Chinese word

烧烤

Pronunciation

Pinyinshāo kǎo

Meaning

  • verbbarbecue

Example

周末我们一起去烧烤。zhōu mò wǒ men yì qǐ qù shāo kǎo

We go barbecuing together on weekends.

Illustration for 烧烤 (barbecue)

More examples

他喜欢用孜然给肉烧烤。tā xǐ huān yòng zī rán gěi ròu shāo kǎo

He likes to barbecue meat with cumin.

Core concept

Food cooks directly over a flame or hot surface, often as part of a shared meal.

Common phrases

  • 周末烧烤zhōu mò shāo kǎo

    barbecue on weekends

  • 在后院烧烤zài hòu yuàn shāo kǎo

    barbecue in the backyard

  • 用炭火烧烤yòng tàn huǒ shāo kǎo

    barbecue over charcoal

Similar words

烤kǎo: Cook food by heating its surface with direct heat, on a grill or in an oven.
烤肉kǎo ròu: Grill meat on a rack or hot plate as a meal.
烧shāo: Cook food by applying fire or high heat.

Definition in Chinese

把肉、蔬菜等放在烤架或铁板上用火或高温烤熟，也可指以此方式进行的聚餐活动。bǎ ròu shū cài děng fàng zài kǎo jià huò tié bǎn shàng yòng huǒ huò gāo wēn kǎo shú yě kě zhǐ yí cǐ fāng shì jìn xíng de jù cān huó dòng

Word origin

The first character 烧 (shāo, "burn") supplies the idea of fire or heat, and the second 烤 (kǎo, "roast") narrows it to roasting food, forming the compound for this cooking style and its social use.

Usage tips

  • For English speakers, barbecue may suggest slow cooking with smoke, but 烧烤 (shāokǎo, "barbecue") covers a wider range of direct-heat cooking, including food prepared on a rack or hot plate.

Other meanings

  • cookoutnoun
  • grillverb

Related words

  • 烧烤店shāo kǎo diànbarbecue restaurantnoun
  • 烧烤架shāo kǎo jiàbarbecue grillnoun
  • 烧烤酱shāo kǎo jiàngbarbecue saucenoun

Word lists with this word