Exam practice

a – ii, b – iii, c – i, d – vi, e – iv, f – v

a – iv, b – v, c – i, d – iii, e – ii

• a.challenging yourself and winning
• b.take chances on things
• c.fermented horse milk (in Mongolia)
• d.simple and delicious
• e.jellyfish
• f.plenty of garlic and butter

Because when you travel you meet dishes you would never normally think of eating. You have to take a chance on them and trust that the local people know what they are doing.

The heart, liver and lungs of a sheep are ground up and mixed with mutton fat, oatmeal and spices. The mixture is packed into a sheep’s stomach and boiled for a few hours.

Once he has got used to it, and when he eats it with good conversation: then, he says, it takes on a whole new beauty.

In Australia: bush food is the food of the wild Australian countryside, such as green ants and witchetty grubs.

Small insects like crickets are fine for him, but anything that needs more than one bite is too much: “a bridge too far”. A bigger insect is harder to forget you are eating.

Vietnam, where fried snails are a tasty everyday (staple) dish. (They are also on the menu of most French restaurants.)

Bun rieu is a traditional Vietnamese soup made with crab and noodles, topped with roasted tomatoes, crab meat, stewed pork, lime juice, chili, fresh herbs, banana flower and bean sprouts, and a piece of congealed pig’s blood.

I would choose the fried crickets from Thailand. The writer says they are nutty and crunchy, like a snack of fried peanuts, so they would not be too hard to try. They are full of protein, and I would like to see for myself whether insects really could be the food of the future.

I find shiokara the strangest. Raw squid is unusual enough, but it is mixed with the squid’s own fermented guts, so it is raw, salty, smelly and sticky all at once. Even the writer, who likes taking risks with food, says he used to hate it. With haggis or bun rieu, at least the strange parts are cooked.

• a.A: Why are you crying? B: Because my grandmother is in hospital, and I’m worried about her.
• b.A: How come Suman sold his bike? B: The reason is that he’s going to study in Pokhara, where he’ll stay in a hostel.
• c.A: Why has Sunita bought so many chocolates? B: It’s her birthday tomorrow, so she’s going to share them with the class.
• d.A: Why is she planting trees? B: She’s planting them so that the slope above her house doesn’t slide in the monsoon.
• e.A: Why do you want to join the army? B: Because I want to serve my country, and the army gives you discipline.
• f.A: Why were the people running? B: Because it started to rain heavily, and they had no umbrellas.
• g.A: Why was Sanskriti taken to the office? B: The point is she had fainted in the assembly, so the teachers took her there to rest.
• h.A: Why did Pema go home early? B: Because she had a high fever.

• a.I like science the most because it explains how everyday things work.
• b.I go shopping at the local market, since the vegetables there are fresh and cheaper.
• c.I drink about two liters of water a day, because I play football every evening and get thirsty.
• d.I like to go on holiday in Dashain, as the schools are closed and the weather is clear.
• e.After my SEE I will join a computer course, so that I can start learning programming before Grade 11.
• f.My favorite actor is the one who plays real people well, because I can learn about their lives from the films.

a – iii, b – ix, c – vi, d – iv, e – i, f – viii, g – vii, h – x, i – ii, j – v
The reasons are iii, ix, vi, vii, ii and v (as, because, because of, since); the purposes are iv, i, viii and x (so that, in order to, to).

1. because 2. as 3. and 4. to 5. as 6. because 7. So 8. because 9. so

In 3, the big wheel stopping and the merry-go-round having stopped are two facts side by side, joined by and. In 5, the speaker gives a reason (there is nothing to do), so as, not a purpose. In 7 and 9, so gives the result: three jumped on, so the fourth started the motor; they spent the night going round, so they felt sick.

Find the first step (nothing can happen before the stove is on) and the last (the dish is ready). Then follow the carrot: fried, then milk, then sugar.

1. Switch on the stove and melt ghee in a pan.
2. Add grated carrots and fry for about seven minutes.
3. When the carrot turns slightly golden brown, add milk.
4. Cook this mixture till all the milk dries up.
5. Add sugar and cardamom powder after the milk dries up.
6. Cook for four more minutes.
7. Turn off the stove; gajar haluwa is ready to serve.

The clues are the linking words: when the carrot turns brown (so the frying comes first), after the milk dries up (so the cooking in milk comes first), and more minutes (so something has already been cooking: the sugar melts and the pudding thickens).

Aloo sadeko (spicy potato salad)
A cold, tangy snack from the Kathmandu Valley, ready in 15 minutes once the potatoes are boiled. Serves 4.

Ingredients

• 4 medium potatoes, boiled and peeled
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 green chilies, chopped
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• ½ teaspoon timur (Sichuan pepper) powder
• 2 tablespoons roasted sesame (til) powder
• juice of 1 lemon
• salt to taste
• 2 tablespoons mustard oil
• ½ teaspoon fenugreek (methi) seeds
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric
• a handful of fresh coriander, chopped

Method

1. Cut the potatoes into small cubes and put them in a bowl.
2. Add the onion, green chilies, chili powder, timur, sesame powder, lemon juice and salt.
3. Heat the mustard oil in a small pan until it just begins to smoke.
4. Add the fenugreek seeds and fry them for a few seconds, until they turn dark brown. Add the turmeric and turn off the heat.
5. Pour the hot oil over the potatoes carefully: it will sizzle.
6. Mix everything well, taste, and add more salt or lemon if needed.
7. Sprinkle the coriander on top and serve at room temperature, with beaten rice (chiura) or on its own.

Tip: Keep your face away when you pour the oil, and don’t let the fenugreek burn black, or the dish will taste bitter.

Across: 3. TANDOOR 7. EXECUTIVE
Down: 1. SKEWER 2. ENTIRETY 4. NOSTALGIA 5. ELEVATE 6. DEHYDRATE
(4 is the noun, nostalgia; the adjective in the interview is nostalgic.)

His performance on MasterChef: The Professionals, where he reached the final with Nepali dishes cooked for a global audience, such as his octopus in Nepali style, which a judge called the most beautiful plate he had ever been served. His story, from a poor village boy to a top London chef, made people admire him too.

No. His father died when he was five, and he had to start working, in petty trade, at about nine or ten instead of only studying and playing. After failing the SLC, he left home to find work in India.

In many ways he feels the same as before: he is still experimenting with recipes and enjoying his job. But he feels great to have a platform to introduce Nepali food to the world, and glad to have come so far; even if he doesn’t win, he is happy to have put the spotlight on Nepali cuisine.

That it is unique and diverse, not just a mix of Tibetan and Indian food: dishes like yomari, choila, kachila, tama and gundruk are found nowhere else, and our food varies by community and region, with its own methods and ingredients. He wants it known for more than momo and dal bhat.

1. Making it softer, by dehydrating it for different lengths of time, so that people not used to its hardness would find it palatable.
2. Making sure its original taste was not lost.

Never stopping learning (you are never too old to learn and improve your craft), and asking what is next. He also advises being a positive force for others.

A Michelin star is like an Oscar for chefs. Winning one would raise the standing of Nepali cuisine around the world and help give it an identity of its own.

I have learned that where you start doesn’t decide where you finish. He lost his father as a child, worked from the age of nine, failed the SLC and began by washing skewers, yet he became an executive chef in London. He did it by asking for chances, learning all the time (English, computers, hotel management) and staying proud of where he came from. Failing one exam is not the end of a life.

I would ask him to cook yomari, the steamed rice-flour dumpling filled with molasses (chaku) and sesame that the Newar community makes at Yomari Punhi. It is found nowhere else in the world, so it would show the judges that Nepali food is more than momo. It would also test his skill: the dough is hard to shape into its pointed fish-like form without cracking, and the filling must melt without bursting out. I would like to see how he would make a traditional dish look and taste as fine as his octopus.

• b.harvest the food (in the most efficient way)
• c.how to (transport food)
• d.store food
• g.make sure the food stays safe (and doesn’t hurt the consumer)
• i.package it

• a.False: she says it will take only “a minute or two”.
• b.True: it needs chemistry, biology, physics, engineering and more.
• c.True: “food science is happening around you each and every day”.
• d.True: they work to prevent waste and make the food supply more sustainable.
• e.False: the number one goal of every food scientist is to make sure the food supply is safe to eat.

Chemistry, biochemistry, biology, microbiology, physics and engineering.

a. now b. this c. at the moment d. Currently e. now f. this g. this h. now i. still
Already, usually, sometimes, then, last week and that morning point to habits or the past, not to now. In f, next afternoon is not said: it’s this afternoon or tomorrow afternoon. In h, It’s time to go! shows the bell is ringing at this moment.

a. AROUND b. NOW c. FUTURE d. AROUND e. FUTURE f. NOW g. FUTURE h. NOW i. AROUND
In a, this month could also make it FUTURE if the announcements are planned for later in the month; AROUND fits best for something going on these weeks. In h, the speaker is busy with the meeting as they speak. (If it were said the day before, I’m attending a meeting tomorrow would be FUTURE: without a time word, NOW is the natural reading.)

1. is having 2. is feeling (or feels) 3. argue 4. try (or are trying) 5. won’t (will not) 6. are always smiling 7. are concentrating 8. is still looking

Neelam is smiling now, so the reasons are in the present continuous too (1, 2). Often shows a habit, so 3 is simple present, and 4 is a general rule, so simple present too. Always with the present continuous (6) means again and again, all the time. 7 and 8 are actions going on at a particular moment of the game.

Say clearly how far you agree in the first sentence. Give each reason a paragraph, with an example from life in Nepal, and end with a sentence that sums up your view.

I largely agree with this claim. Fast food is quick, cheap and tasty, which is why packets of instant noodles and plates of fried snacks have become the everyday lunch of many students and office workers. But most fast food is high in salt, fat and sugar and low in fiber and vitamins. A packet of instant noodles is mostly refined flour fried in oil, and its seasoning holds a large part of the salt an adult should eat in a whole day. Eaten every day, such food leads to weight gain, high blood pressure and diabetes, which are rising fast in Nepal, even among young people.
Typical Nepali food, on the other hand, is a balanced meal. Dal bhat tarkari gives energy from rice, protein from lentils, and vitamins and fiber from green vegetables and pickle; dhindo, gundruk and seasonal vegetables are healthier still. Since it is cooked at home, we know what goes into it. However, Nepali food is not always healthy either: too much white rice, ghee, salt or deep-fried food can harm us just as well. So the problem is less the name of the food than how often we eat it and what is in it. An occasional pizza does no harm, but fast food should remain a treat, not a meal we eat every day.

• a.The Limbu and Rai communities of eastern Nepal.
• b.In banana or fern leaves.
• c.Bacteria ferment them.
• d.They find its smell too strong.
• e.fermented (ferment)

a. because b. to c. so that d. because of e. so that f. opening

a. is knocking b. is studying c. are flying d. don’t like (like is a state verb) e. is boiling f. Are … coming

• a.She switched on the fan to cool the room.
• b.The flight was delayed because of the fog.
• c.We left early so that we wouldn’t miss the bus.
• d.The shop was closed since it was a public holiday. (Or: Since it was a public holiday, the shop was closed.)
• e.He saved money in order to buy a bicycle.

Title, how many it serves, the ingredients with their amounts, then numbered steps in the imperative, each one action with its time or sign of being done, and a tip.

Title: Chiura and dahi (beaten rice with curd), a quick, cool snack for a hot day. Serves 2.
Ingredients: 2 cups beaten rice (chiura), 1 cup curd, 1 tablespoon sugar or a little salt, a pinch of cumin powder, 1 ripe banana.
Method: 1. Rinse the chiura once in cold water and drain it. 2. Put it in a bowl and leave it for two minutes to soften. 3. Beat the curd with the sugar (or salt) and cumin until smooth. 4. Pour the curd over the chiura and mix gently. 5. Slice the banana on top and serve at once.
Tip: Don’t soak the chiura too long, or it turns mushy.