Episode 262
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Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.
In this episode, I'd like to include some food and cooking vocabulary.
You’ll see, it’s like having a conversation with another person.
You know, when I enter the kitchen, the first thought that I have is… Why am I here? Yeah. I'm hungry. That's why. Now I remember. 🙂
I open the refrigerator and start scanning for some delicious food.
Since I don't buy ready-made food, I usually stare at the fridge for some minutes until it starts beeping. Then I close it and open it again to continue scanning.
And I'm not saying my refrigerator isn't well organized; it's just that I'm looking for something that I can prepare in 1 minute, or preferably even less.
Many times, I end up making a green smoothie. That's a fast and easy way of getting all the needed nutrients. And plus, smoothies are delicious.
By the way, a smoothie is a thick drink that you can make using fruits, vegetables, greens, seeds, milk, ice, etc.
Like I said earlier, I usually end up making a green smoothie. Don't panic. It's green but really yummy.
I add some water or milk, one avocado, 1/2 cup of pineapple, 1/2 frozen banana, 2 cups of spinach, and 1/2 cup of ice cubes. I put it at speed 10 for 45 seconds, and the smoothie is ready. Delicious!
By the way, in case you were wondering, I use a Vitamix blender to prepare my smoothies.
And I don't use it only for that. I also make frozen desserts with it, soups, I can make flours with it, almond milk, batters, dough, nut butter, juices, dips, etc. It's very versatile.
Whenever I'm not in the mood for a smoothie, and I want to eat healthy and fast, I use a pressure cooker or a frying pan.
A frying pan is simply a metal pan with a handle that we use for frying foods.
A pressure cooker is an airtight pot where the food is cooked quickly under steam pressure.
I love using a pressure cooker because whatever I throw into the pot comes out delicious. I'm not here to promote any brands, but I'm really happy with my Instant pot cooker.
The Instant Pot is not only a pressure cooker. It's multi-functional, and I use it all the time. I even bought one for my mom, and she loves it!
And you know what I like using it for? For making yogurt. Yes! I started making yogurt, and it was super simple and just delightful.
I also use this machine for cooking rice, pasta, potatoes; you can steam with it, and keep food warm after cooking.
I usually steam vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, etc.
So, how do I steam with the Instant Pot? I place some water in the pot, and then I add a basket where I put the veggies. Make sure you don’t add any salt into the water while you are steaming, because it delays the evaporation. I just add the salt once it's cooked.
I hope you are enjoying this episode. If you want me to make more episodes like this one, leave a message on my website speakenglishpdocast.com, Facebook, Instagram, or youtube.
Now, let’s practice.
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IMPROVE YOUR SPEAKING
Mini-Story: Speaking Practice
Answer the questions aloud with short and quick responses. Repeat the Mini-Story several times to improve your speaking and listening.
Shawn is twenty-five years old and lives in New York.
Is Shawn old?
No. He's not old. He's twenty-five.
How old is Shawn?
Twenty-five. He's twenty-five years old. Less than thirty. He's still young.
Does he live in San Francisco?
No. He doesn't live in San Francisco. He lives in New York.
Where does Shawn live? Where?
In New York. He lives in New York. He doesn't live in San Francisco.
Shawn has a problem. He doesn't have a job.
Who has a problem?
Shawn. Shawn has a problem. His problem is he doesn't have a job.
Who doesn't have a job?
Shawn. He doesn't have a job.
Shawn is an accountant, but he doesn't want to work as an accountant. He wants to be a chef.
Is Shawn an accountant?
Yes, he is. He's an accountant.
Does he want to work as an accountant?
No, he doesn't want to work as an accountant. He wants to do something different.
Does Shawn want to do something different?
Yes. He wants to do something different. He wants a change in his life. He wants to work on something different.
Shawn wants to become a chef, but he’s never cooked anything in his life. What does Shawn want? Does he want to go to an island?
No. No. He doesn't want to go to an island.
Does he want to become a chef?
Yes. Shawn wants to become a chef.
Has he ever cooked anything before?
No. No. Shawn has never cooked anything before in his life.
Does he really want to become a chef?
Yes. He wants to become a chef. Shawn wants to work on something different.
The next day Shawn enters a restaurant to ask if they need a chef. After 20 minutes, he’s hired.
Did Shawn walk into a bar?
No. No. He didn't walk into a bar. He entered a restaurant.
Did Shawn ask if they needed a waiter?
No. No. He asked if they needed a chef.
Did Shawn get the job?
Yes. Surprisingly, Shawn got the job. He got hired.
After how many minutes was he fired? After 10 minutes?
No. No. He wasn’t fired. He got hired after 20 minutes.
It turned out to be a creative cuisine restaurant, so Shawn made some very original dishes with an amazing flavor.
What kind of restaurant did it turn out to be? A Japanese restaurant?
No. No. It turned out to be a creative cuisine restaurant.
Was Shawn creative?
Yes. Apparently, he was creative because he got hired.
How were his dishes? Were they traditional?
No. No. They were not traditional. They were creative.
Did they taste bad?
No. They tasted very good. They tasted amazing.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
Review
Vocabulary
Review the most useful words and expressions before listening again.
smoothie
a thick drink made by blending fruit or vegetables.
blender
an electric appliance used to mix or puree food.
ingredients
the foods or substances used to make a dish.
peel
remove the outer skin of fruit or vegetables.
slice
cut food into thin, flat pieces.
pour
cause liquid to flow from one container to another.
blend
mix ingredients until smooth.
ripe
fully developed and ready to eat.
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