Food, vegetables and containers

Part 1: Vegetables (rau củ)

In this lesson, we learn the names of common vegetables in English. All of these are called vegetables.

Vocabulary list

Describing vegetables (mô tả rau củ)

• round (tròn) = like a circle. Examples: tomato, onion
• long (dài). Examples: cucumber, carrot
• small and round (nhỏ và tròn). Example: peas
• white (trắng). Example: cauliflower

Raw vs cooked (sống vs nấu chín)

• Raw (sống) = you don't cook it, eat directly. Example: raw tomatoes in a salad.
• Important: People do NOT eat raw potatoes. Potatoes must be cooked.
• Frozen (đông lạnh) = very cold, kept in freezer.

Salad vs Lettuce

Salad = a mixed dish of vegetables (or fruits). We don't cook salad.

Note: Vietnamese "xà lách" = lettuce in English (the vegetable), not "salad" (the dish).

Part 2: Countable and uncountable nouns

(Danh từ đếm được và không đếm được)

What is the difference?

Using "some" and "a little"

With uncountable nouns, use some or a little:

• I would like some sugar. (Tôi muốn một ít đường.)
• I would like some cheese.
• Can I have a little water?

Common mistakes (lỗi thường gặp)

Part 3: Containers (đồ đựng / đơn vị đo)

To count uncountable nouns, we use containers. The container is countable, so we can use numbers.

Complete list of containers

A dozen = 12 (một tá)

A dozen (một tá) = 12. We often use this for eggs.

A dozen eggs = 12 eggs (một tá trứng = 12 quả trứng)

Important rule about plurals (quy tắc về số nhiều)

• Food INSIDE countable = has S: a box of eggs, a plate of biscuits
• Food INSIDE uncountable = NO S: a glass of milk (not milks), a bowl of rice (not rices)

Example sentences

• Today I drank two cups of coffee. (Hôm nay tôi uống hai tách cà phê.)
• I bought three bottles of water. (Tôi mua ba chai nước.)
• Can I have a slice of cheese? (Cho tôi một lát phô mai được không?)
• She ate a bar of chocolate. (Cô ấy ăn một thanh sô cô la.)
• There is a jar of jam in the fridge. (Có một lọ mứt trong tủ lạnh.)
• I had a bowl of noodles for lunch. (Tôi ăn một tô mì cho bữa trưa.)
• What did you eat for breakfast? - I ate a loaf of bread. (Tôi ăn một ổ bánh mì.)

Part 4: Shopping and ordering food

(Mua sắm và đặt món)

Where to buy food

• shop (cửa hàng)
• market (chợ)
• supermarket (siêu thị)

People in a shop

• Shop assistant = người bán hàng (the person who sells)
• Customer = khách hàng (the person who buys)

How many vs how much

Asking if they have something

Use Have you got any...? or Do you have any...?

• Have you got any apples? (Bạn có táo không?)
• Have you got any peaches? (Bạn có đào không?)
• Do you have any ham? (Bạn có thịt heo muối không?)

Ordering politely (đặt món lịch sự)

Use Could I have...? or I would like...

• Could I have a kilo of onions, please? (Cho tôi một ký hành được không?)
• Could I have half a kilo of onions? (Cho tôi nửa ký hành.)
• I would like some ham, please. (Tôi muốn một ít thịt heo muối.)
• I'd like six peaches, please. (Tôi muốn sáu quả đào.)

Shop assistant phrases

• What would you like? (Bạn muốn gì?)
• How many would you like? (Bạn muốn bao nhiêu?) - for countable
• How much would you like? (Bạn muốn bao nhiêu?) - for uncountable
• Anything else? (Còn gì nữa không?)

Customer answers

• About 200 grams. (Khoảng 200 gram.)
• Half a kilo. (Nửa ký.)
• That's fine. (Vậy được rồi.)
• That's all, thanks. (Hết rồi, cảm ơn.)
• No, that's it, thanks. (Không, vậy thôi, cảm ơn.)

About fruit ripeness (độ chín của trái cây)

• ripe (chín) = ready to eat now
• not ripe / doesn't look ripe = cần 2-3 ngày nữa mới chín

Example: "These melons don't look ripe." - "No, they need two or three more days."

Complete shopping dialogue (hội thoại mua sắm)