar-bah-KOH-ahbaɾβaˈkoa

nounA1general
Use 'barbacoa' when referring to the entire outdoor cooking structure or appliance, often a brick or metal unit with a lid.
A black metal charcoal grill with smoke rising from the grates.

Examples

Vamos a hacer una barbacoa este fin de semana.

We're going to have a barbecue this weekend.

Limpiamos la barbacoa antes de cocinar las hamburguesas.

We cleaned the barbecue before cooking the burgers.

Compramos una barbacoa de carbón muy grande.

We bought a very large charcoal grill.

Gender check

This word is feminine, so you should always use it with 'la' or 'una'.

parrilla

pah-ree-yahpaˈriʝa

nounA2general
Use 'parrilla' specifically for the metal grid or rack where food is placed directly over the heat source.
A black metal grill grate with hot glowing coals underneath.

Examples

La carne se cocina mejor en una parrilla caliente.

The meat cooks best on a hot grill.

Limpia la parrilla antes de poner la carne.

Clean the grill before putting the meat on.

Fuimos a una parrilla argentina y pedimos un chuletón.

We went to an Argentine steakhouse and ordered a ribeye steak.

Me gusta el salmón a la parrilla con un poco de limón.

I like grilled salmon with a bit of lemon.

Describing Food Style

To say food is 'grilled', always use the phrase 'a la parrilla' after the name of the food, like 'pollo a la parrilla'.

Gender Consistency

This word is always feminine. You must use 'la' or 'una' with it, even if you are talking about a big heavy grill.

Grill vs. Barbecue

Mistake: “Using 'parrilla' to describe the whole party.”

Correction: Use 'parrilla' for the metal grate itself, but use 'barbacoa' or 'parrillada' to refer to the social event or the party.

Appliance vs. Grate

The most common mistake is using 'parrilla' to refer to the entire barbecue setup. Remember that 'barbacoa' is the whole unit (the barbecue itself), while 'parrilla' is just the metal grid inside it.

Related Translations

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