Food and drink is a reoccurring talking point, and not only while eating out on vacation. So, let’s learn the most common words and phrases to describe food vocabulary in Serbian another related vocabulary for this topic.
About Serbian Traditional Cuisine
Serbian cuisine is the cuisine of the Balkan state of Serbia, which shares the characteristics of other Balkan countries. Although turbulent historical events have also affected the nutrition of the people, each region has its own specifics and differences. Food preparation is an integral part of Serbian tradition and culture. In Serbia, it is common to eat 3 times a day “doručak, ručak i večera” (breakfast, lunch, and dinner), noting that the most important and most often the most extensive meal – lunch.
Diet is equated with the intake of nutrients (consuming food and drinks), but in a broader sense, it is the enjoyment of the table. This very complex process creates what is called “national cuisine”, which consists of the choice of food, their cultivation, preparation of meals, the environment in which food is served, as well as the way it is served.
Food preparation is a special part of Serbian tradition and culture. In Serbian villages, the name for the kitchen was “house”, and the central part was the fireplace, which was an important, cult place, next to which everyday life took place and the whole family gathered. They sat on wooden benches, stools, and chairs, with dishes that were wooden and earthen, and in richer houses, they were also made of copper. The bread was made from wheat or cornflour.
Serbian traditional cuisine contains a diversity of tastes and smells. They owe it to the mixture of influences from various nations who were just passing through or were living in this region. As is the case with the culture in general, this fusion of different influences resulted in originality, so that today a rich Serbian table offers unforgettable tastes that can only be enjoyed in Serbia.
Serbian cuisine is well known for its high diversity, offering solid and spicy food that can be roughly described as a mixture of Greek, Turkish and Hungarian cuisine. The use of meat, dough, vegetables, and dairy products is predominant in it.
Basic Words And Phrases
| Serbian Word (Cyrillic and Latin) | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| јести – jestiпојести pojesti | yes-teepo-yes-tee | (to) eat |
| храна – hrana | hraa-na | food |
| пити – piti | pee-tee | (to) drink |
| пиће – piće | pee-tse | drink [Sg] |
| пића – pića | pee-tsa | drinks [Pl] |
| гладан – gladan | gla-daan | hungry |
| глад – glad | gl-aad | hunger |
| жедан – žedan | z-ee-daan | thirsty |
| жеђ – žeđ | z-ee-dy | thirst |
| кувати – kuvati | coo-vaa-tee | (to) cook |
| пробати – probati | pro-baa-tee | (to) taste |
| укусно – ukusno | oo-koo-snoo | tasty |
| Пријатно! – Prijatno! | Pr-ee-yat-no | Enjoy your meal! |
| Наздравље! – Nazdravlje! | Na-zdr-aav-leh | Cheers! / To your health! |
| доручак – doručak | do-roo-chak | breakfast |
| ручак – ručak | roo-chak | lunch |
| вечера – večera | ve-ch-er-ah | dinner |
| ресторан – restoran | re-sto-rahn | restaurant [Sg] |
| ресторани – restorani | re-sto-rah-ny | restaurants [Pl] |
| бар – bar | bar | bar [Sg] |
| барови – barovi | bar-ovy | bars [Pl] |
| кафић – kafić | kaa-fee-ts | café [Sg] |
| кафићи – kafići | kaa-fee-tsy | cafés [Pl] |
Basic Food And Spices
| Serbian Word (Cyrillic and Latin) | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| хлеб – hleb | hleb | bread [Sg] |
| хлебови – hlebovi | hle-bowee | breads [Pl] |
| плетеница – pletenica | ple-te-nee-cah | roll [Sg] |
| плетенице – pletenice | ple-te-nee-ce | rolls [Pl] |
| путер – puter | poo-ter | butter |
| сир – sir | seer | cheese |
| мед – med | med | honey |
| џем – džem | jam | jam [Sg] |
| џемови – džemovi | jam-ovee | jams [Pl] |
| јаје – jaje | ya-yeah | egg [Sg] |
| јаја – jaja | ya-ya | eggs [Pl] |
| пиринач – pirinač | pee-ree-nach | rice |
| јогурт – jogurt | yo-goo-rt | yoghurt [Sg] |
| јогурти – jogurti | yo-goo-rt-ee | yoghurts [Pl] |
| шећер – šećer | sh-ets-er | sugar |
| со – so | so | salt |
| бибер – biber | bee-ber | pepper |
| зачин – začin | zaa-ch-een | spice [Sg] |
| зачини – začini | zaa-ch-ee-nee | spices [Pl] |
| уље – ulje | oo-lye | oil |
Food Vocabulary In Serbian: Cutlery
| Serbian Word (Cyrillic and Latin) | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| есцајг – escajg | es-tsaa-jg | cutlery |
| виљушка – viljuška | wee-lioo-sh-kah | fork |
| кашика – kašika | ca-shee-ca | spoon |
| кашикица – kašikica | ca-shee-cee-tsa | tee spoon |
| нож – nož | no-zh | knife |
| тањир – tanjir | ta-neer | plate |
| чаша – čaša | ch-aa-sh-ah | glass |
| шољица – šoljica | sh-oli-tsa | cup |
| шоља – šolja | sh-oli-ah | mug |
Food Vocabulary In Serbian: Dishes
| Serbian Word (Cyrilliy and Latin) | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| супа – supa | soop | soup [Sg] |
| супе – supe | soope | soups [Pl] |
| салата – salata | saa-laa-taa | salad [Sg] |
| салате – salate | saa-laa-te | salads [Pl] |
| помфрит – pomfrit | pom-freet | french fries |
| чипс – čips | ch-ee-ps | chips |
| бурек – burek | boo-rec | Between the layers of dough can be found cheese, minced meat and greens, or it can be baked without any stuffing at all |
| гибаница – gibanica | gee-ba-nee-ts-ah | a cheese pie |
| печено месо – pečeno meso | peche-no-meso | grilled meat |
| Карађорђева шницла – Karađorđeva šnicla | Caa-ra-dyor-dye-vaah sh-nee-ts-la | Karađorđeva steak |
| гулаш – gulaš | goo-lash | goulash |
| сармаsarma | sar-mah | cabbage rolls, |
| ђувеч – đuveč | dy-oo-ve-ch | a type of a stew |
| мусака – musaka | moo-sa-kah | moussaka |
| мућкалица – mućkalica | moo-ts-ca-lee-tsa | a mixture of different types of meat and vegetables in the form of a stew |
| чварци – čvarci | ch-vaa-rts-ee | similar to pork rinds |
| кајмак – kajmak | caa-ymaac | milk cream |
| пршута – pršuta | pr-sh-oo-tah | dry-cured ham, similar to Prosciutto |
Food Vocabulary In Serbian: Drinks
| Serbian Word (Cyrillic and Latin) | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| вода – voda | wo-dah | water |
| минерална вода – mineralna voda | mee-neral-nah wo-dah | mineral water |
| газирана вода – gazirana voda | gaa-zee-raa-nah wo-dah | sparkling water |
| дестилована вода – destilovana voda | wo-dah | still water |
| сок – sok | sok | juice [Sg] |
| сокови – sokovi | sok-ovi | juices [Pl] |
| пивo – pivo | pee-voh | beer |
| вино – vino | wee-noh | wine |
| шампањац – šampanjac | sham-pani-aa-ts | champagne |
| коктел – koktel | coc-tel | cocktail |
| млеко – mleko | mle-co | milk |
| какао – kakao | ca-cao | cocoa |
| кафа – kafa | caa-fah | coffee |
| чај – čaj | ch-ay | tea |
Food Vocabulary In Serbian: Flavours
| Serbian Word (Cyrillic and Latin) | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| слатко – slatko | sl-aat-coh | sweet |
| кисело – kiselo | cee-se-loh | sour |
| љуто – ljuto | ly-oo-toh | spicy |
| слано – slano | sl-aa-noh | salty |
| горко – gorko | gohr-coh | bitter |
| umami – умами | um-aa-mee | savoriness |
Final Thoughts
For many of the Serbian national cuisine specialties, there isn’t a right word in the foreign language dictionaries. What’s more important, there isn’t a taste they can be compared to. Trust me, it is best that you come and taste them yourself. But, before that, you can find stories about Serbian dishes you want to taste on many web pages, as well as the recipes for them, because who knows, you might wish to prepare them yourselves somewhere, miles away from Serbia!
I hope I helped you learn food vocabulary in Serbian. If you want to find out how to say cheers, the most common words and phrases for traveling or how to introduce yourself in Serbian, you should try using Ling App and learn this beautiful language in an easy and fun way.
