【英语趣味课堂】家常饮食-Home Cooking

Vesna: Tell me something about the cuisine¹ you prefer?

 

Karlo: My favorite kind is my mum's cooking. I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. I'm used to and prefer Mediterranean² cuisine. I love food to be healthy cooked and try to hold onto my eating schedules.

 

Vesna: We all live a fast and busy life. Do you always manage to eat your meals on a schedule?

 

Karlo: No. The problem is that I don't always have opportunity to eat at certain timing³ due to the fast and dynamic lifestyle. I prefer eating several times a day, at least three or four times in smaller portions.

 

Vesna: And if you don't find the time, what is the alternative?

 

Karlo: Well certainly fast food is often an alternative or frozen vegetables, that can be a healthy substitute for other groceries.

 

Vesna: Well that's better, yeah.

 

Karlo: Yeah.

 

Vesna: When you eat at home, do you do your own cooking?

 

Karlo: Whenever I get the chance I cook for myself but if not I can always count on my mum or my girlfriend.

 

Vesna: So, sometimes you cook by yourself.

 

Karlo: Yeah.

 

Vesna: Are you a traditionalist or do you like experimenting with flavors?

 

Karlo: I love traditional dishes, don't get me wrong, but with a little thinking outside the box, you can add new tastes to the known meals. You know how all of the famous chefs are men?

 

Vesna: Yeah, I've noticed. What is your theory about it?

 

Karlo: My theory, somewhere I have heard that the reason for that is because men are more imaginative when it comes to cooking, maybe cause it lies is in the traditional use of our society.

 

Vesna: And how did you figure this?

 

Karlo: In the minds of a great deal of people, they just feel a deep tradition. But it's a woman's job to cook. And maybe women see this as a navigation instead of a way to express themselves.

 

Vesna: Okay, let me ask you something. You are a young rock musician.

 

Karlo: Yeah.

 

Vesna: I know it's necessary to maintain an image in these circles, so does anybody poke⁴ you for ... or because of your cooking habit?

 

Karlo: No, no, no, my friends are ... and family are pretty cool about it. They all know and share my views about the fact that this is the era of individuality, and no thick male or female divisions.

 

Vesna: That's good to hear, definitely, yeah. So well one more question in the end. Name me your favorite meal?

 

Karlo: My favorite meal, my favorite food is chicken in all variations, combined with Italian pasta for example.

 

Vesna: Well, let's talk about simplicity⁵.

 

Karlo: Yeah.

 

Vesna: Yeah, okay, thank you very much.

 

Karlo: You're welcome.

重点词汇：

 

Learn Vocabulary from the lesson

alternative

 

What is the alternative?

 

An alternative is another choice. Notice the following:

 

I like alternative rock.

Alternative medicine is getting very popular.

substitute

 

That can be a healthy substitute for other groceries.

 

A subistute is a replacement⁶ for something else. Notice the following:

 

We had a substitute teacher today.

Corn syrup⁷ is a substitue for sugar.

whenever I get the chance

 

Whenever I get the chance, I cook for myself

 

We use this phrase to show we like to do something, but do not usually have time to do it. Notice the following:

 

Whenever I get the chance, I call home.

I try to catch up on the news whenever I get the chance.

count on

 

I can always count on my mum or my girlfriend.

 

When you count on someone, you can rely on then or trust them to do something. Notice the following:

 

You can never count on the buses to be on time.

We can count on her to do a good job.

express (oneself)

 

Women see as a way to express themselves.

 

When you express yourself, you share how you feel about life or certain topics. Notice the following:

 

You can express yourself though art, music, or dance.

He has a hard time expressing himself.

1 cuisine   

n.烹调，烹饪法

参考例句：

• This book is the definitive guide to world cuisine.这本书是世界美食的权威指南。
• This restaurant is renowned for its cuisine.这家餐馆以其精美的饭菜而闻名。

2 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

3 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

4 poke   

n.刺，戳，袋；vt.拨开，刺，戳；vi.戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢

参考例句：

• We never thought she would poke her nose into this.想不到她会插上一手。
• Don't poke fun at me.别拿我凑趣儿。

5 simplicity   

n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯

参考例句：

• She dressed with elegant simplicity.她穿着朴素高雅。
• The beauty of this plan is its simplicity.简明扼要是这个计划的一大特点。

6 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

7 syrup   

n.糖浆，糖水

参考例句：

• I skimmed the foam from the boiling syrup.我撇去了煮沸糖浆上的泡沫。
• Tinned fruit usually has a lot of syrup with it.罐头水果通常都有许多糖浆。