📘 Part 3: Cooking

This episode's vocabulary

Utensil (noun) - a tool with a particular use, especially in a kitchen or house.

Recipe (noun) - a set of instructions telling you how to prepare and cook food, including a list of what food is needed for this.

To prep (verb) - to prepare something.

Appliance (noun) - a device, machine, or piece of equipment, especially an electrical one that is used in the house, such as a cooker or washing machine.

Expertise (noun) - a high level of knowledge or skill.

Meticulous (adj.) - very careful and with great attention to every detail.

Universal (adj.) - existing everywhere or involving everyone.

Off the top of your head (idiom) - from the knowledge you have in your memory.

Handy (adj.) - useful or convenient.

To have something under your belt (idiom) - to have learned or succeeded in something that might be an advantage in the future.

To impart (verb) - to communicate information to someone.

Varied (adj.) - containing or changing between several different things or types.

Questions and Answers

M: What do we need to prepare when we cook?

R: Oh, I feel like I'm the least qualified person to answer this question. But based on my limited knowledge, I'm sure you need things on hand like ingredients and utensils, probably having access to the recipe is important if you're making something for the first time. I also think you have to prep the appliances like preheating the oven and stuff like that.

M: And do you think this takes a lot of time?

R: I think that will depend on the level of expertise. I mean, if you're really experienced chef, then it won't take that much time at all, you could do it very quickly, but if it's the first time you do it, then you'll probably be more meticulous in your preparation.

M: Do you agree that food is an important part of the festivals in your country?

R: It could be if it's traditional, or a food-based festival since food and culture are strongly linked. However, if it's something like a music festival, I think most people settle for something a bit more universal, like a burger or fries, since the food or the connection to that sort of culture is not the main focus. Although, I've been wrong about that sort of thing before.

M: And are food festivals popular?

R: In my country? I don't know, actually. I haven't seen any recently, and I haven't heard about it on the news. But that's just based on my experience. I don't know any off the top of my head.

M: Should children learn cooking in school?

R: Yeah, if they want to. Knowledge of basic food preparation and hygiene is a handy thing to have under your belt. But out with that I'm not sure they need it as much as specialist knowledge in maths and language. Most people learn to cook at home these days, or they should at least. It's not really the state's main job to impart that sort of knowledge, at least in my opinion.

M: And should boys and girls learn how to cook at school? Or only girls?

R: No, I think it's everybody's responsibility to know how to cook properly. I mean, what if you're single? Who's going to take responsibility, then?

M: Are there any differences between cooking today and in the past?

R: Well, in a globalized world, the range of things we can prepare and the ingredients we use to do it certainly expanded, since more things are available. I imagine that the processes are more varied to since you can get your hands on all kinds of appliances, from juicers to microwave ovens, and it might be largely safer as well, with all the things that, well, all the ways you can keep things clean available to us.

M: Do you think that in the future, more people will cook?

R: Well, if there are more people, then there will be more people cooking. Yes? That's not to do with anything connected to cooking. That's just a population increase.

M: But do you think that more people will choose to cook for themselves in the future?

R: Also a good question. If people have more free time, then perhaps they will choose to do this. It's difficult to say without more information. And I don't know much about cooking.

Discussion

M: So dear listener, this is a very good example. When Rory doesn't know much about the topic, of cooking. Okay? It's not kind of... He has very little information about it. But still, he gives good answers. All right? And that, that will work. And here, he gave us very good examples of what to say when you don't know. And it's absolutely okay not to know the answer to one question. Okay? That's absolutely fine. For example, about food festivals, Rory didn't say much. That's okay, but he answered the question. He was natural. The examiner then continues asking him questions about cooking and food. We prepare the ingredients and utensils. Utensils? Spoons, forks, spatulas, dear listener. Here, go Google cooking utensils and learn two, or three words you can remember. Okay? Which means cooking utensils. My favourite is a spatula and colander. Okay? Rory doesn't know what it means.

R: I have absolutely no idea what Maria is talking about.

M: Google images and write cooking utensils. Write down two or three words for you. So you should have your ingredients on hand. Okay? You should have your utensils ready.

R: But that just means close by.

M: Then you have your recipe. Recipe? You follow the instructions. It's called a recipe. So when you make something or when you cook something, you might need some appliances, kitchen appliances. Like mixes, rice makers, toasters, and coffee makers. What else? Blenders.

R: All of the things Maria is talking about are completely alien to me. She's just making up these words.

M: Yeah, Rory just like doesn't own these appliances. Yeah, but you have a microwave and that's it. You don't even have a coffee maker. Right, Rory?

R: Why would I have a coffee maker? I don't make coffee.

M: Oh, my God.

R: I'm not a barista.

M: Yeah. So here, you can just say, oh, I'm not a chef, I'm not a cook. How should I know? So yeah, kitchen appliances, dear listener, and also you should... Usually, you preheat your oven. Oven is this place where you put a cake or a pie. Oh, Guinness Pie. Okay, anyway, so preheat your oven, like heat it before you put stuff in there. A person who is responsible for all the cooking in the restaurant, the main person, the boss is called a chef. Not a chef. Okay? Chef.

R: I'm not a chef either.

M: Yeah. A typical person is a cook. But the boss is a chef. Also have like sous-chef, like an assistant chef.

R: I don't know, maybe we do. Who knows?

M: Food festivals. So we do have food at the festivals. And Rory here gave us some examples of traditional food which is served during festivals, like burgers, french fries, pizza, some different kinds of fast food, hotdogs, you know? And kind of like local fast foods, local products. And most people settle for something universal, like burgers and french fries. So like people settle for, they kind of choose something universal, they prefer some like usual stuff.

R: Or something that you can find just about anywhere.

M: Children should learn how to cook at school. Well, maybe.

R: Maybe. Who knows?

M: Maybe not. Actually, I was taught some basic information and we had cooking classes. Rory, did you?

R: We had home economics, I think, and occasionally we had cooking. But it wasn't anything comprehensive.

M: That's why you can say like, well, knowledge of basic food preparation and hygiene. Okay? Hygiene is important. Like clean your ingredients, clean your hands, and keep your kitchen tidy. Keep yourself clean. Okay? So kind of basic knowledge of hygiene is a handy thing. So is a useful thing to have under your belt. If you have something under your belt, you have skill under your belt. You learned it, yeah. Most people learn to cook at home these days. But why not at school? It's not really the state's main job. It's not really the job of teachers at school to educate you, to teach you how to cook.

R: At least I don't think so. I think their job is more located in things like knowledge, for example, but I don't know if cooking is something that is the most important thing to learn at school.

M: Cooking today and cooking in the past. Well, these are two different things. First of all, we have a greater range of ingredients. Okay? We have like all the food in the world, you can order products from anywhere, okay?

R: But you can also order prepared meals, which is why I didn't learn how to cook, I just learned how to order it on the phone.

M: Exactly. We have like pre-cooked ingredients for your dish, for example. We have pre-cooked meals, and ready meals, and the cooking process is more varied these days. So we have different methods of cooking and different kinds of appliances. So kitchen appliances, these gadgets, devices and equipment, which help us to cook like juices, a juicer makes juices and microwave ovens, Rory's favourite ones. Rice maker, bread maker. Like Google kitchen appliances and learn three words you can remember. Okay, dear listener? For this episode, you have homework. So first you Google kitchen utensils. Google images, write down three names, then Google kitchen appliances, and write down two, or three names you can remember. Not more, you don't need more.

R: Or if you're me, you don't need any of them.

M: It will be very useful for you to read an article about cooking today. Also, you can just go to Google... You can actually read it in your mother tongue if reading in English is difficult for you. It's okay. So here we just need ideas for you to shine. It's useful for speaking and writing, because the essay might also be about food and cooking, and you never know, yeah? Or your example could be about food and cooking these days. Cooking today. Or like trends in cooking, like the latest food trends and recipes, and you will be really fascinated to learn what's going on in this culinary world.

R: What are the latest cooking trends? Because I don't know.

M: Well, first of all, it's like plant-based eating. So everything's like plant-based, and then like regional. Regional cuisines, local foods. And what do you call it?

R: This is the one time where I can't help Maria out. I don't know what word she's looking for.

M: How do you pronounce, molecular gastronomy?

R: Molecular? What is that?

M: Molecular cuisine is the scientific approach to cuisine. They use chemistry and cooking. So they do, oh my gosh, they do crazy things, dear listener. If you've ever been to a molecular restaurant, they just... Oh my gosh. The serving of the dishes and the dishes themselves, and how they prepare the dishes, pretty much they have a chemical lab. Okay? And you can just Google molecular gastronomy and look at the dishes. Yeah, so it's like food science. So this is getting more popular. And also different restaurants use... They might use some knowledge from molecular gastronomy to cook certain dishes. May not be all the dishes they cook but I like some. So fascinating stuff.

R: Right. So the next time, the next time we do an episode like this, Maria is our resident expert on food because I had no idea about any of this.

M: Oh, yeah, yeah. And now it's kind of desserts, for example, you can't just serve a normal dessert. It should be a show. Okay? Some kind of like, something is like pouring out. And the special serving of a dessert. So you know, like sensations.

R: That sounds completely insane.

M: I know. Zero-waste cooking is also like, is a trend.

R: That's when you can eat the plate?

M: Yeah, like zero waste. Everything is utilized, like zero-waste cooking. So local ingredients. Plant-based everything. Superfoods. Like matcha. Matcha is super popular.

R: How is that super popular? That's what you put in your tea.

M: Yeah, but matcha tea, like everybody drinks matcha these days. Blue matcha, green matcha is like... Matcha. Are you still drinking coffee? What?

R: This is too "mucha" for me.

M: Yeah, so Rory is already like, getting bored to death.

R: I'm not getting bored. I'm just like, I don't understand any of these things. But they are all, they're all things you could talk about if you want to talk about the differences between cooking today and cooking in the past.

M: But anyway, dear listener. Just Google cooking trends today or molecular cooking. Yeah, and like find a new world. Thank you very much for listening and we'll get back to you in our next episode! Bye!

R: Bye!

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