IELTS Speaking Questions: Food and Cooking
Food questions in IELTS Speaking Part 1 are personal and present-focused: what you like to eat, whether you cook, and what a typical meal looks like where you live. The examiner wants a direct answer with a specific detail attached, not a general claim like “I like all food”. In Part 3, the same topic turns abstract - changing eating habits, fast food, the role of schools in teaching cooking - and you are expected to reason about food culture more broadly rather than describe your own plate.
Prepare two or three real details before the test: a dish you genuinely enjoy, one specific detail about how or when your family eats, and one honest opinion about how your eating habits have changed. A natural mix of these details, adapted to the exact question asked, sounds far more convincing than a rehearsed answer.
Part 1 questions
Short, personal, present-tense. Answer the question directly first, then add the one detail the tip suggests — the extension is what separates a one-line answer from a Band 7 one.
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What kind of food do you like?
How to extend itName it, then add a short reason.
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Do you enjoy cooking?
How to extend itSay yes or no, then explain briefly.
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What is a typical meal in your country?
How to extend itName one dish, add a brief detail.
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Do you prefer eating at home or eating out?
How to extend itPick one, add a short reason.
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Did you learn to cook when you were young?
How to extend itSay yes or no, give a detail.
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What food did you enjoy as a child?
How to extend itName it, then add a short reason.
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Is there a food you dislike?
How to extend itName it, then explain briefly.
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How often do you eat with your family?
How to extend itName a frequency, add a detail.
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Do you follow a healthy diet?
How to extend itSay yes or no, then explain briefly.
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What food is popular at celebrations in your country?
How to extend itName it, add a short detail.
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Would you like to learn to cook a new dish?
How to extend itState your intention, then a reason.
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Do you prefer sweet or savoury food?
How to extend itPick one, add a short reason.
Part 3 questions
The same topic, pitched at the abstract level the examiner moves to after your cue card. These want reasoning — a position, a cause, an example, a concession — not a description of your own life.
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How have eating habits changed in your country in recent years?
How to structure itCompare past and present, then an example.
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Do you think fast food is a bigger problem than in the past?
How to structure itGive a cause, an effect, then a concession.
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Should governments do more to encourage healthy eating?
How to structure itState a position, then a likely consequence.
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Is traditional cooking disappearing because of busy modern lifestyles?
How to structure itDescribe the change, then explain a cause.
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How important is food to a country's culture and identity?
How to structure itGive a reason, then a specific example.
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Do you think people eat out more than they used to?
How to structure itCompare past and present, then a concession.
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Is it better to grow up learning to cook at home?
How to structure itTake a position, then add a concession.
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Should schools teach children how to cook?
How to structure itState a position, support it with a reason.
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How does food advertising affect people's eating habits?
How to structure itGive a cause, an effect, then a concession.
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How might people's diets change in the future?
How to structure itPredict a trend, then give a reason.
Say the answers out loud, then sit the whole test
Reading a question and answering it are different skills. Work through the list above aloud, then put the topic inside a full timed test where you cannot stop to think.
- Describe a celebration or festival you enjoyed Part 2 cue card, with the one-minute prep timer
- Food and cooking vocabulary 30 band-graded phrases and a self-test
Part 1, a cue card, then Part 3 — timed, in your browser, about 13 minutes.
One cue card a day on Telegram
A new Part 2 card every morning, a vocabulary topic on Sundays.
Practise this with instant AI feedback
Record your answer in the app and get your grammar, vocabulary, fluency and pronunciation analysed in seconds.
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Commonly reported IELTS Speaking questions about daily routine for Part 1 and Part 3, with short tips for extending your answers and structuring opinions.
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