A skilled home cook named Xiaomei teaches her friend Xiaowang to cook after he asks if she can cook, and they end up cooking together often.
我很会做菜
我叫小美，我很会做菜。我做菜做了很多年了，从我十岁的时候就开始跟妈妈学。妈妈常常在厨房里做饭，我就站在旁边看。她一边做一边告诉我怎么做，慢慢地，我也学会了很多菜。现在，我的朋友们都说我做的菜特别好吃。
上个星期，我的朋友小王来我家玩儿。他问我，你会做菜吗？我笑着说，我很会做菜，你想吃什么？小王说他从来没吃过我做的菜，很想试一试。我说没问题，下次我做给你吃。
后来，小王真的来我家吃饭了。我给他做了三个菜，有鱼、有肉，还有青菜。小王吃了以后觉得特别好吃，问我是不是在饭店工作过。我说不是，我只是在家常常练习。他又问我会不会做甜点，我说会一点，可是做得不太好。
小王听了很高兴，他说下次也想跟我学做菜。我说好啊，你先看我怎么做，然后自己试一试。做菜其实不难，只要多练习，就一定能做得越来越好。我还告诉他，做菜的时候要小心，火不能太大，不然菜会糊。
从那以后，小王常常来我家学做菜。我们一起买菜，一起做饭，一起吃饭，特别开心。我发现，跟朋友一起做菜比自己一个人做更有意思。现在小王也会做几个简单的菜了，他说以后也要给他的家人做菜吃。
Wǒ Hěn Huì Zuò Cài
Wǒ jiào Xiǎoměi, wǒ hěn huì zuò cài. Wǒ zuò cài zuò le hěn duō nián le, cóng wǒ shí suì de shíhou jiù kāishǐ gēn māma xué. Māma chángcháng zài chúfáng li zuò fàn, wǒ jiù zhàn zài pángbiān kàn. Tā yìbiān zuò yìbiān gàosù wǒ zěnme zuò, mànmàn de, wǒ yě xuéhuì le hěn duō cài. Xiànzài, wǒ de péngyǒumen dōu shuō wǒ zuò de cài tèbié hǎochī.
Shàng ge xīngqī, wǒ de péngyǒu Xiǎowáng lái wǒ jiā wánr. Tā wèn wǒ, nǐ huì zuò cài ma? Wǒ xiào zhe shuō, wǒ hěn huì zuò cài, nǐ xiǎng chī shénme? Xiǎowáng shuō tā cónglái méi chī guo wǒ zuò de cài, hěn xiǎng shì yi shì. Wǒ shuō méi wèntí, xià cì wǒ zuò gěi nǐ chī.
Hòulái, Xiǎowáng zhēnde lái wǒ jiā chī fàn le. Wǒ gěi tā zuò le sān ge cài, yǒu yú, yǒu ròu, hái yǒu qīngcài. Xiǎowáng chī le yǐhòu juéde tèbié hǎochī, wèn wǒ shì bú shì zài fàndiàn gōngzuò guo. Wǒ shuō bú shì, wǒ zhǐshì zài jiā chángcháng liànxí. Tā yòu wèn wǒ huì bú huì zuò tiándiǎn, wǒ shuō huì yìdiǎn, kěshì zuò de bú tài hǎo.
Xiǎowáng tīng le hěn gāoxìng, tā shuō xià cì yě xiǎng gēn wǒ xué zuò cài. Wǒ shuō hǎo a, nǐ xiān kàn wǒ zěnme zuò, ránhòu zìjǐ shì yi shì. Zuò cài qíshí bù nán, zhǐyào duō liànxí, jiù yídìng néng zuò de yuè lái yuè hǎo. Wǒ hái gàosù tā, zuò cài de shíhou yào xiǎoxīn, huǒ bù néng tài dà, bùrán cài huì hú.
Cóng nà yǐhòu, Xiǎowáng chángcháng lái wǒ jiā xué zuò cài. Wǒmen yìqǐ mǎi cài, yìqǐ zuò fàn, yìqǐ chī fàn, tèbié kāixīn. Wǒ fāxiàn, gēn péngyǒu yìqǐ zuò cài bǐ zìjǐ yí ge rén zuò gèng yǒu yìsi. Xiànzài Xiǎowáng yě huì zuò jǐ ge jiǎndān de cài le, tā shuō yǐhòu yě yào gěi tā de jiārén zuò cài chī.
I’m Very Good at Cooking
My name is Xiaomei, and I’m very good at cooking. I’ve been cooking for many years — I started learning from my mom when I was ten years old. My mom often cooked in the kitchen, and I would stand next to her and watch. She would tell me how to cook while she was cooking, and slowly, I learned to make many dishes. Now, all my friends say the food I cook is especially delicious.
Last week, my friend Xiaowang came to my house to hang out. He asked me, can you cook? I smiled and said, I’m very good at cooking, what do you want to eat? Xiaowang said he had never eaten anything I made before, and really wanted to try it. I said no problem, I’ll cook for you next time.
Later, Xiaowang really did come to my house to eat. I made three dishes for him — fish, meat, and vegetables. After eating, Xiaowang thought it was especially delicious and asked if I had ever worked at a restaurant. I said no, I just practice at home often. He also asked if I could make desserts, and I said I know a little, but I’m not very good at it.
Xiaowang was very happy to hear this, and he said he wanted to learn to cook with me next time too. I said sure, first watch how I do it, then try it yourself. Cooking actually isn’t hard — as long as you practice a lot, you’ll definitely get better and better at it. I also told him that when cooking, you need to be careful, the flame shouldn’t be too high, or the food will burn.
Since then, Xiaowang has often come to my house to learn to cook. We buy groceries together, cook together, and eat together, and it’s especially fun. I’ve discovered that cooking with a friend is more interesting than cooking alone. Now Xiaowang can also make a few simple dishes, and he says in the future he wants to cook for his family too.
音频
Audio recording for this story will be available here.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 会 | huì | can / to know how to |
| 做菜 | zuò cài | to cook |
| 一点 | yì diǎn | a bit / a little |
| 下次 | xià cì | next time |
| 给 | gěi | to do something for somebody / for |
| 很会 | hěn huì | to be very good at |
很 + 会 (hěn huì) — to be very good at
很会 combines 很 (very) with 会 (can/know how to) to express being skilled at something, not just capable of it.
我很会做菜。
Verb + 给 + Person (gěi) — to do something for somebody
给 after a verb introduces the person who benefits from the action.
下次我做给你吃。
只要…就… (As long as… then…)
This pattern expresses a condition and its result: as long as the condition is met, the result follows.
只要多练习，就一定能做得越来越好。
No idiomatic expressions in this story.
Home Cooking in China
In many Chinese families, cooking skills are passed down from parents to children, often starting in childhood by watching and helping in the kitchen. Sharing home-cooked meals with friends and family is an important way of expressing care and hospitality in Chinese culture.
