Cooking - English

Talking about Cooking Methods

When preparing meals, you’ll often mention how food is cooked. You can say, “I am going to bake some bread,” or “We fried the chicken for dinner.” If you want to use specific methods, try sentences like:

• “She is boiling the eggs.”
• “We will grill the vegetables.”
• “He was sauteing onions for the sauce.”
• “They are roasting potatoes for the holiday.”

Use “to cook” for general situations, such as “I love to cook.”

Describing How to Combine Ingredients

When discussing recipes, you explain directions with verbs like add, chop, mix, whisk, stir, peel, and slice. Example phrases include:

• “Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl.”
• “Chop the carrots and peel the potatoes.”
• “Whisk the eggs until they are fluffy.”
• “Add sugar and stir well.”
• “Slice the tomatoes thinly.”

Kitchen Tools and Equipment

To talk about which equipment to use, you could say:

• “Cut the bread on the cutting board with a chef’s knife.”
• “Use the grater for the cheese.”
• “Take the bowl and the whisk for the batter.”
• “Put the soup pot on the stove.”
• “Grab an oven mitt to take out the pan from the oven.”
• “Store leftovers in the refrigerator or freezer.”
• “Use a spatula or spoon for cooking, and tongs for turning meat.”

Describing the Taste of Food

Talking about flavors helps when sharing opinions or following recipes:

• “This soup is salty and a little sour.”
• “The cake is so sweet and yummy.”
• “Mature cheese has an umami flavor.”
• “These strawberries are fresh and ripe.”
• “The curry is very spicy.”
• “Coffee can be bitter.”

Food Textures in Cooking

You can describe how food feels by using different texture words. For example:

• “The toast is crispy.”
• “The bread is fluffy inside.”
• “This sauce is too watery.”
• “The cheese is gooey when melted.”
• “The chicken is tender and juicy.”
• “Overcooked vegetables get mushy.”
• “Raw carrots are hard and crunchy.”
• “The chips are oily.”
• “The cookies turned out soft but not soggy.”

Planning a Meal

When organizing what to eat, you use terms for meals and dishes. Example phrases:

• “What should we have for breakfast?”
• “Let’s make brunch on Sunday.”
• “This menu has options for lunch and dinner.”
• “I looked for a new recipe for dessert.”
• “A small snack is perfect in the afternoon.”
• “French cuisine has many famous dishes.”

Talking about Food Allergies and Dietary Restrictions

These terms help explain what you or others do not eat:

• “She is vegetarian, so she does not eat meat.”
• “I am vegan and dairy-free.”
• “Is this cake gluten-free?”
• “This soup is nut-free and safe for you.”
• “He is shellfish-free because of an allergy.”
• “They do not like spicy food.”
• “Please ask if there are any food allergies.”