Torneo de la Comida Hispana: Celebrating the best Hispanic dishes

In the spirit of both March Madness and practicing food vocabulary, we’ve created this fun and simple activity for your students to learn about dishes from the mundo hispanohablante, while also engaging in a friendly class competition.

How it works:

1. Assign each student (or group of students) to a Spanish-speaking country.
2. Students will research the country’s gastronomy and choose a dish to represent the country in a single-elimination tournament where the class will vote for which dish they think is best. Use this worksheet in Spanish for your students to conduct their research.
3. Each student (or group) will present their research to the class and explain why their dish is the best as they face off against each other.

Example: In the first match of the Round 1, we have Costa Rica vs Ecuador. The national dish of Ecuador is ceviche, a rich seafood dish made from raw fish marinated in a tangy and refreshing marinade of lime juice, onion, salt, and cilantro. The national dish of Costa Rica is Casado, a filling dish made from rice, beans, sweet plátano, and juicy meat that is sure to leave you asking for seconds!

4. After each dish is presented have the class vote on which dish they think should continue on to the next round. Students can fill out the Torneo de la Comida Hispana bracket before the competition to predict the winner.

5. If you span this activity over multiple classes, you can have students research another dish for each round all the way to the final round (i.e., each round is a new dish from the winning countries). However, if you don’t have much time, you can have students present only once, then have the class vote on the original dishes all the way to the finals.

Activity Variations: You can also use the blank bracket below to create your own class tournament on whatever topic you choose, i.e. music, cultural landmarks, or your next travel destination!

Get a taste of Valencia’s traditional dish with Alex’s mouth-watering paella! Watch as he cooks up a storm in his family home, following in the tradition of his abuela. 🥘

Want to enjoy authentic, home-cooked meals with your students abroad? Check out our Homestay and Immersion programs in Spain, Costa Rica, and Ecuador!