UNIT 5: FOOD

READING
Exercise 1 Match the activities with the pictures. Use the words in the box.
Dumplings fish meat noodles pasta rice soup vegetables

1. 2.

3. 4.

5. 6.

7. 8.

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Exercise 2 Read Richard’s letter to his friend, Alessandro. Choose the correct words to complete
the sentences.
Dear Alessandro,
Thank you for your email. You asked me to tell you about the food in the UK. Some people think that
British people eat unhealthy, fried / heat food like fish and chips all the time. However, this is not true.
A lot of British people prefer to eat food from other countries. Chinese and Indian food is very like /
popular in the UK. Many people eat Chinese or Indian food at the weekend, and some people cook it at
home. I like Indian food a lot and think that it is very boring / tasty , but some dishes with a lot of chili
are a bit too spicy for me. Many people also think that British people have afternoon tea every day at
4:00 p.m. This is also not true! People sometimes have afternoon tea with sandwiches and spicy /
sweet foods like cakes, but only on special occasions.

You also asked me about what food I like. My favourite / popular dish from my country is called
Shepherd’s Pie. It is a cold / hot dish made of meat and vegetables and potato, which is cooked in the
oven. It tastes really good. I usually eat it with a lot of fresh vegetables like peas or cabbage, so it is
quite a fat / healthy dish. My mum usually cooks it for me and my brother when we come home from
university. I like to eat Shepherd’s Pie in the winter when it is cold, because it makes me feel warm.
My favourite cold / sweet dish is apple pie which is baked. Many people believe that British food is
not so tasty, but I think we have some boiled / delicious dishes.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Best wishes,

Exercise 3 Read the email from Jenny to her friend, Karen. Then complete the exercise.

Hi Karen,
I hope you are enjoying your summer holiday in France with your family. I’m having a great time
on the school exchange in Turkey. I am staying with a nice girl called Alex. She is very friendly
and funny, and her parents are very kind. They cook for me every day. I didn’t know very much
about Turkish food before I came here, but everything is delicious. In the morning we have a big
breakfast with bread, eggs, cheese and jam. It is quite similar to breakfast in the UK. For lunch,
we usually have a lot of small dishes. My favourite Turkish foods are borek, a dish with cheese
and potatoes, and dolma, a vegetable and rice dish. I also tried an interesting drink made from
yoghurt called ayran. I didn't like it very much, but Alex’s mother says that it is a very healthy
drink, so I drank it all. For dinner last night, we went to a traditional Turkish restaurant and had a
kebab, which is the most famous dish in Turkey. It was delicious. After dinner we had coffee.
The waiter also gave us baklava, which are small sweet cakes made of honey. I am going to bring
some home so that you can try them. I know that you love sweet things!
See you soon at school.
Best wishes,
Jenny

1. Jenny is in Turkey with her family. TRUE / FALSE

2. Jenny knew a lot about Turkish food before she stayed with Alex. TRUE / FALSE
3. The breakfast in Turkey is not very different from breakfast in the UK. TRUE / FALSE
4. Borek is a dish with rice. TRUE / FALSE
5. Jenny didn’t like the Turkish yoghurt drink. TRUE / FALSE
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 6. Baklava is a sweet dish. TRUE / FALSE
7. Jenny tried a famous Turkish dish in a restaurant. TRUE / FALSE
8. Jenny is going to bring some coffee back from Turkey. TRUE / FALSE

Exercise 4 Read the magazine article about street food.

One of the most popular activities that people do when they go on holiday to another country
is to try the local food. However, eating dinner in a restaurant every night can be expensive,
and many people find the restaurants they choose are full of tourists and not many local
people. A much better way to try local food is to eat ‘street food’, food made and sold not in a
restaurant, but on the street, from a ‘stall’ or large table. It is often very tasty and you can try
many different small dishes. It’s also cheaper than eating in restaurants. Different countries
have their own famous types of street food. France is famous for baguettes, which are a type
of French bread filled with cheese or meat with salad. You can buy baguettes from stalls on
the street in many French cities. In Italy, there are slices of pizza, and arancini which are
fried balls of rice with cheese, meat or vegetables inside. The name arancini means ‘oranges’
in Italian. Mexico has tacos, a dish with spicy beans and meat. Eating street food is also a
great way to learn about new places and to talk to local people about the food in their
country. So, the next time you travel to a new country, don’t go to a restaurant, go to the
street instead! You will love the delicious food you can find there.
Complete the sentences with ONE word from the text.
1. Many people like to try the local ___________ when they visit another country.
2. Many restaurants have a lot of __________ but not many local people go there.
3. Street food is usually ___________ than food in restaurants.
4. You can buy baguettes on the ____________ in many cities in France.
5. Arancini is the Italian word for ___________ .
6. Tacos are a popular street food in ____________ .

Exercise 5 Read about food in four different countries.

A. Japan
Japanese food is fresh, healthy and tasty. It includes a lot of fish, vegetables, tofu and rice.
Typical dishes are ramen, a type of soup with noodles and vegetables or seafood, and curries with
chicken or tofu. Japanese people usually eat small amounts of food. They also like to eat their
food very slowly and this stops them from eating too much. For this reason, Japanese people are
among the healthiest people in the world and do not get ill very often. Japanese people do not eat
a lot of sweet dishes, but they enjoy eating fruit and small cakes called dorayaki. To celebrate the
new year, Japanese people often eat cakes made of rice, and a special soup called ozoni.
B. Italy
When many people think of Italian food, they think of delicious but not very healthy food like
pasta with meat sauces, lots of cheese, and, of course, pizza. However, Italians don’t eat these
dishes every day. They eat a lot of healthy foods, including vegetables, tomatoes and olive oil. A
typical Italian meal usually includes several different small dishes. Italians stay healthy by eating
a lot of vegetables and only a little meat. Lunch is the main meal of the day and Italians like to
have long lunches at home. Sometimes Italians will get together with their friends and family in
the evening and go to a pizzeria to eat pizza. After dinner, they might have a gelato, a type of
Italian ice cream, which has many delicious flavours.
C. China
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 Chinese people eat a lot of vegetables, which are usually steamed or fried. They eat some meat
and fish, but usually not very much, and often on special occasions. Rice, noodles and dumplings
are popular Chinese dishes. A lot of Chinese dishes use garlic and ginger, which are tasty and are
good for the stomach. Green tea is a popular drink in China, and many people believe that it helps
them to stay healthy. China has many festivals, and people often eat special food during these
times. People eat dumplings to celebrate Chinese New Year, and for the Autumn Festival people
eat special cakes called moon cakes. Festivals are often special times for families to get together
and eat delicious food.
D. Poland
Polish people like to eat food that keeps them warm in winter. Soup, meat and small dumplings
called pierogi are all popular dishes. Pierogi can be sweet or savoury. Polish dishes are usually
served with vegetables, especially carrots, potatoes and cabbage. Polish people also like sweet
dishes, especially cakes. Cheesecake and doughnuts are popular for dessert, and people make
special cakes for weddings and festivals. Polish people usually eat four small meals a day. They
eat the main meal of the day in the afternoon, usually at about 2:00 p.m. This meal usually has
three dishes, a soup, a meat dish and a dessert. In December, Polish people eat a special meal to
celebrate Christmas, which includes 12 different dishes!
Match the information to the countries.
1. A healthy drink is popular in this country. Japan / Italy / China / Poland
2. People from this country eat soup to celebrate the New Year. Japan / Italy / China / Poland
3. Healthy food in this country often includes olive oil. Japan / Italy / China / Poland
4. People from this country usually eat meat for their main meal. Japan / Italy / China / Poland
5. Many people eat ice cream in the evening in this country. Japan / Italy / China / Poland
6. Sweet dumplings are a popular dish in this country. Japan / Italy / China / Poland
7. People from this country eat meat on special occasions. Japan / Italy / China / Poland
8. People from this country eat their meals slowly. Japan / Italy / China / Poland
Exercise 6 Put the words in the correct order to complete the sentences.
is Italian popular a dish pizza
1. ________________________________________________________________________.
is very healthy food Japanese
2. ________________________________________________________________________.
lot Polish meat eat of people a
3. ________________________________________________________________________.
main meal the the is of lunch day
4. ________________________________________________________________________.
China, people don't of meat in a eat lot
5. ________________________________________________________________________.
always I eat summer ice cream in the
6. ________________________________________________________________________.
big eat a breakfast people Turkish
7. ________________________________________________________________________.
quite spicy is food often Indian
8. ________________________________________________________________________.

Exercise 7 Put the words in the box in the correct column.

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 Bread meat soup rice apple dumpling pizza egg pasta
vegetable

Countable nouns Uncountable nouns

Exercise 8 Change the underlined words to the correct countable or uncountable form to
complete the sentences. The first question has been done for you.
1. Do you eat much many vegetables?
2. There is not many milk left. We need to buy some more.
3. I made a soup for dinner.
4. How many rice would you like?
5. I like to eat a fruit for breakfast.
6. Would you like some cup of coffee?
7. I don’t eat many meat any more

Exercise 9 Read part of the text. Then complete the exercise.

A. Thank you for your email. You asked me to tell you about the food in the UK. Some people
think that British people eat unhealthy, fried food like fish and chips all the time. However, this is
not true. A lot of British people prefer to eat food from other countries. Chinese and Indian food is
very popular in the UK. Many people eat Chinese or Indian food at the weekend, and some people
cook it at home. I like Indian food a lot and think that it is very tasty, but some dishes with a lot of
chili are a bit too spicy for me. Many people also think that British people have afternoon tea every
day at 4:00 p.m. This is also not true! People sometimes have afternoon tea with sandwiches and
sweet foods like cakes, but only on special occasions.

B. You also asked me about what food I like. My favourite dish from my country is called
Shepherd’s Pie. It is a hot dish made of meat and vegetables and potato, which is cooked in the
oven. It tastes really good. I usually eat it with a lot of fresh vegetables like peas or cabbage, so it is
quite a healthy dish. My mum usually cooks it for me and my brother when we come home from
university. I like to eat Shepherd’s Pie in the winter when it is cold, because it makes me feel
warm. My favourite sweet dish is apple pie which is baked. Many people believe that British food
is not so tasty, but I think we have some delicious dishes.

Match the information with the two paragraphs.

1. A description of Richard’s favourite dish. A or B
2. Food from different countries. A or B
3. Who cooks Richard’s favourite dish. A or B
4. A winter dish. A or B
5. Something that British people don’t have very often. A or B
6. Richard’s opinion of British food. A or B
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Exercise 10 Read part of an email from a friend. Reply to the letter and answer the questions.

1. Remember to say hello and goodbye.

2. Write a paragraph to answer each of your friend’s questions.
3. Use some adjectives to describe the food.
Student post:

LISTENING Exercise 5
Listen to a chef explaining how to make paella. Choose True or False.
1. Paella is usually made with chicken and seafood. True / False
2. Paella is a wonderful dish to eat alone. True / False
3. Paella is an expensive dish to make. True / False
4. A special pan is used for making paella. True / False
5. Chicken is the first ingredient you need to fry. True / False
6. You should cook the paella quickly. True / False
7. The last ingredient to add to the pan is the rice. True / False
8. You should add a little salt at the end if you want to. True / False