Condiments in French 85 Easy Words and Phrases for Food

French food gets a lot of dramatic attention, but sometimes the real hero is the little thing on the side: mustard, mayo, hot sauce, jam, butter, olive oil, that mysterious dressing nobody can stop dipping bread into. If you want to talk about what you like on your sandwich, what to ask for in a café, or what is actually sitting on the table, condiment vocabulary is wildly useful.

This guide teaches practical condiments vocabulary in French with easy meanings, simple pronunciation help, and real example sentences. We’ll stick to standard France French by default, with a few quick notes when a phrase or food item can vary.

Because yes, knowing moutarde before your trip is more important than memorizing the word for “otter” on day one.

If you want more food vocabulary after this, try coffee, cocktails, and drinks in French. If you want to check your level first, take the French placement test or the French vocabulary test. You can also browse more lessons on Learn French.

Table of Contents

How To Say Condiments In French

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
un condiment	uhn kon-dee-mon	a condiment	Ce condiment est très piquant.	This condiment is very spicy.	Masculine noun: un condiment.
les condiments	lay kon-dee-mon	condiments	J’adore les condiments sur les sandwichs.	I love condiments on sandwiches.	The final s is silent.
une sauce	oon sohs	a sauce	Tu veux une sauce avec les frites ?	Do you want a sauce with the fries?	Very common in restaurants.
un assaisonnement	uhn ah-say-zon-mon	a seasoning, dressing	L’assaisonnement est léger et frais.	The dressing is light and fresh.	Useful for salads and general seasoning.
assaisonner	ah-say-zoh-nay	to season	Il faut assaisonner la salade.	You need to season the salad.	Common cooking verb.

Everyday French Condiments

Let’s start with the things you are most likely to hear in a home, café, supermarket, or burger place. These are the core words worth learning first.

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
la moutarde	lah moo-tard	mustard	Je prends de la moutarde avec la saucisse.	I have mustard with the sausage.	One of the most useful condiment words in French.
la mayonnaise	lah my-oh-nez	mayonnaise	Il y a de la mayonnaise dans ce sandwich.	There is mayonnaise in this sandwich.	Usually shortened in speech to mayo.
le ketchup	luh ketch-up	ketchup	Les enfants veulent du ketchup.	The kids want ketchup.	Masculine: le ketchup.
la sauce tomate	lah sohs toh-maht	tomato sauce	On ajoute de la sauce tomate aux pâtes.	We add tomato sauce to the pasta.	Not always the same thing as ketchup.
la sauce barbecue	lah sohs bar-buh-kyoo	barbecue sauce	Je préfère la sauce barbecue au ketchup.	I prefer barbecue sauce to ketchup.	Au = to the / over the.
la sauce piquante	lah sohs pee-kont	hot sauce	Attention, la sauce piquante est forte.	Careful, the hot sauce is strong.	Piquant(e) means spicy or sharp.
la sauce soja	lah sohs swa-zhah	soy sauce	Je mets un peu de sauce soja sur le riz.	I put a little soy sauce on the rice.	Common in restaurants and recipes.
le vinaigre	luh vee-neg-r	vinegar	Il manque du vinaigre dans la vinaigrette.	The vinaigrette needs more vinegar.	Masculine noun.
l’huile d’olive	lweel doh-leev	olive oil	J’aime l’huile d’olive sur les tomates.	I like olive oil on tomatoes.	Nice elision: de olive becomes d’olive.
le beurre	luh burr	butter	Tu veux du beurre sur le pain ?	Do you want butter on the bread?	Very common at breakfast.
la confiture	lah kon-fee-tyur	jam	Je prends de la confiture avec ma tartine.	I’m having jam with my toast.	Usually fruit jam.
le miel	luh myel	honey	Elle ajoute du miel dans le yaourt.	She adds honey to the yogurt.	Not always called a condiment, but often used like one.

Salad Dressings And Seasonings

French meals love a simple salad, and French salad seasoning is often wonderfully direct: oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, done. No twenty-seven ingredient dressing saga required.

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
la vinaigrette	lah vee-neh-gret	vinaigrette	La salade est servie avec une vinaigrette maison.	The salad is served with homemade vinaigrette.	Very common in France.
l’huile	lweel	oil	Ajoute un peu d’huile.	Add a little oil.	Silent h; starts with a vowel sound.
le sel	luh sel	salt	Il y a trop de sel dans cette sauce.	There is too much salt in this sauce.	Masculine noun.
le poivre	luh pwahvr	pepper	Je veux du poivre, s’il vous plaît.	I’d like some pepper, please.	A table essential.
le poivre noir	luh pwahvr nwar	black pepper	Le chef utilise du poivre noir fraîchement moulu.	The chef uses freshly ground black pepper.	Moulu = ground.
le poivre blanc	luh pwahvr blon	white pepper	Cette sauce contient du poivre blanc.	This sauce contains white pepper.	Useful in recipes.
le cornichon	luh kor-nee-shon	gherkin, pickle	Je mange un cornichon avec le pâté.	I eat a gherkin with pâté.	In France French, cornichon usually means small pickled cucumber.
les herbes	lay erb	herbs	Cette sauce a beaucoup d’herbes.	This sauce has a lot of herbs.	The h is silent.
le persil	luh per-see	parsley	On ajoute du persil sur les pommes de terre.	We add parsley on the potatoes.	Common garnish and seasoning.
la ciboulette	lah see-boo-let	chives	La crème contient de la ciboulette.	The cream contains chives.	Feminine noun.
l’ail	ah-y	garlic	Il y a trop d’ail dans cette mayonnaise.	There is too much garlic in this mayonnaise.	Pronounced more like “eye” with a soft opening.
l’oignon	loh-nyon	onion	Cette sauce a un goût d’oignon.	This sauce tastes of onion.	Watch the nasal sound in gnon.

French Sauce Vocabulary You’ll See On Menus

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
la sauce béarnaise	lah sohs bay-ar-nez	béarnaise sauce	Le steak est servi avec une sauce béarnaise.	The steak is served with béarnaise sauce.	A classic sauce in France.
la sauce hollandaise	lah sohs oh-lon-dez	hollandaise sauce	Les asperges vont bien avec la sauce hollandaise.	Asparagus goes well with hollandaise sauce.	Good menu word to know.
la sauce tartare	lah sohs tar-tar	tartar sauce	Le poisson est accompagné de sauce tartare.	The fish comes with tartar sauce.	Accompagné de = accompanied by.
l’aïoli	ah-ee-oh-lee	aioli	J’adore l’aïoli avec les légumes.	I love aioli with vegetables.	Southern French feel; garlic-heavy and glorious.
la crème fraîche	lah krem fresh	crème fraîche	On ajoute de la crème fraîche à la sauce.	We add crème fraîche to the sauce.	Very common in French cooking.
la sauce au poivre	lah sohs oh pwahvr	pepper sauce	Je prends le steak avec la sauce au poivre.	I’ll have the steak with pepper sauce.	Au often means “with” or “made with” in food names.
la sauce à l’ail	lah sohs ah lah-y	garlic sauce	Tu veux de la sauce à l’ail ?	Do you want some garlic sauce?	Useful pattern: sauce à + ingredient.
la sauce au yaourt	lah sohs oh yah-ourt	yogurt sauce	Cette salade est servie avec une sauce au yaourt.	This salad is served with a yogurt sauce.	Often lighter than mayonnaise-based sauces.
la sauce pesto	lah sohs pes-toh	pesto sauce	Les pâtes sont mélangées avec de la sauce pesto.	The pasta is mixed with pesto sauce.	Modern and common.
le coulis	luh koo-lee	coulis, smooth sauce	Le burger est servi avec un coulis de tomates.	The burger is served with a tomato coulis.	Can be savory or sweet depending on context.

Spreads, Toppings, And Things You Put On Bread

This is where breakfast and snack French gets fun. Also slightly dangerous if you like bakeries. Which, honestly, you should.

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
la pâte à tartiner	lah paht ah tar-tee-nay	spread, chocolate spread	Les enfants aiment la pâte à tartiner sur le pain.	Children like spread on bread.	Generic term, often chocolate-hazelnut spread.
la confiture de fraises	lah kon-fee-tyur duh frez	strawberry jam	Je préfère la confiture de fraises au petit déjeuner.	I prefer strawberry jam for breakfast.	De links the flavor/type.
la marmelade	lah মার-muh-lahd	marmalade	Mon grand-père mange de la marmelade le matin.	My grandfather eats marmalade in the morning.	Often orange marmalade.
le beurre salé	luh burr sah-lay	salted butter	En Bretagne, beaucoup de gens aiment le beurre salé.	In Brittany, many people like salted butter.	Very French cultural classic.
le beurre doux	luh burr doo	unsalted butter	Je cuisine avec du beurre doux.	I cook with unsalted butter.	Doux here means mild, not sweet.
le sirop d’érable	luh see-roh dare-abl	maple syrup	On met du sirop d’érable sur les crêpes.	We put maple syrup on pancakes.	More associated with Canada, of course.
le sirop	luh see-roh	syrup	Ce dessert est servi avec un peu de sirop.	This dessert is served with a little syrup.	Broader than maple syrup.
la compote	lah kon-poht	fruit compote, applesauce	Je prends de la compote avec les crêpes.	I have compote with crêpes.	Often apple-based.
la crème de marrons	lah krem duh mah-ron	chestnut spread	Il adore la crème de marrons sur les crêpes.	He loves chestnut spread on crêpes.	Very French and very worth knowing.
le caramel	luh kar-ah-mel	caramel	Tu veux du caramel sur la glace ?	Do you want caramel on the ice cream?	Can be sauce or flavor.

Pickles, Preserves, And Jar Stuff

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
les pickles	lay peek-l	pickles	Le sandwich contient des pickles.	The sandwich contains pickles.	Borrowed word; common enough in casual food French.
les oignons confits	lay zoh-nyon kon-fee	caramelized onions, onion confit	Le burger est garni d’oignons confits.	The burger is topped with caramelized onions.	Great menu vocabulary.
les câpres	lay kapr	capers	Il y a des câpres dans la sauce.	There are capers in the sauce.	Plural is common in use.
les olives	lay ზoh-leev	olives	On sert des olives à l’apéritif.	Olives are served as an aperitif snack.	Common bar and table snack.
la tapenade	lah tah-puh-nad	olive spread	Je mange de la tapenade avec du pain grillé.	I eat olive spread with toasted bread.	Very southern French.
la relish	lah reh-leesh	relish	Ils ajoutent de la relish au hot-dog.	They add relish to the hot dog.	Less traditional, but useful.
la chutney	lah chut-nee	chutney	Ce fromage va bien avec la chutney.	This cheese goes well with chutney.	You may also hear le chutney; gender can vary in usage.
la gelée	lah zhuh-lay	jelly, fruit jelly	Elle prépare de la gelée de groseilles.	She makes redcurrant jelly.	Different from English gelatin in this context.

Spicy, Sweet, Sour, Creamy: Useful Describing Words

Sometimes you do not need the exact name of the condiment. You just need to say what it tastes like. That still counts as winning.

French	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
piquant / piquante	pee-kon / pee-kont	spicy, hot	Cette sauce est très piquante.	This sauce is very spicy.	Adjective agrees with the noun.
doux / douce	doo / doos	mild, gentle	Je préfère une moutarde plus douce.	I prefer a milder mustard.	Not always “sweet.” Context matters.
sucré / sucrée	soo-cray / soo-cray	sweet	La sauce est un peu trop sucrée.	The sauce is a little too sweet.	Very common adjective.
salé / salée	sah-lay / sah-lay	salty	Cette sauce soja est très salée.	This soy sauce is very salty.	Also means salted in food labels.
acide	ah-seed	acidic, tart	Le citron donne un goût acide.	The lemon gives a tart taste.	Same form for masculine/feminine in many contexts.
amer / amère	ah-mer / ah-mehr	bitter	Cette marmelade est légèrement amère.	This marmalade is slightly bitter.	Useful for flavors.
crémeux / crémeuse	kray-muh / kray-muhz	creamy	J’adore la texture crémeuse de cette sauce.	I love the creamy texture of this sauce.	Good food adjective.
épais / épaisse	ay-pay / ay-pess	thick	Le ketchup est plus épais que cette sauce.	Ketchup is thicker than this sauce.	Watch the feminine form.
léger / légère	lay-zhay / lay-zhehr	light	Je veux une sauce plus légère.	I want a lighter sauce.	Very useful in cafés and restaurants.
fait maison	fay meh-zon	homemade	La mayonnaise est faite maison.	The mayonnaise is homemade.	Agrees with the noun: faite for feminine items like mayonnaise.

Useful French Phrases For Ordering And Talking About Condiments

Now for the practical part: the things you actually say at the table, in a restaurant, or while staring into a fridge pretending you are about to cook something impressive.

French Phrase	Pronunciation	Meaning	Example Sentence	Translation	Learner Note
Je voudrais de la moutarde.	zhuh voo-dray duh lah moo-tard	I’d like some mustard.	Je voudrais de la moutarde, s’il vous plaît.	I’d like some mustard, please.	Polite and very useful.
Vous avez du ketchup ?	voo zah-vay doo ketch-up	Do you have ketchup?	Vous avez du ketchup ?	Do you have ketchup?	Liaison in vous avez.
Sans sauce, s’il vous plaît.	son sohs seel voo pleh	No sauce, please.	Pour le burger, sans sauce, s’il vous plaît.	For the burger, no sauce, please.	Very handy in restaurants.
Avec mayo.	ah-vek my-oh	With mayo.	Je prends les frites avec mayo.	I’ll have the fries with mayo.	Short, casual, natural.
À part	ah par	on the side	La sauce peut être servie à part ?	Can the sauce be served on the side?	Extremely useful phrase.
Un peu de…	uhn puh duh	a little…	Ajoutez un peu de vinaigre.	Add a little vinegar.	Softens requests nicely.
Beaucoup de…	boh-koo duh	a lot of…	Il met beaucoup de mayonnaise dans son sandwich.	He puts a lot of mayonnaise in his sandwich.	Common quantity phrase.
Trop de…	troh duh	too much / too many…	Il y a trop de sel dans cette sauce.	There is too much salt in this sauce.	Great complaint phrase.
Ça manque de sel.	sah monk duh sel	It needs salt.	Pour moi, ça manque de sel.	For me, it needs salt.	Very natural spoken French.
C’est trop piquant.	say troh pee-kon	It’s too spicy.	Désolé, c’est trop piquant pour moi.	Sorry, it’s too spicy for me.	Easy and useful.
C’est fait maison ?	say fay meh-zon	Is it homemade?	C’est fait maison ?	Is it homemade?	Good café and restaurant phrase.
Qu’est-ce qu’il y a dans la sauce ?	kes-kee-lee-ah don lah sohs	What’s in the sauce?	Qu’est-ce qu’il y a dans la sauce ?	What’s in the sauce?	Useful for allergies and curiosity.
Je n’aime pas la moutarde.	zhuh nem pah lah moo-tard	I don’t like mustard.	Je n’aime pas la moutarde, merci.	I don’t like mustard, thanks.	Spoken French often softens or drops ne, but learn the full form first.
Vous pouvez mettre la sauce à part ?	voo poo-vay met-r lah sohs ah par	Can you put the sauce on the side?	Vous pouvez mettre la sauce à part ?	Can you put the sauce on the side?	Very practical restaurant French.
Je prends de l’huile et du vinaigre.	zhuh pron duh lweel ay doo vee-neg-r	I’ll have oil and vinegar.	Pour la salade, je prends de l’huile et du vinaigre.	For the salad, I’ll have oil and vinegar.	Classic French salad order.

85 Quick Condiment Words And Phrases At A Glance

un condiment — condiment
les condiments — condiments
une sauce — sauce
un assaisonnement — seasoning, dressing
assaisonner — to season
la moutarde — mustard
la mayonnaise — mayonnaise
la mayo — mayo
le ketchup — ketchup
la sauce tomate — tomato sauce
la sauce barbecue — barbecue sauce
la sauce piquante — hot sauce
la sauce soja — soy sauce
le vinaigre — vinegar
le vinaigre balsamique — balsamic vinegar
l’huile — oil
l’huile d’olive — olive oil
le beurre — butter
le beurre salé — salted butter
le beurre doux — unsalted butter
la confiture — jam
la confiture de fraises — strawberry jam
la marmelade — marmalade
le miel — honey
la pâte à tartiner — spread
le sirop — syrup
le sirop d’érable — maple syrup
la compote — compote, applesauce
la crème de marrons — chestnut spread
le caramel — caramel
la vinaigrette — vinaigrette
le sel — salt
le poivre — pepper
le poivre noir — black pepper
le poivre blanc — white pepper
le cornichon — gherkin
les pickles — pickles
les herbes — herbs
le persil — parsley
la ciboulette — chives
l’ail — garlic
l’oignon — onion
les oignons confits — caramelized onions
les câpres — capers
les olives — olives
la tapenade — olive spread
la relish — relish
la chutney — chutney
la gelée — jelly
la sauce béarnaise — béarnaise sauce
la sauce hollandaise — hollandaise sauce
la sauce tartare — tartar sauce
l’aïoli — aioli
la crème fraîche — crème fraîche
la sauce au poivre — pepper sauce
la sauce à l’ail — garlic sauce
la sauce au yaourt — yogurt sauce
la sauce pesto — pesto sauce
le coulis — coulis
piquant — spicy
doux — mild
sucré — sweet
salé — salty
acide — tart, acidic
amer — bitter
crémeux — creamy
épais — thick
léger — light
fait maison — homemade
Je voudrais de la moutarde. — I’d like some mustard.
Vous avez du ketchup ? — Do you have ketchup?
Sans sauce, s’il vous plaît. — No sauce, please.
Avec mayo. — With mayo.
À part — on the side
Un peu de… — a little…
Beaucoup de… — a lot of…
Trop de… — too much…
Ça manque de sel. — It needs salt.
C’est trop piquant. — It’s too spicy.
C’est fait maison ? — Is it homemade?
Qu’est-ce qu’il y a dans la sauce ? — What’s in the sauce?
Je n’aime pas la moutarde. — I don’t like mustard.
Vous pouvez mettre la sauce à part ? — Can you put the sauce on the side?
Je prends de l’huile et du vinaigre. — I’ll have oil and vinegar.

Common French Learner Mistakes With Condiments

Using the wrong article: say de la moutarde, du ketchup, de l’huile. French usually needs a partitive article for an unspecified amount.
Confusing sauce and condiment: une sauce is a sauce, while un condiment is the broader category.
Forgetting gender: la mayonnaise, la moutarde, but le vinaigre, le beurre.
Translating “on the side” word for word: use à part, not a direct English-style translation.
Ignoring adjective agreement: une sauce piquante, un condiment piquant.
Dropping useful politeness words: in restaurants, s’il vous plaît still works wonders. French servers appreciate basic courtesy, shocking as that may sound.

Quick Practice

Try translating these into French:

I’d like some mayonnaise.
No sauce, please.
This sauce is too spicy.
Do you have mustard?
I want oil and vinegar.