En el mercado
Peruvian markets have fruit you will not have met before, and several everyday words differ from the Spanish taught in Europe. The words here are the ones on the stalls in Lima.
Frutas
la paltafnoun
the avocado
Aguacate in Colombia and Mexico. In Peru it is always palta.
el plátanomnoun
the banana
La banana in Argentina; el guineo in parts of the Caribbean.
la manzanafnoun
the apple
la naranjafnoun
the orange
la fresafnoun
the strawberry
La frutilla in Argentina and Chile.
el mangomnoun
the mango
la piñafnoun
the pineapple
la papayafnoun
the papaya
la chirimoyafnoun
the custard apple
Peruvian, sweet and worth trying.
el maracuyámnoun
the passion fruit
la lúcumafnoun
the lucuma
A Peruvian fruit with no English name. Most often eaten as ice cream.
Verduras
la papafnoun
the potato
La patata only in Spain. Peru has thousands of varieties.
el camotemnoun
the sweet potato
la cebollafnoun
the onion
el tomatemnoun
the tomato
el ajomnoun
the garlic
el choclomnoun
the corn on the cob
Peruvian corn has huge white kernels. La mazorca in Colombia.
la zanahoriafnoun
the carrot
el ajímnoun
the chilli
El ají amarillo is the base of half of Peruvian cooking.
el culantromnoun
the coriander
El cilantro elsewhere; in Peru you will hear culantro.
Carne y pescado
el pollomnoun
the chicken
la carnefnoun
the beef, the meat
el pescadomnoun
the fish
El pez is a live fish; el pescado is the one you eat.
el chanchomnoun
the pork
El cerdo is the neutral word; in Peru, chancho.
los mariscosmnoun
the seafood
En el puesto
el puestomnoun
the stall
el casero / la casera
the person behind the stall
Also what the stallholder calls you: casero, ¿qué le doy? It means regular customer, and using it is friendly.
frescoadjective
fresh
¿Está fresco el pescado? · Is the fish fresh?
maduroadjective
ripe
¿Está maduro el mango? · Is the mango ripe?
¿Me da…?
Could I have…?
la yapa
the little extra
The small free extra a stallholder adds. Asking ¿y mi yapa? is normal and charming.