English Cooking Vocabulary: Chop Up and Turn On: Saturday Story Time

Mark Connolly
Feb 21
2 min read

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/7292c6_03b60dfc97c64ef8abc2d2aeeba550c0/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

Saturday Story Time : Master "chop up" and "turn on" with a cooking story in 60 seconds! 🍳✨

An infographic showing the phrasal verbs "chop up" and "turn on" with illustrations of a chef cutting vegetables and using a stove.

Saturday Story Time: Master the phrasal verbs "Chop up" and "Turn on"

🎥 Watch the video version of this story above!

The kitchen is one of the best places to practice "Real English."

When we follow recipes or describe our dinner plans, we use phrasal verbs constantly.

In today's story, we look at the preparation and the process of making a meal.

The Story Recap

I wanted to try a new pasta recipe last night.

I had to chop up a lot of onions and garlic first.

I turned on the stove and started cooking. It smelled amazing, and it tasted even better!

Vocabulary Breakdown 💡

Chop up: We use this when we are cutting something (usually food) into smaller pieces. You can chop up vegetables, chop up meat, or even chop up wood for a fire!
Turn on: This is used for any machine that requires power. You turn on the light, turn on the TV, or turn on the stove. The opposite, of course, is "turn off."

Natural English Tips

Notice that many phrasal verbs in English are separable.

For example, you can say "turn on the stove" or "turn the stove on."

Both are correct and very common in daily conversation.

Your Turn

Let's practice! What is the last thing you cooked? Did you have to chop up any vegetables? Did you remember to turn off the stove when you were finished?

Tell me in the comments down below!