Spanish Phrase
Ajústalo según tu horno.
Meaning
A direct instruction telling someone to modify a setting, time, or temperature based on the characteristics of their own oven. It’s often used in recipes or cooking tutorials.
When to use
Use this phrase when giving cooking advice, especially in written or spoken recipes, cooking videos, or when a friend asks how to adapt a dish to their kitchen equipment.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Ajústalosegúntuhorno
Imperative + Direct Object Pronoun
‘Ajústalo’ is the affirmative tú imperative of ‘ajustar’ with the attached direct‑object pronoun ‘lo’, meaning ‘adjust it’.
Preposition ‘según’
‘según’ means ‘according to’ or ‘based on’; it introduces the standard or reference you should follow.
Possessive adjective ‘tu’
‘tu’ (without accent) is the informal possessive adjective meaning ‘your’.
Noun ‘horno’
‘horno’ is a masculine noun meaning ‘oven’; the article is omitted because it is part of a prepositional phrase.
🗨In Conversation
¿Cómo debo cocinar este pastel si mi horno es más pequeño?
How should I bake this cake if my oven is smaller?
Ajústalo según tu horno; reduce la temperatura unos 10 °C y revisa el tiempo.
Adjust it according to your oven; lower the temperature by about 10 °C and check the time.
✕Common Mistakes
Ajústalo segun tu horno.
The preposition must carry an accent: ‘según’. Without it the word is a different form.
Ajústalo a tu horno.
‘a’ changes the meaning to ‘adjust it to your oven’, which is not the intended ‘according to’ sense.
Ajústalo según tu horno, señor.
When addressing someone formally, use ‘su horno’ instead of ‘tu horno’. Mixing formal and informal registers can sound awkward.
↔Alternatives
Modifícalo de acuerdo a tu horno.
Modify it according to your oven.
Ajusta la temperatura según tu horno.
Adjust the temperature according to your oven.
Adáptalo a tu horno.
Adapt it to your oven.
Cultural Tip
In many Spanish‑speaking households ovens vary widely in power and size, so recipes often include the advice ‘ajústalo según tu horno’. It’s polite to use the informal ‘tu’ when speaking with friends or family, but switch to the formal ‘su’ (e.g., ‘según su horno’) in a professional cooking class or with strangers.