Locro argentino al horno de barro para todo el barrio
B2 Spanish listening practice · Rioplatense Spanish · Curated for upper-intermediate learners
What does “porotos” mean in Argentine Spanish?
The cook builds his locro on a base of porotos and corn. Porotos is the Southern Cone word for beans — standard in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia. Cross into Mexico and Central America and the same beans become frijoles; in the Caribbean and parts of Spain they’re habichuelas or judías. One legume, a regional map of names — and poroto comes straight from Quechua purutu.
Locro is the hearty stew Argentines eat on patriotic dates like May 25 and July 9; its name is also Quechua (ruqru), a reminder of how deeply Andean food words run through Southern Cone Spanish. In the clip you’ll also catch porotos alongside maíz and meats like pechito de cerdo — the bean-and-corn base is what makes a locro a locro.
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Source: wordfreq 3.1.1 (general) · SUBTLEX-ESP 2011 (spoken). Buckets approximate; exact ranks not stored.