Shadowing Practice: English Food Vocabulary Lesson | 6 Words Every Learner Needs - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Hi friends, welcome back to Daily English Talk.
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Hey everyone, I'm Tom and this is Lily and we are your English learning friends.
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If you are new here, welcome to the family.
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We are so happy you found us.
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Every single day we help you speak English with more confidence.
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If you want the transcripts,
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vocabulary, and
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slow audio versions, check the Join button below.
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And today, Oh Today, is a very special day.
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It really is, because today we are talking about food.
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Food, my favorite subject in the whole world.
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Tama has been waiting for this episode for weeks.
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Weeks.
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I have been thinking about what to say.
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I have a list.
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He has a list.
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Of course he has a list.
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A very organized list.
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Okay, before we get into all of that, if this is your first time here, welcome to the family.
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We are so happy you found us.
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Make sure you hit subscribe because we upload a brand new English lesson every single day.
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Every single day.
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Yes.
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And whether you are beginner
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or already a pretty confident speaker this channel is for you
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we talk like real people no textbooks no boring grammar drills well okay a little grammar a little grammar
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but we make it fun we promise we always promise okay
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so before we jump into today's lesson I want to ask
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you something Tom is going to tell us a story later
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in this episode about a very embarrassing food moment something that I do not know what you were talking about.
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Oh, you know exactly what I'm talking about.
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The soup incident.
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We said we were never going to talk about that.
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And yet here we are.
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So here is a question for today.
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What do you think Tom did at the restaurant?
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Did he drop his soup on himself?
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Did he order the wrong dish by accident?
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Or did something even more embarrassing happen?
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I'm not going to give you any hints.
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comments, we love reading every single one.
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All right, Tom, let's start simple.
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What is your absolute favorite food?
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Oh, without any question, it is pasta, specifically spaghetti bolognese.
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Oh, that is a classic.
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My grandmother used to make it every Sunday.
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The whole house smelled amazing.
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I would wake up and just know today is a pasta day.
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"Aww, that is the sweetest thing !" She had a secret recipe.
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She never wrote it down.
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She just knew it in her hands.
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Wow, do you know how to make it?
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I tried, once.
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It was not the same.
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What happened?
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I put too much salt.
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Way too much salt.
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My roommate took one bite and just looked at me with these eyes.
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Oh no!
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He didn't say anything.
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He just put his fork down very slowly. That is so sad.
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It's so funny at the same time.
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Cooking is not my talent.
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Eating is my talent.
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Okay, what about you, Lily?
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What is your favorite food?
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Okay, so mine is a little different.
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I love sushi.
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Really?
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When did you start eating sushi?
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So the first time I tried sushi, I was 19 years old.
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My friend took me to a Japanese restaurant, and I was honestly a little scared.
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Scared of sushi?
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I had never eaten raw fish before.
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I did not know what to expect.
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I thought I would hate it. And...
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I ate twelve pieces in one sitting.
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Twelve?
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Yes!
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I could not stop.
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The salmon was just so fresh and soft and I kept saying, "Just one more, just one more." Classic.
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My friend was watching me like I created a monster.
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Yes, a sushi monster!
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Okay, let's talk a little bit about grammar today because we are using some really useful structures in this conversation.
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Yes, and this is something beginners really need so pay attention.
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Today, we are looking at how to talk about likes and preferences in English.
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Super simple, super useful.
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You will use this every single day.
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Structure number one: I love or I like or I really enjoy.
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For example, "I love sushi.
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I like pasta." I really enjoy cooking on weekends.
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Notice we use the verb in the base form after I love and I like.
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So we say I love sushi, not I love to sushi.
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Sushi is a noun here.
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Right.
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Sushi is a thing, not an action, so we just say, "I love sushi." But if you use a verb,
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you can say, "I love eating sushi." See, eating.
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We add -ing to the verb.
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Let's practice.
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Repeat after us.
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Ready?
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I love pizza.
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I love pizza.
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I really like chocolate!
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I really like chocolate.
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I enjoy cooking dinner.
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I enjoy cooking dinner.
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Amazing!
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You are doing great!
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Now structure number two: My favorite food is.
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This is how you name your number one food.
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My favorite food is sushi.
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My favorite food is pasta.
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My favorite food is tacos.
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simple right subject my favorite food verb is and then the food Try it right now.
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Pause the video, say out loud, "My favorite food is ______ _." Put your food in the blank.
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Did you say it?
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Good!
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Now you are speaking English.
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Okay, now let's learn some real vocabulary for talking about food.
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We have six great words and phrases today.
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And for every word we have a story, because stories help you remember.
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Trust us.
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We have learned that the hard way.
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Word number one: delicious.
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D -E -L -I -C -I -O -U -S.
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Delicious.
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It's a stronger word than good or nice.
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For example, this cake is delicious.
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That soup smells delicious.
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The pizza was absolutely delicious.
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Tom, tell them about the delicious thing you ate last week.
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Oh, okay.
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So I went to this new Italian place near my apartment, and I ordered a tiramisu for dessert. And?
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It was the most delicious thing I have eaten in years.
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I am not exaggerating.
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I closed my eyes.
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He made a sound?
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I like a very happy sound.
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The waiter was watching me.
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That is so embarrassing.
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It was worth it.
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100 % worth it.
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Okay, let's repeat.
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Delicious.
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Delicious.
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Say it with us.
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Delicious.
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Word number two.
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Spicy.
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S -P -I -C -Y.
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Spicy.
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Spicy means the food has a strong, hot flavor, like chili or hot sauce or my roommate's cooking.
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Is your roommate a spicy cook?
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He puts hot sauce on everything.
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Everything.
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I tried his scrambled eggs once.
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Lily, scrambled eggs.
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No!
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With hot sauce and chili flakes and something red I could not identify.
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What did they taste like?
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Fire!
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They tasted like fire!
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I drank a whole glass of milk after.
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That is very spicy.
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Use it like this.
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This curry is really spicy.
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I do not like spicy food.
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Do you like spicy food?
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Repeat, spicy.
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Spicy.
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Word number three, sweet.
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S -W -E -E -T, sweet.
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Sweet means the food has a sugar flavor, like candy, chocolate, fruit, or cake.
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I love sweet things.
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I have a huge sweet tooth.
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Oh, sweet tooth is a great expression.
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It means you love sweet foods.
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I have the biggest sweet tooth.
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If there's dessert, I will eat it.
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Every time.
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Okay, I have a story.
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So one time I bought a box of chocolates for my mom.
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A gift.
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Very nice.
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I put it in my bag and then on the bus ride home I thought, "I will just have one." No!
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I had all of them.
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Lily!
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I arrived home with an empty box and a guilty face.
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What did you tell your mom?
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I said the shop was sold out and I came home to check on her.
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You are a terrible person and I love it.
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The chocolate was very sweet and very worth it.
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Repeat, sweet.
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Sweet!
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Word number four.
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Salty.
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S -A -L -T -Y.
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Salty.
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Salty means the food has a lot of salt flavor, Like chips pretzels
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or french fries oh i love salty snacks chips are my
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weakness your weakness like a superpower weakness exactly put a bag of chips in front of me
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and i cannot stop it is a problem What kind of chips?
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Salt and vinegar.
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Very salty, a little sour.
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Perfect combination.
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Oh, I cannot eat salt and vinegar chips.
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They make my mouth hurt.
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That is the fun part!
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The fun part is pain?
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A little bit, yes.
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Okay, use it like this.
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These chips are very salty.
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I prefer salty food over sweet food.
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Pass me the salty popcorn, please.
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Repeat.
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salty.
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Salty.
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Word number 5: fresh.
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F -R -E -S -H.
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Fresh means the food was recently made or recently picked.
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It has not been stored for a long time.
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Fresh food tastes alive and clean.
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Fresh bread, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, fresh fish for sushi.
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Yes.
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The reason I love sushi so much is because the fish is so fresh.
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You can taste the difference immediately.
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Have you ever had bad sushi, not fresh sushi?
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sushi from a delivery app late at night.
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How late?
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Very late, like 11 :30 at night.
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That is never a good idea.
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It was not fresh.
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It was the opposite of fresh.
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I knew immediately, but I was hungry.
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No, Lily, no!
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I learned my lesson, fresh sushi only, from a real restaurant.
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Use it like this: I always buy fresh vegetables.
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This bread is very fresh.
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I love the fresh smell of the market in the morning.
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Repeat, fresh.
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Fresh.
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Last word, word number six, crispy.
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C -H -R -I -S -P -Y.
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Crispy.
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Crispy means the food makes a crunching sound when you bite it.
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The outside is hard and dry, like fried chicken or a good pizza crust.
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Okay, here's my story for Crispy.
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So, I make toast every morning.
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Every morning.
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Okay.
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Last Tuesday, I put my bread in the toaster, and then I went to check my phone, just for a minute.
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Oh, no!
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I came back 15 minutes later.
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15 minutes?
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The toast was black, completely black.
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My whole kitchen smelled like smoke.
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What did you do?
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I ate it anyway.
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I just scraped off the black part with a knife.
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Tom!
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It was still a little crispy underneath, kind of.
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Unbelievable.
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I was hungry.
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Hunger makes you do strange things.
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OK, repeat.
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Crispy.
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Crispy.
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Thank you so much for watching today's episode of Daily English Talk.
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You learned six vocabulary words, two grammar structures, and one very embarrassing soup story.
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Which is honestly worth the subscription alone.
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If you found this helpful, please hit the like button.
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It helps more people find us and join our family.
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And hit subscribe because we post a brand new English lesson every single day.
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Every day, a new episode waiting for you.
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We will see you tomorrow.
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Keep practicing, keep learning, and remember: English gets easier every day.
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Bye.
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Bye -bye.
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About This Lesson
In this engaging lesson focused on food vocabulary, learners will immerse themselves in essential terms and phrases that enhance their ability to discuss their favorite meals and culinary experiences. By tuning into the lively conversation between Tom and Lily, you will practice your English speaking skills while gaining insight into everyday language used in food-related discussions. Whether you're sharing your thoughts on favorite dishes or exchanging stories about dining mishaps, this lesson will equip you with the vocabulary you need to express yourself confidently.
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
- Favorite Food: The dish or cuisine you love most.
- Pasta: A staple food made from wheat, commonly enjoyed in various forms, such as spaghetti.
- Spaghetti Bolognese: A classic Italian dish consisting of spaghetti topped with a rich meat sauce.
- Cooked with Love: A phrase that describes food prepared with care and affection, often evoking warm memories.
- Secret Recipe: A unique method for preparing a dish that is usually closely guarded.
- Embarrassing Food Moment: A humorous or awkward experience related to eating or dining out.
- Smelled Amazing: Describing an appealing aroma that makes you excited about food.
Practice Tips
To maximize your learning experience and improve your speaking skills, consider employing a shadowing technique. This involves listening to the video and mimicking Tom and Lily's speech patterns and tones. Their natural conversation style provides an excellent model for pronunciation and intonation. Whether you use a dedicated shadowing app or another shadowing site, practice shadowing in segments. Start slowly, repeating phrases until you're comfortable, then gradually increase your speed to match the video's tone.
Focus on how they express excitement and nostalgia when discussing food. This approach makes practice feel conversational rather than mechanical. By integrating these phrases into your daily English speaking practice, you’ll become more fluent and confident in discussing a topic that resonates with many people: food. Plus, don’t forget to take notes on any phrases that catch your attention, as this will enrich your vocabulary and enhance your ability to share personal stories in English.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect continuous have/has been + -ing — an action that started earlier and is still going on | has been waiting · have been thinking |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | have learned · have eaten · has not been stored |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | was sold · has not been stored |
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | love reading · start eating · kept saying |
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.