Idioms are phrases unique to a culture or language that mean something different than their literal composition. You can think of them as figurative phrases or metaphors. Their meaning is always non-literal (e.g “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth” does not refer to an actual horse’s mouth; rather it means to be grateful when handed a gift). 

Idioms about food are popular because eating and food are universal to everyone. No matter their culture, people have a shared understanding of these phrases by virtue of eating similar foods. 

Food idioms are often quite colorful and add a memorable twist to your writing; as they are everywhere in the English language, it’s important to learn how to use them. 

What Are Idioms About Food? 

Idioms in general are non-literal phrases with a meaning different from their individual components, and food idioms are examples of these phrases where the meaning is conveyed through a comparison to food. Idioms for food can also reference cooking or cooking techniques.

Idioms for food are among the most common types of idiom in the English language, and most people aren’t even aware of how often they’re used. It’s likely that idioms about food are so common because food is such a common experience within and between cultures—for example, the phrase “out of the frying pan and into the fire” goes back to Grecian times. 

Benefits of Learning Idioms About Food

Since food idioms are everywhere, the more you learn, the more natural and fluent your English will sound. Mastering the cultural sayings unique to any language is key to speaking it well, and that’s especially true when these sayings are as common as food idioms are. 

Whether you write, read, or speak English, recognizing idioms about food increases your understanding and allows you to communicate complex ideas more effectively. 

List of Idioms About Food (With Examples)

Food idioms range widely in meaning and usage; it seems like there’s an idiom about food that applies to every situation! That’s one reason adding food idioms to your vocabulary is so useful, but it also means there are a lot of examples out there. Use this food idioms list to get you started. 

Idiom	Meaning	Example
A lot on your plate	To have many different tasks	With an executive role and family of 4, she had a lot on her plate.
Bite off more than you could chew	To realize you’ve committed to more than you can handle	When he volunteered to coordinate the fundraiser, he bit off more than he could chew.
Eat your words	To admit you were wrong	After a quick Google search, he ate his words.
Food for thought	Something worth considering heavily.	Choosing between universities is food for thought.
Too many cooks in the kitchen	Too many people working on one task hurts the task.	With every manager giving their input, the project had too many cooks in the kitchen.
Egg on one’s face	Embarrassment, chagrin	Everyone saw him fall and get egg on his face.
Half-baked idea	Something poorly thought-out	Jumping the fence was a half-baked idea.
Worth your salt	Capable, worthy of respect	The quality of his work showed he was worth his salt.
Salt of the earth	Good, humble, honest	He’s always there for his friends, because he’s the salt of the earth.
Chew the fat	Have a casual chat	Every morning at the water cooler, his coworkers are chewing the fat.
Sell like hotcakes	Sell very fast	The new iPhones will sell like hotcakes.
Spice it up	Make it more interesting, change something	This TV show is too boring, they need to spice it up.
Simmer down	Calm down	When he’s mad, it takes a while before he can simmer down.
Not my cup of tea	Something disliked or not preferred	Trekking through the woods for a day is not my cup of tea.
In hot water	In trouble	Too much overspending landed him in hot water.

Idioms about Fruits and Vegetables

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Apple of one’s eye	Dearly loved/cared for person	Since they met, she’s been the apple of his eye.
An apple a day keeps the doctor away	Leading a healthy lifestyle prevents illness	He never gets the flu, because his motto is an apple a day keeps the doctor away.
Cool as a cucumber	Very good/calm under pressure	No matter who panics around her, she’s always cool as a cucumber.
In a pickle	In a tough spot	Double-booking for Saturday night left him in a pickle.
Like two peas in a pod	Very alike, practically twins	They love the same music, books, and films; they’re like two peas in a pod.
Cherry-pick	To select only the parts you prefer	His approach to arguing was to cherry-pick facts and ignore others.
Dangle a carrot	Offer an incentive	The new incentive program dangles a carrot in front of people to get them to behave.
Small potatoes	Insignificant/trivial	That won’t hurt me, it’s small potatoes.
Rotten to the core	Completely corrupt	The more we learn, the more we see he’s rotten to the core.
Salad days	A nostalgic, youthful, or innocent time.	30 years in the factory made him miss his salad days.

Idioms about Bread and Grains

Idiom	Meaning	Example
The best thing since sliced bread	An amazing invention/idea	My new computer is the best thing since sliced bread.
Bread and butter	The essentials, one’s livelihood	Vacuum sales are my bread and butter.
Grain of truth	The small factual piece of a statement	She made most of her story up, but there was a grain of truth.
Against the grain	Contrary to norms or one’s nature	In pursuing a music career, she went against the grain.
Loaf around	Wasting time/being lazy	Every Saturday, he’s at home loafing around.
That’s the way the cookie crumbles	That’s how things are sometimes, there’s nothing that can be done about it.	The fire was a tragedy, but that’s the way the cookie crumbles.
Breadwinner	The main source of income	Her new job as CMO made her the breadwinner of the house.
Not worth a grain of rice	Completely without value	It sounded nice, but the promises were not worth a grain of rice.
Know your oats	Be knowledgeable	Listening to him for 5 minutes, you can tell he knows his oats.
Sowing wild oats	To live wildly before settling down	University is the time for sowing wild oats.

Idioms About Meat and Fish

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Bring home the bacon	Earn a living	They depend on him to bring home the bacon.
Dead meat	Doomed, in serious trouble	If his parents found out, he was dead meat.
Raw deal	Unfair treatment	Being fired without warning was a raw deal.
A fish out of water	Someone uncomfortable in a situation	At the party, he felt like a fish out of water.
Plenty of fish in the sea	There are lots of options (esp. love/dating related)	His friends keep reminding him there are plenty of fish in the sea.
Cold fish	An unfriendly/unemotional person	The new hire seems like a cold fish
The meat of the matter	The most important part or essence of something	Quarterly budgets were the meat of the matter at the company.
A bone to pick	To have a complaint or grievance	I had a bone to pick with my colleague in the factory.
Big fish	Important person	When she got promoted, she became a big fish.
Meaty subject	A topic with depth or importance	His future at the company was a meaty subject.

Idioms About Desserts/Sweets

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Piece of cake	Something very easy	That assignment was a piece of cake
Icing on the cake	An extra reward or incentive	Added vacation days were the icing on the cake at his new company.
Easy as pie	Very simple	His job is easy as pie.
Like a kid in a candy store	Overwhelmingly excited, choosing between many options	The moment he walked into the restaurant he was like a kid in a candy store.
Tough cookie	Strong or resilient	She’s been through a lot, but she’s a tough cookie.
Cakewalk	Something very easy	Stick to a workout long enough and it’s a cakewalk.
Crumble under pressure	To give up when stressed	Though talented, he crumbles under pressure.
Sweeten the pot	Make an offer more appealing	If they’re hesitant to buy, take 10% off to sweeten the pot.
Have your cake and eat it too	Having it all, wanting 2 incompatible things	Expecting to make the same salary with half the hours, he wanted to have his cake and eat it too.
Sugarcoat something	Make a bad or unpleasant thing sound better	If you have a problem with me, don’t sugarcoat it.

Popular Idioms About Food in Detail

Some food idioms are more common than others, and you’ve probably already encountered them several times. Here are a few of these food idioms with meaning and more in-depth use cases. 

Piece of Cake

“Piece of cake” is one of the many idioms used to mean something is easy, and it’s likely the most common one. It’s often used to describe tasks or processes. Saying something is a piece of cake is a smooth way of expressing that it is not a challenge for you. 

Cool as a Cucumber

This is a common idiom about food that describes someone who is level-headed and not overwhelmed under pressure. When you call someone cool as a cucumber, you mean that they have a very calm personality and are able to think clearly, especially in situations where others might not be. 

(Don’t) Put All Your Eggs in One Basket

“Putting all your eggs in one basket” means to put all your effort into one thing exclusively while ignoring everything else. You’ll most often hear this food idiom phrased as a word of caution, i.e. “don’t put all your eggs in one basket”.

It applies in a wide range of situations, from job applications to romantic relationships to learning new skills. 

Apple of One’s Eye

“Apple of one’s eye” is a popular idiom about food used to reference a loved one, most likely a partner or spouse. It shows that the person has a unique place in your heart and you care deeply for them. Usually, but not always, the apple of your eye is the person you care most about. 

Food For Thought

“Food for thought” is a popular way of saying an idea or concept is really worth considering.  You would typically call something food for thought when it is new information or a perspective you had never considered. 

Idioms About Food in Everyday Conversations

Now that you know what idioms about food are, you’re ready to start using them in real interactions. There are two things to be sure of when incorporating food idioms into your vocabulary: 

• You know what the phrase means. Many of these idioms are explained above, but the food idioms list is long. If you’re unsure what an idiom means, Google it. 
• You know how it fits in context. Before using idioms about food, make sure rhey match the situation you’re in. For example, “cool as a cucumber” wouldn’t make sense if the conversation is not about staying calm under pressure. 

It’s also a great idea to observe the way native speakers use idioms for food in their speech, and then try to mimic that. Here are some examples.

Person 1: “Did you hear? Joan lost her house.”

Person 2: “That’s awful! At least we know she’s a tough cookie; she’ll make the best of it.”

Person 1: “I shouldn’t have signed up for a double shift this weekend. I’m really biting off more than I can chew.”
Person 2: “Sounds like you’re getting a bit of a raw deal at work.”

Person 1: “I just took a new job at Subway as a manager.”

Person 2: “Really? I didn’t think that would be your cup of tea.”

Person 1: “Well, they sweetened the pot a little bit with extra vacation days and a performance bonus.”

When you’re integrating idioms for food into everyday situations, it’s important to start small. Overusing too many idioms will make your phrases sound forced, but if you go little by little, you’ll be communicating like a native in no time. 

Conclusion

Idioms about food are incredibly useful tools that add character and color to your writing, and they’re present everywhere you look. The more ways you learn to incorporate them, the more fluidly you’ll be able to express yourself.

All you need is a little bit of daily practice to really familiarize yourself with these phrases and bring your English to the next level.