Episode 0053
Summary
The audio depicts a chaotic and busy kitchen environment. The head chef is managing orders, while the sous chef, Jean-Pierre, is overwhelmed, giving instructions and expressing frustration, particularly in French. Another cook arrives late but quickly gets to work, noting the busy night. The head chef then informs Jean-Pierre that table seven, suspected to be food critics, has requested to see the chef.
Transcript (Click timestamp to jump)
Right away, your order will be ready shortly.
Jean-Pierre, we have another special for table seven.
I'm working as fast as I can. We are in the weeds.
Where is my sous chef?
Look, I need you to peel more potatoes.
Marie, chop some onions and carrots for this stew.
Ah, c'est pas possible, qu'on est galère ici, ça m'énerve.
Oh, it's not possible, we're struggling here, it annoys me.
Jean-Pierre, another special. We're really packed tonight.
We're running low on wine. Is there any left in the cellar?
Sorry, I'm late everyone.
Wow, we're really doing well tonight.
Ay, stop talking and get over here!
I need some soup stirred and the fish needs to be butchered and buttered.
Okay, I'm on it.
Jean-Pierre, table seven has requested to see the chef.
I think they're food critics from Cuisine Magazine.
Summary
This audio is a podcast episode from EnglishPod, hosted by Marco and Erica, focusing on kitchen-related vocabulary and phrases. The episode introduces terms like 'head chef', 'sous chef', 'cuisine', 'peel', 'chop', 'stirred', 'butchered', and 'buttered', along with phrases such as 'in the weeds', 'running low on', and 'doing really well'. These terms are demonstrated through a dramatic dialogue set in a bustling restaurant kitchen, highlighting the stress of a busy service. The hosts then explain each word and phrase with examples, concluding with an invitation for listeners to share their favorite recipes.
Transcript (Click timestamp to jump)
Hello English learners, welcome to EnglishPod. My name is Marco.
And I'm Erica.
And today we're back bringing you another great lesson, an intermediate lesson.
That's right, about one of my favorite subjects.
We're talking about food.
Exactly.
So, on this occasion, we're going to be talking about food. So, let's preview some words on vocabulary preview.
Vocabulary preview.
All right, we have three words for you today. Um, and the first word is head chef.
Head chef, head chef.
So, what is a head chef?
Well, in a professional kitchen, um, this is the boss of the kitchen or the leader of the kitchen.
Okay, so the head chef is the the main cook, so to say.
Yes, but he doesn't cook.
He but he doesn't cook.
Okay.
All right, so if he doesn't cook, who's the one that does the cooking?
Um, that brings us to our second word. Sous chef.
Sous chef.
Sous chef.
Sous chef.
S O U S.
So the S is silent because it's like a French word.
Yeah, something like that.
Okay. So, the sous chef is the second in line to the head chef.
Yeah, he's the number two.
Number two.
So he's basically the one that's doing some of the work.
Yeah.
In the kitchen.
Yep.
Now let's take a look at our last word, cuisine.
Cuisine.
Cuisine.
Cuisine.
So this is an interesting word. What exactly does it mean?
Well, it basically means, um, cooking, right?
Okay. Like the art of cooking.
So, for example, I can say French food.
Yeah, or French cuisine.
French cuisine, which includes all the food.
And this is also the major that people study in college to become a chef.
Yep. Yep.
You study cuisine.
Mhm. And cuisine is a noun, right?
It's a noun.
Okay, so I think we're ready to dive into our dialogue. What exactly is going on?
Well, um, we're in a restaurant, um, and it's a really busy night and so we're going to listen to what is happening in the kitchen.
Right away, chef. Your order will be ready shortly.
Jean-Pierre, we have another special for table seven.
I'm working as fast as I can. We are really in the weeds. Where is my sous chef? Luke, I need you to peel more potatoes. Marie, chop some onions and carrots for the stew.
Ah, c'est pas possible, j'en ai marre, galère ici, ça n'arrange jamais.
Ah, it's not possible, I'm fed up, it's a mess here, it never works out.
Jean-Pierre, another special! We're really packed tonight. We're running low on wine. Is there any left in the cellar?
Sorry, I'm late everyone. Wow, we're really doing well tonight.
Harry, stop talking and get over here. I need some sautéed and the fish needs to be butchered and buttered.
Okay, I'm on it.
Jean-Pierre, table seven has requested to see the chef. I think they are food critics from Cuisine magazine.
Okay, so a busy night here at this restaurant.
I know, it sounds like, uh, there's a lot of pressure on this chef, Jean-Pierre.
Yeah, you can, you can tell in his voice that he's really stressed out.
Yeah.
Okay, let's take a look at some of this kitchen vocabulary that we found, uh, in language takeaway.
Language takeaway.
All right, well, we've got five words for you today. Uh, and the first one is peel.
Peel.
Peel.
Peel.
P E E L.
So this is a verb.
Mhm.
And it means to remove the outside skin.
Okay, so for example, when you're going to eat a banana.
You must peel it first.
You must peel it, you got to take away the yellow skin.
What else do you peel? Oranges, potatoes.
Potatoes, like in the dialogue.
Uh, what else can you peel? I don't know, carrots.
Carrots.
Yeah. Some people peel their tomatoes, I don't know why.
Yeah, it is kind of weird.
All right, now let's take a look at our next word, chop.
Chop.
Chop.
Chop.
So, again, another verb, and it means to
It means to cut food into pieces.
Okay. So, if you're going to eat carrots, first you got to chop them.
Exactly.
Right, you can't put a whole carrot in
In your soup.
In your soup or in your rice.
Yeah.
Okay, chop.
Okay, our next word, stirred.
Yeah, this is the past participle of the word stir.
Okay, so the verb stir.
Stir.
So, when you stir something, imagine you have a big pot.
Mhm.
Um, and you've got a long spoon, you move the spoon around in circles.
Okay.
So you're stirring the pot.
You're mixing.
Mhm.
To stir is very similar to mix.
Yes.
Okay.
So you just move the food around.
Move the food around.
Yep.
Okay, our next word, butchered.
Again, the past participle of the verb butcher.
Okay, butcher.
Butcher.
Now, this verb to butcher something, it's when you remove all the bones and all the organs from the meat.
Exactly, so you cut up the meat.
And this is interesting because it's also a noun. Right. A butcher is a person who cuts up meat.
Okay.
So, so it's really easy. A butcher butchers meat.
Yes.
All right, our last word, butter.
Buttered.
Buttered.
Buttered.
Okay, so butter, this is weird.
I know. Um, normally, we all know the the noun, butter, but here it's acting as a verb.
Okay.
So, when you butter something, you spread or put butter on it.
Simple.
Okay.
So, to put butter on something.
So you can butter a piece of bread.
Exactly.
Or in this case, the fish is being buttered.
Sounds delicious.
Okay, now we're ready to listen to our dialogue for the second time. We're going to slow it down a little bit, so it's easier to understand.
Right away, chef. Your order will be ready shortly.
Jean-Pierre, we have another special for table seven.
I'm working as fast as I can. We are really in the weeds. Where is my sous chef?
Luke, I need you to peel more potatoes. Marie, chop some onions and carrots for the stew.
Ah, c'est pas possible, j'en ai marre moi.
Ah, it's not possible, I'm fed up.
Jean-Pierre, another special! We're really packed tonight. We're running low on wine. Is there any left in the cellar?
Whoa, sorry, I'm late everyone. Wow, we are really doing well tonight.
Harry, stop talking and come over here. I need this sautéed and the fish needs to be butchered and buttered.
Okay, I'm on it.
Jean-Pierre, table seven has requested to see the chef. I think they are food critics from Cuisine magazine.
Okay, so that seems to be a little bit better.
Mhm. And hey, I noticed that there's a lot of really great kitchen words in here, like words that you commonly hear in a professional kitchen.
Okay, so let's take a look at these kitchen words in fluency builder.
Fluency builder.
All right, we've got three phrases. Uh, and the first one is in the weeds.
In the weeds.
In the weeds.
In the weeds.
So when you're in the weeds, you're so, so busy and you can't do all the work you need to do on time.
Okay.
So in the weeds, it means that you're really busy.
Yes.
And you can't finish everything. You have too much to do.
Yep.
Okay, in the weeds.
Okay, our next word, running low on.
Running low on.
Running low on.
Running low on.
Okay, so before we get into explaining what running low on means, let's listen to some examples.
Example one.
You better look for a gas station, we're running low on fuel.
Example two.
We're running low on beers. Can you go out and get some?
Example three.
My flashlight is running low on battery. Hurry up before it gets dark.
So basically running low means.
Um, you don't have much of this left.
You don't have much of something left.
Yeah. So here, they're running low on wine.
So basically, there's not much wine left.
Right.
So as we heard in the examples, you could also be running low on fuel, for example, in your car, etcetera. Running low on.
All right, and now let's take a look at our last word.
Doing really well.
Doing really well.
We are doing really well.
Doing really well.
So, this seems to be like a pretty simple structure. I mean, we know all these words, right?
Mhm.
So why is it special?
Well, basically, if you say I am doing really well, maybe it sounds a little bit difficult to understand. What are you doing really well?
Mhm.
So this is a great way of answering a question when somebody says how are you or how are you doing, you can say, oh, I'm doing really well.
So.
Or I'm doing well.
In your life, everything is good.
In your life, things are good and you're happy, basically.
Yeah. But in this situation, in the dialogue, what's doing really well?
Well, the restaurant is doing really well. The business is doing really well.
So when he says we're doing really well, um, business is good. Good. They're making lots of money.
Exactly.
So you can use it with people, you can use it with businesses. You can say, oh, I'm doing really well in my new job.
Yep.
Or my son is doing really well in school.
Yep.
Okay. So, you can use it in in those different ways.
All right, well, let's listen to the dialogue, uh, one last time, and we'll be able to hear all of these great words and phrases we just talked about.
Right away, chef. Your order will be ready shortly.
Jean-Pierre, we have another special for table seven.
I'm working as fast as I can. We are really in the weeds. Where is my sous chef? Luke, I need you to peel more potatoes. Marie, chop some onions and carrots for the stew.
Ah, c'est pas possible, j'ai pas mal de galère ici, ça n'arrange jamais.
Ah, it's not possible, I have a lot of trouble here, it never works out.
Jean-Pierre, another special! We're really packed tonight. We're running low on wine. Is there any left in the cellar?
Sorry, I'm late everyone. Wow, we're really doing well tonight.
Harry, stop talking and get over here. I need some sautéed and the fish needs to be butchered and buttered.
Okay, I'm on it.
Jean-Pierre, table seven has requested to see the chef. I think they are food critics from Cuisine magazine.
So Marco, do you think this chef had a rat under his hat?
That was a really good movie, Ratatouille, that Disney Pixar, uh, where a rat is a cook.
Yes.
It's interesting, I love to cook, but I'm not very good at cooking.
Really?
But it's good because for me it it helps me relieve stress.
Me too, actually. You know, if I'm in a bad mood, I go home and cook something to eat and the world seems a happier place.
And people don't understand it because they think cooking is work.
Yeah. But, you know, for some people it's fun.
Yeah. So what about you guys? What do you like to cook? Do you have any particular dish that you prepare very well?
And if you do, please send us the recipes.
Exactly, because we know that we have listeners from all over the world, and of course, we want to know what type of food you prefer.
Mhm.
So come to Englishpod.com and post your questions, your comments, and your recipes.
Yes.
In our community section and Erica and I will always be there.
Yes, um, to test out your recipes as well as answer questions.
For sure, if a good recipe comes along, we'll prepare it and uh, we'll let you know how it turned out.
Yep.
All right, guys, we're out of time, but we'll see you next time.
Until then, goodbye.
Bye.
Summary
The audio is an English vocabulary review focused on cooking terms. It presents the meaning of a word, then the word itself, and later provides example sentences for several of these words. Key vocabulary includes terms like 'right away', 'in the weeds', 'sous chef', 'peel', 'chop', 'running low on', 'stir', 'butcher', 'butter', 'dice', 'stove', 'pot', 'pan', and 'bake'.
Transcript (Click timestamp to jump)
The English pod audio review.
Listen to the meaning, then say the vocabulary word.
Quickly, as soon as possible.
Right away.
In a difficult situation.
In the weeds.
Chef that assists and helps the head chef.
Sous chef.
Remove the outer skin of a fruit or vegetable.
Peel.
Cut into small pieces.
Chop.
Do not have so much, having not enough.
Running low on.
Move or mix something, usually with a spoon.
Stir.
Cut meat into pieces taking out bones and organs.
Butcher.
Put butter on something.
Butter.
To cut something into small pieces.
Dice.
A flat piece of kitchen equipment for cooking with fire.
Stove.
A deep round container that is used for cooking.
Pot.
A usually shallow and open metal container that has a handle and that is used for cooking or baking.
Pan.
To cook food at a very high and dry heat.
Bake.
Let's try that faster.
Quickly, as soon as possible.
Right away.
A deep round container that is used for cooking.
Pot.
Chef that assists and helps the head chef.
Sous chef.
A flat piece of kitchen equipment for cooking with fire.
Stove.
Move or mix something, usually with a spoon.
Stir.
To cut something into small pieces.
Dice.
Put butter on something.
Butter.
In a difficult situation.
In the weeds.
A usually shallow and open metal container that has a handle and that is used for cooking or baking.
Pan.
Cut into small pieces.
Chop.
Cut meat into pieces taking out bones and organs.
Butcher.
Do not have so much, having not enough.
Running low on.
Remove the outer skin of a fruit or vegetable.
Peel.
To cook food at a very high and dry heat.
Bake.
Now say the word and hear it in a sentence.
Peel.
You should peel tomatoes before eating them to avoid getting sick.
Peel.
I hate peeling potatoes. It takes me a very long time.
Peel.
Can you peel this orange for me please?
Chop.
When you chop onions, it makes you cry.
Chop.
You must be careful when chopping vegetables and not cut yourself.
Chop.
When you chop vegetables, make sure you have a sharp knife.
Running low on.
We need to find a gas station. We are running low on gas.
Running low on.
We are running low on beer. Can you go to the store and get some more?
Running low on.
My flashlight is running low on battery. Do you have another flashlight?
Stir.
Stir this can of paint so we can start painting the room.
Stir.
You need to stir your coffee if you add sugar.
Stir.
Can you please stir the rice? It will burn if you don't.
Butcher.
It's difficult to butcher meat. I don't know how you do it.
Butcher.
I spent all day butchering the cow. Now it's ready to cook.
Butcher.
You have to butcher the chicken before cooking it.