Lettuce add these 89 yummy vegetables in Italian to your vocab

In my small town in Italy, Friday is market day. From 6 am, the streets of the center get closed off, and vans with all kinds of products line up and open their stands.

At the end of Via Campo, you find the food section: meats, fish, cheese… But mostly – vegetables! If you’re planning a visit to this beautiful boot-shaped country, you’ll likely shop in one of these markets for fresh produce.

And, well, I hate and also love to tell you that usually, no one there speaks excellent English! Learning the names of vegetables in Italian, then, is a must if you want to have this immersive market experience.

Italy is renowned for its healthy and delicious Mediterranean diet. And what are the main ingredients of this diet? Why, of course, la verdura (vegetables)!

Free Italian vegetables poster

Print out this free and fun vegetables poster and stick it on your fridge. If you can memorize this list of some of the more popular vegetables in Italian, you'll be on your way to sounding like a local.

Why you need to learn vegetables in Italian

Aside from the above example of a great Italian market experience, there are more reasons to learn the names of vegetables in Italian, especially if you’re a food enthusiast!

Many world-famous chefs are Italian, and naming dishes in Italian has been a thing for years. For example, if you eat a parmigiana di melanzane, you need to know that melanzana means eggplant!

If you like having fun in the kitchen, knowing vegetables in Italian will allow you to follow authentic Italian recipes and improve two skills simultaneously: your vocab and cooking!

Last but not least, knowing vegetables in Italian will allow you to travel around Italy, order at restaurants and pizzerias, and even talk about your favorite Italian dishes with native speakers. Trust me, improving your vocab is never a bad idea. You’ll be surprised how useful knowing how to say cabbage in Italian can be!

In this article, we’ll look at the names of as many veggies in Italian as you can imagine, and we’ll give you the phonetic pronunciation too.

Even your friend’s grandma who doesn’t speak a word of English will know how much you loved her orecchiette alle cime di rapa!

List of vegetables in Italian

So, let’s start with our list of vegetables in Italian. By the way, the words for vegetable are “verdura” or “ortaggio”, which comes from the word “orto” (vegetable garden).

On the other hand, the adjective vegetable is “vegetale” in Italian. So, if you want a veggie burger, you’d order “un hamburger vegetale” or “un hamburger di verdure”. (Yes, I know there’s no ham in it – but this is how we say it anyway!)

Let’s start!

Root vegetables in Italian

Here is a list of the main root vegetables you can find in Italy. They are called radici (roots) or ortaggi a radice.

English	Italian	Pronunciation
Beetroot	Barbabietola	bahr-bah-byeh-toh-lah
Carrot	Carota	cah-roh-tah
Celeriac	Sedano rapa	seh-dah-noh rah-pah
Parsnip	Pastinaca	pass-tee-nah-kah
Daikon	Daikon	da-ee-kon
Radish	Ravanello	rah-vah-nell-loh
Salsify root	Scorzobianca	skorr-tsoh-byan-cah
Parsley root	Radice di prezzemolo	rah-dee-che dee pre-tse-moh-loh
Swede	Cavolo navone	cah-voh-loh nah-voh-neh
Turnip	Rapa	rah-pah
Horseradish	Rafano	rah-fah-noh

Tuber vegetables in Italian

Let’s now look at the tuberi.

English	Italian	Pronunciation
Cassava	Manioca	mah-nyoh-kah
Earth Gems	Ulluco	ooll-loo-coh
Jerusalem Artichoke	Topinambur	toh-pee-nam-boor
Kumara	Patata dolce / batata	pah-tah-tah doll-che / bah-tah-tah
Potatoes	Patata	pah-tah-tah
Taro root	Taro	tah-roh
Yam	Igname	ee-nya-meh

Bulb vegetables in Italian

Bulb vegetables are those you use for making a good soffritto (mirepoix) for a pasta sauce or a risotto. Don’t forget to buy lots of them if you’re planning on learning Italian recipes!

Here they are.

English	Italian	Pronunciation
Fennel bulb	Grumolo del finocchio	groo-moh-loh dell fee-noh-kyoh
Garlic	Aglio	ah-llioh
Leek	Porro	porr-roh
Onion	Cipolla	chee-poll-lah
Shallot	Scalogno	ska-loh-nyoh
Spring Onion	Cipollotto	chee-poll-lot-toh

Stems and shoots in Italian

Let’s continue with stems and shoots in Italian.

English	Italian	Pronunciation
Asparagus	Asparago	ah-spa-rah-goh
Bamboo shoots	Germoglio di bambù	gerr-moh-llyoh dee bahm-booh
Celery stalks	Sedano	seh-dah-noh
Kohlrabi	Cavolo rapa	cah-vo-loh rah-pah
Fennel	Ficocchio	fee-noh-kyoh
Cardoon	Cardo	carr-doh
Rhubarb	Rabarbaro	rah-bar-bah-roh

Flower vegetables in Italian

Flower vegetables are plants in which the flowers are eaten. In the following table you’ll find these ortaggi a fiore. Which one is your favourite?

English	Italian	Pronunciation
Artichoke	Carciofo	carr-choh-foh
Broccoflower	Cavolo romanesco	cah-voh-loh roh-mah-ness-koh
Broccoli	Broccolo	broh-koh-loh
Broccolini	Broccoletto	broh-koh-let-toh
Cauliflower	Cavolfiore	cah-voll-fyoh-reh
Asparagus	Asparago	a-spa-rah-goh
Courgette flower	Fiore di zucca	fee-oh-reh dee dzuk-kah
Gai lan	Cavolo cinese	cah-voh-loh chee-neh-seh
Turnip greens	Cime di rapa	chee-meh dee rah-pah

Fungi and mushrooms in Italian

Mushroom are a big thing in Italy. When autumn comes, everyone in the countryside picks up their stick and basket and goes to the woods in search of our delicious funghi (foon-ghee). Out of season, you can always find dried or frozen ones at markets or supermarkets.

English	Italian	Pronunciation
Field mushroom	Prataioli	prah-tah-yoh-lee
Boletus	Porcini	porr-chee-nee
Chanterelle	Finferli	feen-ferr-lee
Honey mushroom	Chiodini	kyoh-dee-nee
Parasol mushroom	Mazze di tamburo	mats-tse dee tahm-boo-roh
Pioppino mushroom	Pioppini	pyop-pee-nee
Truffle	Tartufo	tarr-too-foh
Oyster mushroom	Funghi ostrica	foon-ghee oss-tree-cah
Ovolo mushroom	Ovoli	oh-voh-lee
Champignon	Champignon	sham-pee-nyonn

Leaves in Italian

Here are the most common leaves you can find in an italian insalata (salad), and in many other delicious dishes!

English	Italian	Pronunciation
Bok choy	Bok choy / cavolo cinese	cah-voh-loh chee-neh-zeh
Brussel sprouts	Cavoletti di Bruxelles	cah-voh-let-tee dee broo-xell
Cabbage	Cavolo	cah-voh-loh
Red cabbage	Cavolo cappuccio	cah-voh-loh cah-pooh-choh
Savoy cabbage	Verza	verr-dzah
Cavolo nero	Cavolo nero	cah-voh-loh neh-roh
Kale	Cavolo riccio	cah-voh-loh reech-choh
Lettuce	Lattuga	laht-tooh-gah
Radicchio	Radicchio	rah-deek-kyoh
Chard	Bietola	byeh-toh-lah
Sorrel	Acetosella	ah-che-toh-zell-lah
Spinach	Spinaci	spee-nah-chee
Water spinach	Spinaci d’acqua	Spee-nah-chee dah-kwah
Taro leaves	Taro	tah-roh
Watercress	Crescione	creh-shoh-neh
Rocket	Rucola	roo-koh-lah
Valerian	Valeriana	vah-leh-ryah-nah
Catalogna	Puntarelle	poon-tah-rell-leh
Chicory	Cicoria	chee-koh-ryah
Endive	Indivia	een-dee-vyah
Curly Endive	Indivia riccia	een-dee-vyah reech-chah

Fruit vegetables in Italian

Let’s now make a list of the most common “fruit” vegetables in Italian. Here you’ll find vegetables that are actually fruits, botanically speaking of course. These include the typical Mediterranean veggies, like courgette and aubergine (eggplant). We put them all in the singular.

English	Italian	Pronunciation
Courgette	Zucchina	dzook-kee-nah
Cucumber	Cetriolo	che-tree-oh-loh
Tomato	Pomodoro	poh-moh-doh-roh
Cherry tomato	Pomodorino	poh-moh-doh-ree-noh
Pumpkin	Zucca	dzuk-kah
Chilli	Peperoncino	peh-peh-ron-chee-noh
Pepper	Peperone	peh-peh-roh-neh
Eggplant	Melanzana	meh-lann-tsa-nah
Marrow	Zucca	dzuk-kah
Okra	Gombo	gomm-boh
Plantain	Banana verde	bah-nah-nah verr-deh

Remember, the plural of zucchina is not zucchini! It is actually zucchine (dzuk-kee-neh), as it is a feminine noun.

Seeds and legumes in Italian

Here you find i legumi in Italian, which are legumes or seeds. We put them in their plural form in the table, as they are not often used in the singular.

English	Italian	Pronunciation
Beans	Fagioli	fah-djoh-lee
Broad beans	Fave	fah-veh
French beans	Fagiolini	fah-djoh-lee-nee
Chickpeas	Ceci	che-chee
Peas	Piselli	pee-zell-lee
Lentils	Lenticchie	lenn-teek-kyeh
Sweetcorn	Mais	mah-eess

Tip: In some parts of Italy, pisello (pea) is a childish name for male genitals!

Italian proverbs and slang with vegetables

Here are some curious Italian proverbs and expressions with vegetables!

Italian expression	English translation
Le melanzane son le cotolette dell’orto.	Eggplants are the steaks of the garden.
Patate e peperoni son per tempi tristi e buoni.	Potatoes and peppers are for good and sad times.
Il ravanello fa il viso bello.	Radish makes your face beautiful.
Il miglior ortaggio è la gallina.	The best vegetable is chicken.

Verdure per tutti!

The best thing to do now is to go out and practice your new Italian vocabulary. Go to the market and buy verdure per tutti (veggies for all)!