How do you say kale in Spanish?

Kale in Spanish is col rizada (literally curly cabbage), and the English word kale itself is widely used as a loanword in Spain and Mexico. In rural Spain you may also hear berza.

How do you pronounce col rizada?

Col rizada is pronounced kohl ree-SAH-dah. Stress falls on the second syllable of rizada. The z is pronounced as an s in Latin America and as a soft th in most of Spain.

What's the difference between col rizada and berza?

Col rizada is the modern, widely-understood term across Spain and Latin America, especially in health and recipe contexts. Berza is an older Spanish word, mostly used in traditional country cooking (cocido, caldo gallego). Col rizada is the safer default.

How do I remember kale in Spanish?

Watch native cooks talk through recipes and grocery lists. Parrot's videos surface col rizada in real kitchens and markets, so you remember the word with the visual instead of as a flashcard term.

Spanish vocabulary · Beginner

Kale in Spanish: Col Rizada, Berza, or Just Kale?

Written by Sofia Ramirez, Lead Spanish Curriculum Editor · Reviewed May 2026

Col rizada · noun (feminine) · kohl ree-SAH-dah

Kale in Spanish is most often col rizada (literally, curly cabbage). The loanword kale is now widely understood in Spain and Mexico thanks to the global health-food trend. In rural Spain you'll also hear berza, an older traditional name.

Col rizada is pronounced kohl ree-SAH-dah. The l in col is soft, almost like English coal without the trailing diphthong. Rizada has the stress on the second syllable.

Voy a hacer una ensalada de col rizada.

I'm going to make a kale salad.

Kale in Spanish: Quick Reference

Below are the most common Spanish words for kale, with pronunciation and regional usage notes.

Spanish	English	Pronunciation	Region / Register
col rizada	kale	kohl ree-SAH-dah	Default, widely understood
kale	kale		increasingly common as a loanword in Spain and Mexico
berza	kale		Spain, traditional country cooking
col crespa	kale		parts of Latin America

How Native Speakers Use Col rizada

Real example sentences across three contexts you'll actually run into.

Ordering at a juice or smoothie bar

¿Tienen jugos verdes con col rizada?

Do you have green juices with kale?

Modern café / juice-bar context where col rizada and kale are both understood.

Cooking with it

Saltéa la col rizada con un poco de aceite y ajo.

Sauté the kale with a little oil and garlic.

Standard recipe phrasing. Col rizada is treated like any other leafy green: saltéar, hervir, mezclar.

Talking about its health benefits

La col rizada tiene mucha vitamina K y fibra.

Kale has a lot of vitamin K and fiber.

Health-context phrasing. Vitamins use the same letter names in Spanish: vitamina K, vitamina D.

Avoid These Mistakes When Using Col rizada

Confusing col rizada with col blanca / col morada

Incorrect: Voy a comprar col rizada para hacer ensalada de col.

Correct: Voy a comprar col blanca para hacer ensalada de col.

Col by itself usually means cabbage. Col rizada is specifically kale; col blanca is white cabbage; col morada is red / purple cabbage. For a classic coleslaw-style ensalada de col you want col blanca, not col rizada.

Forcing kale at a traditional country market

Incorrect: ¿Tienen kale?

Correct: ¿Tienen col rizada o berza?

Younger urban shoppers will recognize kale right away. Older vendors at a traditional Spanish or Mexican market may not. Col rizada (or berza in Spain) is the safer phrasing.

Lock in Kale Vocabulary with the Parrot Method

Why word lists alone don't stick

Memorizing a translation feels productive, but most learners forget 70% of what they studied within 48 hours. Vocabulary needs spaced repetition AND real-world exposure to transfer to long-term memory.

See Col rizada used by native speakers

Parrot's short-form videos feature native speakers using col rizada in real situations. Context-based exposure beats flashcards, you hear Voy a hacer una ensalada de col rizada. while watching someone live the moment, connecting meaning, sound, and rhythm at once.

Save, review, repeat, stay consistent

Tap any word to save it. Parrot's spaced-repetition system surfaces it right before you'd forget, no manual flashcard creation. The watch, parrot back, save, review cycle turns recognition into fluency at 2.7x the speed of traditional study.

Common Questions About Kale in Spanish

How do you say kale in Spanish?: Kale in Spanish is col rizada (literally curly cabbage), and the English word kale itself is widely used as a loanword in Spain and Mexico. In rural Spain you may also hear berza.
How do you pronounce col rizada?: Col rizada is pronounced kohl ree-SAH-dah. Stress falls on the second syllable of rizada. The z is pronounced as an s in Latin America and as a soft th in most of Spain.
What's the difference between col rizada and berza?: Col rizada is the modern, widely-understood term across Spain and Latin America, especially in health and recipe contexts. Berza is an older Spanish word, mostly used in traditional country cooking (cocido, caldo gallego). Col rizada is the safer default.
How do I remember kale in Spanish?: Watch native cooks talk through recipes and grocery lists. Parrot's videos surface col rizada in real kitchens and markets, so you remember the word with the visual instead of as a flashcard term.