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Chinese Food

Chinese Food

Date: Sep 25 2007

Themes: Food

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

Americans may have hamburgers and mashed potatoes, but at the end of the day, there isn’t really an American cuisine. Thus, Americans love eating food from other countries.

But a lot of the time, the international foods we eat here are a lot different than they are in the countries they’re from. Our Greek and Mexican food is likely to be a lot different than anything you’d find in Greece or Mexico. But no international cuisine is more varied than Chinese food. Chinese restaurants are everywhere in the United States, but the food in some of them is hardly Chinese.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Mason

Mason

Amanda

Amanda

Mason:  I totally was lazy and went out for Chinese food last night.

Amanda:  Where’d you go?

Mason:  I order in from this place called the Golden Panda.

Amanda:  Is that like Happy Panda, like a chain that’s fast food?

Mason:  No. This is this really small place kind of by my house and you know it’s good because it kind of looks dingy on the outside, but tons of Chinese people eat there.

Amanda:  That’s how you know that it’s good food and authentic food.

Mason:  It sounds kind of like a stereotype.

Amanda:  No. That’s true. Because if you want good Chinese food, you go to Chinatown. You go where the local Chinese people are going to go and dine.

Mason:  And you kinda…I kind of mistrust the places that are like really flashy and have all the Chinese adornments on the outside.

Amanda:  PF Chang’s?

Mason:  Well, that’s a whole different…

Amanda:  I don’t want to go into specifics or anything, but…

Mason:  Yeah. It kind of feels like they’re trying to cater to the people who don’t know better.

Amanda:  They don’t know better. And it’s amazing when someone will say, “You want authentic Chinese, go down the street to PF Chang’s.”

Mason:  You’ve heard that?

Amanda:  Absolutely. But it’s completely Americanized Chinese food.

Mason:  Well it’s like everyone’s got kind of a different version of Chinese food though. Because I had Chinese food in London and it tasted nothing like Chinese food here. Who knows what the actual Chinese eat.

Amanda:  That’s a good point. Something to think about. I’ll go ask my dad.

 

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Discussion

Mason got Chinese food from a little place near his house. It has a similar name to a Chinese fast food chain so Amanda is confused for a second.

But Mason said the place he went was really good and he knows it’s authentic because a lot of Chinese people eat there. It sounds silly, but it’s often easy to tell if the food is good at an ethnic restaurant if people of that ethnicity tend to eat there.

Mason says he distrusts Chinese restaurants that try too hard with lots of decorations on the outside. Amanda asks him what he thinks of PF Chang’s, a chain of good, but highly Americanized Chinese food. They both laugh at the fact that some people think that PF Chang’s is authentic.

But Americans aren’t the only ones who alter foods from other countries. Mason had Chinese food in England and said it tasted nothing like Chinese food in the United States! Amanda says she’ll ask her father, who is Chinese, what people actually eat in China.

Have you ever had the same type of ethnic food in two different countries? Did it taste different?

 

Comments

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Justicekwame

Ghana

 

  in my country their lot of chinese resturant but haven't tasted chinese food

12:17 PM Sep 25 2007 |

Justicekwame

Ghana

 

  in my country their lot of chinese resturant but haven't tasted chinese food

12:17 PM Sep 25 2007 |

mysaes_jgo

mysaes_jgo

Colombia

I am from Colombia South America, I have ate chinese food in my country on USA, and now I am in China, all of them are different, but you have to be aware that China is a big country and have differents provinces, and a lot of variety of food, I am in Hunan, and here everything is spyce. A lot of pepper, and a quantity of vegetables.

11:47 AM Sep 25 2007 |

heart flies

China

i am a chinese .so i can say surely chinese food have many spieces and all are delicious,welcome to china and i will treat you all what i cook by myself!

11:24 AM Sep 25 2007 |

explorer143

Pakistan

well,
In our country their lot Chinese and Maxican fast food, and i also eat them, but i don’t know about chinese or fast foods!

10:28 AM Sep 25 2007 |

zeus2006

zeus2006Super Member!

Turkey

I can say I am a good cook.My parents and friends like my food because of that I can say we should try all cuisine on the world.We will not come to world again just do what you want!!!!

10:21 AM Sep 25 2007 |

zeus2006

zeus2006Super Member!

Turkey

There are 5 or 6 famous cuisines  in the world:Italian,Mexican,Turkish,French,Chinese maybe Greek because it has many Turkish foods.

If you like spice you should try Chinese and Mexican cuisines if you like nice tasting and looks nice serving you should try French and İtalian cuisine but if you like both spice and nice tasting plus vegatables with olive oil you should try Turkish cuisine.

I sometimes eat chinese foods.Last weekend me and my fiancee went out for Chinese food and we liked much.I can advise you to try Chinese foods if you didn't try it before.Zeus :)

10:15 AM Sep 25 2007 |

feixue2002

feixue2002

China

There are various kinds of chinese food.

I especially like the northeast food. It's really delicious!

09:34 AM Sep 25 2007 |

tottiahmed

tottiahmed

Qatar

I like french and Italin food…........

I didn't get the chance to try chinese food before….. but it seems scrumptious becoz every one is crazy about it

08:51 AM Sep 25 2007 |

jerry1010

jerry1010

China

 chinese food is so popular all over the world.

08:50 AM Sep 25 2007 |

moztoprak8

moztoprak8

Turkey

There are lots of chinese restaurant in Turkey but I tried chinese food only in china, At first it comes strange. But if you have a chinese friend with you you feel yourself better. They chosed meals and we ate all of them. I like chinese food with my chinese friend Tongue out

 

06:27 AM Sep 25 2007 |

somaliland

somaliland

Somalia

it is good to taste diffirent traditional dish though, i could’t use chinese japstick!!! i am not kidding…

05:50 AM Sep 25 2007 |

QuangGiap

QuangGiap

Viet Nam

 The food is a part of culture of each national.

Chiness food and culture have diffused a lot of country. 

I love Chiness food because it is very much spices. And I like to eat food with much spices.

Garlic, chilli, peppercorn, onion, etc are important spices of Chiness food.

Ravioli soup, roast duck, etc are one of many Chiness food.

03:55 AM Sep 25 2007 |

akramsh

Palestinian Territory, Occupied

i never eat the chinese food , i hoope i well in the futer

03:39 AM Sep 25 2007 |

oleg1983

United States

I also love Chinese food, because it very unusually

02:56 AM Sep 25 2007 |

Josh K

Josh K

Guatemala

I love the chinese food, the chomin

02:24 AM Sep 25 2007 |

ana p. dewiyana

Indonesia

I love Chinese food, Japanese food, and of course I very very love Sundanese food Smile

01:09 AM Sep 25 2007 |

gochin

gochin

Japan

I ate my country’s food in defferent country,I think so!

12:42 AM Sep 25 2007 |

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