CELPIP Speaking Task 1: Giving Advice

CELPIP Speaking Task 1 Sample Answer: Cooking at Home as a Beginner

This prompt asks you to coach a friend who has never cooked and relies on takeout in his first apartment. The tricky part is covering tools, ingredients and his fear of mistakes in a short, practical plan instead of a long shopping list.

Preparation

30 seconds

Speaking

90 seconds

Listener

Someone you know well

The question

Your friend Kwame just moved into his first apartment in Montreal, and he has been ordering takeout almost every night. He wants to start cooking his own meals, but he has never cooked before, and he is afraid of burning food and wasting money. He also doesn't know which kitchen tools or ingredients to buy. Advise Kwame on how he can learn to cook.

How to plan your answer

What they want

Advise your friend Kwame, who lives on takeout in his first apartment, on how to start cooking: which tools and ingredients to buy, and how to handle his fear of burning food and wasting money.

Plan (90 sec)

Open: "Kwame, everyone burns something at first; it's part of learning."
Tools: just a few: one good chef's knife, cutting board, a non-stick pan, one pot, a baking sheet.
Ingredients: pantry basics: rice, pasta, eggs, canned tomatoes, onions, garlic, oil, salt.
Start simple: three easy recipes (omelette, stir-fry, sheet-pan chicken); cook them until they feel easy.
Avoid burning: medium heat, stay in the kitchen, set a timer.
Save money: plan meals, leftovers for lunch.
Close: "Let's cook together on Sunday."

Useful vocabulary

ingredients, pantry, recipe, non-stick pan
chop, stir-fry, leftovers, meal plan

Phrases

"You really only need..."
"Start with dishes like..."
"Don't worry if..."

Avoid

Long shopping lists of gadgets; keep it basic.
Ignoring his fear: give reassurance and simple tricks.

Excellent answer (transcript): around CLB 11–12

Kwame, first of all, don't stress about mistakes. I burned rice at least five times when I started, and now I cook almost every day. My first tip is to keep your shopping list short. You really only need a decent chef's knife, a cutting board, a non-stick pan and one pot. Skip the fancy gadgets for now. For ingredients, build a little pantry: rice, pasta, eggs, canned tomatoes, onions, garlic, olive oil and a couple of spices. Those cover a surprising number of meals. Next, pick three simple recipes, say, a veggie omelette, a chicken stir-fry and a pasta sauce, and cook them over and over until they feel easy. That's honestly how you build confidence. As for burning things, most beginners just use heat that's way too high. Keep it at medium, set a timer on your phone and don't wander off. And always make a little extra, so tomorrow's lunch is free. Want to come over Sunday and cook together?

163 words

Why it scores high

Task Fulfillment: Opening with "I burned rice at least five times" reassures Kwame directly, and the final offer to cook together adds real support.
Content/Coherence: A clear sequence of short list, pantry, three recipes and heat control gives Kwame a step-by-step plan he can follow.
Vocabulary: Natural phrases like "skip the fancy gadgets," "over and over" and "don't wander off" sound fluent and conversational.

Good answer (transcript): around CLB 7–8

Hey Kwame, I'm glad you want to cook. Takeout every night gets really expensive. First, you don't need a lot of equipment. A good chef's knife, a cutting board, a non-stick frying pan and one medium pot are enough to start. Then, stock up on a few basics, like rice, pasta, eggs, canned tomatoes, onions and garlic. With those, you can make lots of simple meals. I'd suggest picking three easy recipes, maybe an omelette, a stir-fry and pasta with tomato sauce, and making them until you feel comfortable. About burning food, keep the heat at medium and stay in the kitchen while things are cooking. Honestly, everybody burns something at first. If you cook a little extra, you'll have lunch for the next day too.

126 words

What works, and what's missing

Content/Coherence: The answer moves logically from tools to ingredients to recipes to burning, and each step builds on the one before.
Vocabulary: Practical phrases like "stock up on a few basics" and "keep the heat at medium" are accurate and natural.
Task Fulfillment: The money worry gets only a quick final line about lunch; one more saving tip, such as planning meals, would make it complete.

Basic answer (transcript): around CLB 4–5

Hi Kwame, cooking at home is good idea, takeout is too expensive. First, you don't need many thing. Buy one good knife, one cutting board, and one pan. Maybe one pot for pasta. For food, buy rice, pasta, egg, onion, and some sauce. It's cheap. Start with easy recipe, like fried rice or omelette. Don't try difficult food in the beginning. And don't worry about burn the food. Everybody burn food when they start, me too! Use small fire and don't leave the kitchen. I think you can learn fast. Good luck!

92 words

What holds it back

Vocabulary: Errors like "many thing," "worry about burn the food" and "Everybody burn food" show problems with plurals and verb forms.
Content/Coherence: The tools and ingredients are listed, but the tips are not explained, and "Use small fire" is an unclear way to say low heat.
Task Fulfillment: Every part of the question is touched, yet his worry about wasting money only gets "It's cheap," with no saving tips.

The CLBs are estimates of the level each sample was written at, not official CELPIP scores. How we estimate CLB