Shadowing Practice: Daily Life English Podcast | Ep 01 | Mexican Food | English Fluency Builder - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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Hello everyone and welcome to EnglishPod.
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Hello everyone and welcome to EnglishPod.
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My name is Marco.
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My name is Catherine and Marco,
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I can tell you right now,
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I'm already hungry just thinking about our lesson today.
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That's right.
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Today we have another food lesson.
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Our world cuisine lesson for today is all about Mexican food.
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Okay, Mexican food comes from the country Mexico,
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but also parts of the United States,
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like Texas, have something called Tex-Mex.
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So you're going to hear a lot about these kinds of foods there.
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Let's check out today's dialogue.
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Hello sir, welcome to Pistolera Restaurant.
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May I take your order?
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Yes, I would like the chicken cheese enchiladas with a side of guacamole.
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Sorry sir, but we ran out of chicken.
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May I suggest our delicious beef burritos or cheese quesadillas?
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Both include a side of guacamole and jalapenos.
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Sure, I'll have the burrito.
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Do you have nachos?
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Of course, sir.
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Our nachos come with melted cheese and chili.
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Sounds good.
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Would you like anything to drink?
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Sure, I'll have a Corona.
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Alright, we're back.
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So a lot of great dishes from Mexico.
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Let's take a closer look at some of those on language takeaway.
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Language takeaway.
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So first up, Marco, we have the word enchilada.
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That's right.
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We have some chicken cheese enchilada.
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So this dish has chicken and cheese,
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but an enchilada, what is that?
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Okay, so it's basically a wrap that is covered in cheese, right?
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That's right.
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So it has a base of a flour tortilla.
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So a tortilla is like a wrap, as you said.
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Let's consider it as flat bread.
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Very thin.
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Very thin.
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And it rolls up and it's covered with cheese and inside it has chicken.
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Very, very good.
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That's right.
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And just a warning, you're going to hear me say the American pronunciation, enchilada.
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And you're going to hear Marco say a more appropriate...
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A little bit with a more Hispanic accent to it.
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That's right.
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So the second one we've got is guacamole.
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Guacamole.
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That's right.
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We say guacamole.
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And this is from the avocado fruit.
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That's right.
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Avocados are green fruits.
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They have a skin.
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So you take the skin off and you usually mix guacamole with other ingredients.
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Right.
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It has a little bit of lemon, onion, tomato.
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Maybe a little spice.
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Really good stuff.
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So, yeah, it comes from that fruit that you said.
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And it's kind of like a paste, right?
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Yeah.
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It's something that we often use as a dip.
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So I can dip my potato chips or my tortilla chips in it.
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Or I can use it as a sauce.
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All right.
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Very good.
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And our next and probably one of the most popular dishes in the Mexican cuisine world is a beef burrito.
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Burrito.
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So a burrito is another kind of wrap.
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We have a tortilla, like you said earlier.
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And inside there are many different things.
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So usually some rice and some beans and some meat,
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maybe beef or chicken.
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That's right.
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So consider it kind of like a sandwich, more or less.
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But in a blanket instead of in bread.
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Exactly, in a blanket.
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And then also we have cheese quesadillas.
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Now also these are made from the same blanket of tortilla.
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That's right.
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So this thin tortilla, this flour tortilla is put on top and on bottom.
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And inside you have some cheese, some melted cheese.
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Or other times you can have cheese and chicken.
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And usually you find it's a circle,
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but it's cut into four pieces.
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So it looks like pieces of a pie.
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That's right.
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And actually what you do is you heat it up in a pan so the cheese inside melts.
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And it's very, very delicious.
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It is.
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And sometimes you have this with a side of jalapeno.
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Okay.
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This is some type of vegetable, I would guess.
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It's a pepper.
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It's a pepper.
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Right.
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So this is a very,
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very spicy pepper that people often use to make things taste hot.
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That's right.
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So you can see them.
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They're usually green and they're very, very spicy.
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So if you bite into one, it'll burn your mouth.
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It will.
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And sometimes people like to put these on our next dish.
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What's the next dish, Marco?
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We have some nachos.
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Okay, this is a classic Tex-Mex dish, like I was saying.
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So a lot of Americans love to eat this.
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And nachos are basically a plate of tortilla chips with what on top?
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Usually it has melted cheese and maybe some chili,
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like we see in the dialogue.
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So it will kind of just consider a plate full of these chips kind of they look like potato chips
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But they're made out of flour and on top a lot of cheese
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and maybe some meat or some chili on top And Americans also like to put sour cream on top.
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Oh, yes sour cream is very popular on this dish
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So a lot of dishes these are probably the most popular ones
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that you can find at most Mexican restaurants and also in Tex-Mex style
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So why don't we take another look at everything and we'll be back in a bit with Fluency Builder.
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Hello sir, welcome to Pistolera Restaurant.
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May I take your order?
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Yes, I would like the chicken cheese enchiladas with a side of guacamole.
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Sorry sir, but we ran out of chicken.
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May I suggest our delicious beef burritos or cheese quesadillas?
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Both include a side of guacamole and jalapenos jalapenos.
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Sure, I'll have the burrito.
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Do you have nachos?
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Of course, sir.
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Our nachos come with melted cheese and chili.
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Sounds good.
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Would you like anything to drink?
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Sure, I'll have a Corona.
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All right, so Marco, today we have only three things to talk about Influency Builder.
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The first one is something that the waiter said to the customer.
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It was to run out of.
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That's right.
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He wanted some chicken cheese enchiladas but unfortunately they ran out of chicken.
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So the phrasal verb here is to run out of.
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That's right and we heard the past tense.
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So unfortunately we ran out of chicken.
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This means that we no longer have chicken.
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We sold all of the chicken.
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That's right.
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So for example if you're in your car
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and all of a sudden you run out of gasoline it means your car will stop running.
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That's very bad situation.
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So to run out of means to not have anymore.
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That's right.
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So you ran out of money.
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Maybe you have no more money.
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Another bad situation.
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Alright.
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So instead he ordered a burrito that included a side of guacamole and jalapenos.
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Okay so the reason we included this is because it's important to remember this as a phrase.
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A side of.
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That's right.
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So this burrito comes with a side of guacamole
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or this burrito has a side of beans
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so a side of means a small portion a little bit
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that's right the most important part of a side of is
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that it doesn't come in the dish
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or inside the burrito let's say it just comes separately on a separate little plate
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or it can come next to yeah next to the main dish
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so if the main dish is tacos you can say I want tacos with a side of black beans,
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you would get the black beans in a little bowl next to you.
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But that's not the main thing.
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Exactly, exactly.
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So a side of.
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Now for our last phrase,
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when we talked about the nachos,
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they came with melted cheese and chili.
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So what do we mean by they come with melted cheese and chili?
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Okay, so this verb, to come with,
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means that they have as a part of the dish.
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So this is not a side.
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Right.
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Not like before when we were talking about a side of.
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This means that in the case of nachos,
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the nachos have on them,
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on top, cheese and chili.
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That's right.
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So sometimes if you go to McDonald's and you buy a meal,
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you get a burger, and the burger comes with French fries and a Coke included in the meal.
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Or you can say, unfortunately,
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this meal does not come with a drink,
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so you have to order the drink extra.
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That's right.
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Okay, so a lot of great stuff.
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Let's take another look, and we'll be right back.
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Hello, sir.
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Welcome to Pistolera Restaurant.
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May I take your order?
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Yes, I would like the chicken cheese enchiladas with a side of guacamole.
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Sorry, sir, but we ran out of chicken.
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May I suggest our delicious beef burritos or cheese quesadillas?
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Both include a side of guacamole and jalapenos.
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Sure, I'll have the burrito.
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Do you have nachos?
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Of course, sir.
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Our nachos come with melted cheese and chili.
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Sounds good.
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Would you like anything to drink?
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Sure, I'll have a Corona.
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Alright, so Mexican food, very, very delicious.
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And as we see, it has a lot of cheese in most dishes.
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It does.
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A lot of cheese and also a lot of tortillas.
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So tortillas are these usually round, flat, pancake-like things.
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They're not sweet.
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They're savory.
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And you usually put things in them like tacos or fajitas or burritos.
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That's right.
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And there's two kinds, right?
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That's right.
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So you have tortillas that are made from flour that are usually white.
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And then you have corn tortillas that are made from corn.
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And they're usually a little bit more yellow.
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That's right.
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So it's actually, Mexican food is very,
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very good, but usually it's a little bit spicy.
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So if you don't really like spicy food,
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you should tell the waiter or waitress to not make it spicy.
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That's right.
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If you don't eat spicy food,
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you certainly don't want to eat any jalapeno peppers.
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That's right.
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I'm actually not really a fan of spicy food.
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So, for example, I really cannot eat jalapeno peppers.
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See, I'm the opposite.
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I love spicy food, so I often order green enchiladas,
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which have a spicy jalapeno green sauce.
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Yeah, they're very, very spicy.
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So this is part of our mini-series that we have all about world foods.
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We've already taken a look at Italian food.
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We have Mexican food.
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Next, we'll be looking at Indian food,
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Korean food, a lot of great international foods coming up.
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Yummy.
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So let us know, do you like Mexican food?
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Have you ever had Mexican food?
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And if we left off some kind of Mexican food like tacos, let us know.
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That's right.
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Our website is EnglishPod.com.
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We'll see you there.
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All right.
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Bye.
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The EnglishPod audio review.
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Listen to the meaning, then say the vocabulary word.
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A type of beer from Mexico.
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Corona.
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A spicy green pepper.
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Jalapeno.
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A dip of mashed avocado mixed with tomato, onion and seasonings.
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Guacamole.
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To become liquified by warmth or heat.
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Melt.
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A tortilla folded over a filling.
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Burrito.
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Let's try that faster.
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A tortilla folded over a filling.
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A spicy green pepper.
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To become liquefied by warmth or heat.
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Melt A type of beer from Mexico Corona A dip of mashed avocado mixed with tomato,
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onion and seasonings Guacamole Now say the word and hear it in a sentence.
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Melt Hey, could you please melt this cheese for me?
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Melt.
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Yuck, my chocolate melted.
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I hate melted chocolate.
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Melt.
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I like to melt my butter and put it on bread.
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Corona We always get the same beer.
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Let's get some Coronas.
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Corona This Corona tastes weak.
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I like my stronger Australian beers.
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Corona I love to put some lime into my Corona.
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Jalapeno This jalapeno is so hot, I need water.
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Jalapeno I love to have jalapenos on my pizza.
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Jalapeno.
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I will give you 100 bucks if you can eat 10 jalapenos.
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Guacamole.
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My favorite dip in the world is guacamole.
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Guacamole.
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She always has guacamole with crackers.
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Guacamole.
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Can you buy an avocado?
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I want to make guacamole.
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Burrito A burrito is a great late night snack to have.
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Burrito I like my burrito to have chicken and cheese.
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Burrito.
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I'm sick after eating so many burritos.
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About This Lesson
Welcome to this engaging episode focused on Mexican food! In this lesson, you'll enhance your English speaking skills as you explore delicious culinary terms associated with popular dishes. Through a lively restaurant dialogue, you will learn how to order food, ask questions, and understand menu items. This lesson serves as a fantastic opportunity for IELTS speaking practice and to improve your overall fluency in real-life situations. You will also gain confidence in conversational English by learning vocabulary specific to dining experiences.
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
- Enchilada: A rolled tortilla filled with various ingredients, often covered in sauce and cheese.
- Guacamole: A creamy avocado dip typically served with tortilla chips.
- Burrito: A flour tortilla wrapped around fillings like meat, beans, and cheese.
- Quesadilla: A tortilla filled with cheese and other ingredients, folded and grilled until melted.
- Nachos: Tortilla chips topped with melted cheese, jalapeños, and sometimes additional toppings.
- Corona: A popular Mexican beer, often served with lime.
- Tex-Mex: A fusion of Mexican and American cuisines, popular especially in Texas.
Practice Tips
To effectively utilize the shadowing technique while practicing with this video content, start by listening to the dialogue carefully. Pay attention to the speed and tone of the speakers, Marco and Catherine. Begin by repeating phrases immediately after hearing them; this will help you match their intonation and pronunciation. It's beneficial to use a shadowing app that allows you to slow down the audio, making it easier to follow along and replicate. Engage in English speaking practice by practicing the key vocabulary and phrases aloud to reinforce your learning. Try to vary your speed and clarity to mimic natural conversation, which is particularly useful for learners preparing for the IELTS speaking exam.
Lastly, revisit the dialogues several times, focusing on different elements each time—this aids in comprehension and retention, ultimately making your learning experience richer and more rewarding. Enjoy your practice!
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.
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