
Spanish Cuisine
Adelina from Spain talks about some of the best dishes from her home country.
Chris: So Adelina, Ade, you just told me you’re from Spain, so let’s talk about gastronomy, food. They say a really good gastronomy in Spain, is that true?
Ade: Of course it is. We have the Mediterranean food, it’s well known for being tasty and healthy, like for example, our olive oil, our fresh fish coming from the north and the south. And we also have very good wines.
Chris: So if you’d have to name three of the really better dishes in your country, what would you say, what would be your three favorite dishes?
Ade: Paella of course.
Chris: Paella, yeah, that’s true, but there are a lot of different paellas. No, they say the paella they make in Valencia is the better one, do you agree on that or is it the same everywhere?
Ade: Well they said paella, Valenciana is the name. But it comes from Valencia but it doesn’t mean that there are not good paellas in any other places. Actually where I am from in Almadia, they do very, very tasty paellas.
Chris: And of course, can you explain the difference because people like me from the north, that they just come for tourism in summer, we just ask for paella, but there seem to be different paellas. Could you explain that a little bit?
Ade: Yeah, you have three different types. You have the meat paella, that they put of course some meat on it, you have the fish paella that they put only fish on it and then you have the mixed one that you can find both.
Chris: So which one do you suggest I should take when I go there?
Ade: The fish one of course.
Chris: Okay, I’ll take your word on that.
name
If you’d have to name three of the really better dishes in your country, what would you say?
Here, 'to name' three things means 'to think of' three things. Notice the following:
- Can you name the capital of Brazil?
- Try to name two honest politicians. I bet you can't.
they say
They say the paella they make in Valencia is better.
The words 'They say' means that many people tend to agree about something. Notice the following:
- They say that restaurant is really good.
- They say the best time to buy a house is in a bad market.
ask for
We just ask for paella.
Here, 'ask for' means to request or order something from a waiter. Notice the following:
- Will you ask the waiter for some more water.
- I am sorry, but this is not what I asked for. I orderd the chicken.
one
Which one do you suggest?
The word 'one' can refer to a 'type' of something. Notice the following:
- The spicy one is the best.
- I don't like the blue one. Take the red one.
take your word
I'll take your word on that.
This phrase means you trust what someone says. Notice the following:
- I would not work for that company. The manager is a bad man.
- I'll take your word on that.
Vocabulary Quiz
one • take your word