Writing in English

How to Write a Recipe

Lesson Objective
In this lesson, you will learn how to write a recipe. You’ll also
practise parallel structure, which you can use in all types of writing.

Did you know...

The word “recipe” comes from the Latin word recipere (to receive).
It was first used to refer to medical prescriptions.
Today it refers to cooking instructions.

Warm-Up
A. Writing

Choose one of the following three topics. Write for five minutes on the lines
below or in your notebook. You don’t need to write in complete sentences.

1. What is the first thing you 2.  ame one meal, appetizer,

N 3. W
 hat is your favourite
ever cooked? Jot down or dessert that you want to restaurant meal? What
the main ingredients and learn how to make. What ingredients do you
basic instructions. ingredients and cooking think are in it? What cooking
utensils do you think you verbs do you think are in
will need? the recipe?

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 1
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Warm-Up cont.
A. Writing cont.

B. Vocabulary Preview

Match these words to their correct definitions.

1. parallel a) something you cook or eat with, such as a spoon

2. recipe b) a full serving of food, such as breakfast or dinner

3. ingredients c) having a uniform pattern

4. meal d) food items that go well together, such as wine and pasta

5. appetizer e) delicious

6. utensil f) very easy

7. pairing g) in a way that makes sense

8. logically h) herbs and spices that add flavour

9. scrumptious i) a comfortable indoor temperature (72ºF or 21ºC)

10. easy peasy j) a list of food items

11. seasonings k) a snack that you eat before a meal

12. room temperature l) a list of ingredients and instructions on how to prepare a dish

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 2
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Parts of a Recipe
A. Introduction

A good recipe has a short introduction that describes

the dish. This is also called the “headnotes.” Food Adjectives
The purpose of a recipe introduction is to get the
To the right are a few ideas for introducing a recipe. reader/cook’s mouth watering. You will need to use
Can you think of any other ideas? Look at some food adjectives to accomplish this goal. Here is a
recipes to see what cookbook authors do. Add your list of food adjectives. Look up the definitions for
ideas to the list below. any that you are unfamiliar with. Then look through
some recipes and add any other food adjectives that
you see.
• background about who first made the dish
• appetizing • low-fat
• cultural information • aromatic • marinated
• bite-size • mouth-watering
• food and beverage pairings
• crunchy • rich
• inspiration for the dish • delectable • salty
• flaky • savory
• why it’s unique • flavourful • scrumptious
• fruity • seasoned
• how many people the dish serves • gingery • sugar-coated
• honey-glazed • sweet
•
• layered • traditional
• • lip-smacking • zesty

Example
This modern adaptation to Grandma’s traditional
apple pie will have your guests coming back for
seconds. The honeycrisp apples combined with Task 1
gingery filling and light pastry make for a suprisingly
low-fat dessert. My family and friends always save Write a short introductory paragraph for a dish or
room for this scrumptious dessert after a turkey feast. dessert that your family is known for. Use some of
Prep time: 2 hours the adjectives from the list above.
Serves 6

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 3
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Parts of a Recipe cont.

B. Ingredients

An ingredients list comes directly below the headnotes.

Below are some ways to list ingredients logically:

• in the order of appearance in the recipe

• under headings that list individual steps in a recipe (e.g., Dough, Filling, Topping)
• in order of importance (e.g., meat, vegetables, seasonings)

Writing Measurements

FORMAT COOKING ABBREVIATIONS

Choose a consistent format for measurements in your Many recipes use short forms to indicate measurements.
recipe. The United States customary units is the system Do you know what these abbreviations stand for?
that you will see in US cookbooks and recipes. The
US uses Fahrenheit for oven temperatures. In other • tsp, t • lb
countries, the metric system is used and Celsius is • tbsp, tbl, T • kg
used for temperatures. When reading a recipe, you • C, c • g
may need to convert the measurements to match • oz • L
your measuring tools. • ml • pt

• 2 tablespoons milk When you are reading and writing a recipe,

• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour be careful with tbsp and tsp. These look similar,
• 4-ounce package cream cheese but can make a big difference.
• 8 rounded teaspoons sugar
• 1 stick of butter

Task 2
Capitalization
Invent your own pie. It can have
When writing out an ingredients list, it is not necessary to use
capitalization or complete sentences. You can use lowercase and notes. any ingredients you want! Write
Here is an example of an ingredients list for apple pie: your ingredients list in a logical
order. Use at least 10 ingredients.
CRUST FILLING

• 2 cups flour • 2 1/2 pounds Honeycrisp apples

• 8 ounces softened, • 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
unsalted butter • 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt • 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 2 1/2 teaspoons sugar • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 4
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Parts of a Recipe cont.

C. Method

The third part of a recipe is the method, or step-by-step instructions

or directions. It is important to write the preparation and cooking steps
in plain English. Use as few words as possible to explain the process.

IMPER ATIVE FORM

In a recipe, the instructions are typically written as imperative sentences.

The imperative is the infinitive without “to.” No subject is needed.

1. Place the first three ingredients in a large mixing bowl.

2. Blend for two minutes on low speed.

3. Add the flour.

4. Mix with a wooden spoon for one minute.

PAR ALLEL STRUCTURE

It is also important to use parallel structure.

This means that there is a uniform pattern to your words and phrases.

1. Which example has parallel structure?

a) You will need sugar, water, to buy milk, and wearing an apron.
b) Y
 ou will need sugar, water, milk, and an apron.

2. Which of these sentences sounds better, and why?

a) Add three cherries, two orange slices, and cook three apples to add.
b) A
 dd three cherries, two orange slices, and three cooked apples.

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 5
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Parts of a Recipe cont.

C. Method cont.

Task 3

Rewrite the following cooking instructions in the imperative form.

Use parallel structure. Use your notebook or the space below.

Instructions

1. Fill a large pot with water.

2. Now you place the water on the stove to boil.

3. It’s time to add one package (350 kg) of spaghetti.

4. You can cook the spaghetti for about nine minutes.

5. Put one can of tomatoes, one cup of cream, and chop an onion into a large frying pan.

6. Add one bag of frozen vegetables (e.g., broccoli, carrots, and you can use peas) to the pan.

7. You should stir on low heat.

8. Add cooked pasta to vegetable sauce.

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 6
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Sample Recipe
Read the sample recipe. Identify the headnotes. Circle the food adjectives.
Underline the imperative verb forms in the Directions.

Easy Peasy French Bread

Is there anything more comforting than a freshly baked loaf of French Ingredients
bread? This simple recipe was perfected by my grandfather and has
1 1/4 cups water
been passed down for three generations. Whenever people asked my
2 tsp sugar
grandfather how he baked such delicious bread, his answer was
1 tsp salt
always, “Easy peasy.” Shh! Don’t tell Grandpa we mixed his scrumptious
3 1/3 cups white flour
dough in a bread machine. This recipe is easier than ever!
1 1/2 tsp bread machine yeast
Servings: 10–12 slices
Time: 2 hours

Directions

1. Place first four ingredients in a bread 6. Place dough roll onto a greased
machine in the order of appearance in the list. pan on counter. Spray with cooking oil.

2. Set bread machine to “Dough.” Use 7. Cover with a dry towel and
a delayed timer to ensure that all allow to rise for 30 minutes.
ingredients are at room temperature.
8. Preheat oven to 325ºF.
3. Remove dough from machine and
9. Remove towel and place in oven
place on lightly floured surface.
for 20–25 minutes or until golden brown.
4. Roll out dough into a rectangular shape.
10. Set baked bread on a rack to cool
5. Roll up dough into a log. for 5–10 minutes before slicing.

Serve warm with butter and pasta.

Task 4

COOK UP SOME VERBS

How many cooking/baking verbs

can your group collect in this pot?
preheat

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 7
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Comprehension
What have you learned so far?
Answer and discuss these questions in pairs or as a class.

1. What type of information goes into the headnotes of a recipe?

2. What order should the ingredients go in?

3. What system of measurement does the US use in recipes?

4. How many synonyms did you learn for the word “delicious”?

5. What verb form should be used in cooking instructions?

Vocabulary Review
Read each sentence and identify a vocabulary word from page 1 that is
described or inferred. Write the word in the second column. In the third
column, indicate the part of speech of the vocabulary word you chose.

# Sentence Vocabulary Word Part of Speech

Ex The recipe was simple to follow. easy peasy adjective

1 We ordered garlic toast to eat before our meal.

2 The waitress recommended red wine to go with our steak.

3 Can you pass me a wooden spoon and some tongs?

4 It tastes okay, but it could use some salt and pepper.

It would make more sense if

5
the recipes were filed alphabetically.

All of the verbs should be in the

6
imperative form to make it uniform.

7 The meal my sister made was delicious.

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 8
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Cooking Utensils & Tools 

Go online with a partner and do an image search for “cooking utensils.”
Look up the English words for at least 10 cooking utensils or tools that
you are unfamiliar with, and write a description of what they are used for.

# Utensil Use

Ex spatula used for mixing or spreading batter

10

Write Your Own Recipe

Create and write your own recipe for an appetizer, dessert, or meal.
You can use the brainstorming you did on page 1. Do not copy a recipe
from a book or website. You may adapt a recipe or ask a family member
to give you the basics of a recipe. Make sure you include headnotes,
ingredients, and directions. Use your notebook or the back of this paper.

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 9
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

A Checklist
AFTER WRITING YOUR RECIPE

� Did I name my recipe?

� Did I write an interesting introduction?

� Did I include a logically organized ingredients list?

� Did I use parallel structure in my directions?

� Did I use the imperative verb form in my directions?

� Did I include cooking verbs and adjectives?

� Did I indicate how many servings my recipe makes?

� Did I estimate how long preparation takes?

Recipe Testers
Exchange your recipe with a classmate. Ask your classmate to
test your recipe at home. What went wrong? What went right?
Write a review of your classmate’s recipe and share it with the class.

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 10
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Answer Key
LESSON DESCRIPTION: LEVEL: High Int – Adv

In this lesson, students learn how to write a recipe. They review TIME: 2–3 hours
imperative verb forms and parallel structure, and learn new
TAGS: writing, cooking, recipe, ingredients, imperative,
cooking adjectives and verbs. They also write and test a recipe.
parallel structure, food, directions, instructions
It would be useful to have cookbooks, magazines, or websites with
recipes available for students to browse.

Lesson Objective B. INGREDIENTS

Review cooking adjectives. Allow students to use dictionaries.

Review the lesson objective with your students. Cooking abbreviations include:

Warm-Up tsp, t – teaspoon lb – pound

tbsp, tbl, T – tablespoon kg – kilogram

A. WRITING WARM-UP C, c – cup g – gram

oz – ounce L – litre
Invite students to choose one topic to write about. Give them five ml – millilitre pt – pint
minutes to write. Remind your students that they should write
in point form. This will not be marked. They must hang onto this
C. METHOD
writing to use later, though.
Review imperative verb forms and parallel structure.
B. VOCABULARY PREVIEW
Parallel Structure: 1. b 2. b
Print copies of page 13 and cut out the strips, or have
Task 3: Answers may vary slightly.
students do the matching exercise provided on page 2.
1. Fill a large pot with water.
1. c 3. j 5. k 7. d 9. e 11. h
2. Place the water on the stove to boil.
2. l 4. b 6. a 8. g 10. f 12. i
3. Add one package (350 kg) of spaghetti.
4. Cook the spaghetti for about nine minutes.
Parts of a Recipe 5. Put one can of tomatoes, one cup of cream,
and one chopped onion into a large frying pan.
A. INTRODUCTION
6. Add one bag of frozen vegetables
This section can be done in groups. Have some cookbooks (e.g., broccoli, carrots, peas) to the pan.
(or magazines/sites/apps with recipes) available for students 7. Stir on low heat.
to browse. You can decide whether to assign writing tasks for 8. Add cooked pasta to vegetable sauce.
homework or for class time. Allow students to use dictionaries.
Serve with bread, wine, and a smile. Enjoy!

(continued on the next page...)

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 11
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Answer Key cont.

Sample Recipe Write Your Own Recipe

Have students read through the sample recipe Have students brainstorm their recipes on the back of page 9.
(and/or other recipes that you bring in). They should circle They can use a separate piece of paper to write their good copies.
the­food adjectives and underline the imperative verb forms. You may also want them to type out their recipes. Consider placing
the recipes in a class cookbook.
Food Adjectives:
comforting, simple, baked, delicious, scrumptious
A Checklist
Imperative Verbs:
place, set, use, remove, roll out, roll up, Students can refer to this checklist to check if their recipe
place, spray, cover, allow, preheat, remove, place, set, serve from the Writing Your Own Recipe task includes all of the important
pieces. If you decide to grade their recipes, use this checklist.
Comprehension
Recipe Testers
1. T he headnotes of a recipe introduce the recipe and offer
some background information and a description. It should As a follow-up activity, challenge students to try
get the reader’s mouth watering. It may indicate how many each other’s recipes. They can also write reviews.
servings the recipe makes and how long the preparation takes.
2. T he ingredients should go in a logical order, such
as in the order of appearance in the recipe, in groups
based on individual steps, or in order of importance.
3. T he US uses the United States customary units system in
recipes. (It is similar to the old British Imperial system.)
4. Individual answers. May include: scrumptious,
tasty, yummy, delectable, lip-smacking.
5. T he imperative verb form should
be used in cooking instructions.

Vocabulary Review

1. appetizer (noun) 5. logically (adverb)

2. pairing (noun) 6. parallel (adjective)
3. utensils (noun) 7. scrumptious (adjective)
4. seasonings (noun)

Cooking Utensils & Tools

Answers will vary.

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 12
 How to Write a Recipe
Writing in English

Extra Vocabulary Practice (optional)

Write definitions in your own words. Cut up these vocabulary strips.
Challenge a partner to match the vocabulary to your definition.

parallel

recipe

ingredients

meal

appetizer

utensil

pairing

logically

scrumptious

easy peasy

seasonings

room temperature

Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( H I G H I N T – A DV / V E R S I O N 3 .1) 13