Cooking=Marriageable in Spanish?
March 10, 2009 7:01 PM Subscribe
Does anyone know the wording or the history behind a Spanish proverb that roughly says, "if you can cook, you can get married?".
I work with Spanish speakers, mostly Mexicans and Latin Americans, and one of them was ribbing me about learning to cook. He said, in English, "Now you can get married because you can cook." My friend who lived in Ecuador also said this notion/proverb floated around down there. I'm curious to see if there is a (probably funny) quote or "saying" behind this.
I work with Spanish speakers, mostly Mexicans and Latin Americans, and one of them was ribbing me about learning to cook. He said, in English, "Now you can get married because you can cook." My friend who lived in Ecuador also said this notion/proverb floated around down there. I'm curious to see if there is a (probably funny) quote or "saying" behind this.
Response by poster: Clearlydemon- What is the Spanish equivalent? I speak Spanish, but I am betting the literal translation is not how it is said colloquially. Gracias.
posted by ShadePlant at 8:23 PM on March 10, 2009
posted by ShadePlant at 8:23 PM on March 10, 2009
Best answer: "Si puedes cocinar puedes casar."
I heard this as a child in Ecuador every time I so much as set foot in a kitchen.
posted by aint broke at 9:16 PM on March 10, 2009 [1 favorite]
I heard this as a child in Ecuador every time I so much as set foot in a kitchen.
posted by aint broke at 9:16 PM on March 10, 2009 [1 favorite]
Best answer: In Argentina, when somebody cooks a good meal, the standard is "ya te podés casar." I've only ever heard it used jokingly.
posted by dr. boludo at 9:18 PM on March 10, 2009
posted by dr. boludo at 9:18 PM on March 10, 2009
It's pretty much as dr. boludo says. When eating a tasty rice, you'd tell your hostess "Ya te puedes casar". It's a joke or a compliment of sorts.
I think it's mainly used when talking about rice because it's a very basic dish that's hard to cook well.
posted by clearlydemon at 9:22 PM on March 10, 2009
I think it's mainly used when talking about rice because it's a very basic dish that's hard to cook well.
posted by clearlydemon at 9:22 PM on March 10, 2009
If you have time on your hands, you might look for a copy of Gonzalo Correas in his Vocabulario de refranes y frases proverbiales, 1626. (There are later impressions.) Worth grazing in for general amusement regardless.
posted by IndigoJones at 6:11 AM on March 11, 2009
posted by IndigoJones at 6:11 AM on March 11, 2009
Response by poster: Thanks all. That's exactly what I was looking for.
posted by ShadePlant at 8:15 AM on March 11, 2009
posted by ShadePlant at 8:15 AM on March 11, 2009
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This proverb is very old-fashioned: What's a wife good for if she can't cook?
The feeling is not common nowadays, maybe only in small towns.
posted by clearlydemon at 7:48 PM on March 10, 2009