You have a friend who lives in a different country. You will organise a party soon and have thought to use a foreign recipe. Write a letter to the friend asking for a recipe from his/her country for the party you are organizing. In your letter: - tell your friend about the party - ask for the recipe - explain why you need the recipe from his/her country
Sample Response
Dear Yuki, Hope you're doing well. I'm writing this letter to ask for a favour from you. Actually, I need the recipe for Japanese Ramen Noodle Soup from you since I'm going to throw a party soon in which I want to include this item. Of course, this is going to be a very special party since all of my high school friends are going to get together and have a good time while talking about our work and achievements in life for the first time after finishing high school. The reason, for which, I'm asking for this recipe is that I fell in love with this particular soup after eating it at one of the upscale Japanese restaurants in my country. So, I thought that it just would be a great idea to introduce this awesome and delicious dish, instead of only those food items which we enjoy on a regular basis, to all of my friends at the party, so that I could impress them with my new idea. Please get back to me with the recipe for this incredible soup once you read this letter. Warm wishes, Adam
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Remove redundant wording Original: writing this letter Suggested revision: writing Why it matters: The context already makes clear that the message is a letter.
- 2. Use standard capitalization Original: Japanese Ramen Noodle Soup Suggested revision: Japanese ramen noodle soup Why it matters: The generic name of the dish does not require capitals on every word.
- 3. Fix event preposition Original: in Suggested revision: at Why it matters: At which is the correct relative phrase for something happening at a party.
- 4. Use precise noun Original: item Suggested revision: dish Why it matters: Dish refers more naturally to food being served at a party.
- 5. Fix time reference Original: after Suggested revision: since Why it matters: Since correctly marks the period from graduation until the planned reunion.
- 6. Remove incorrect commas Original: The reason, for which, Suggested revision: The reason Why it matters: The commas and relative phrase wrongly interrupt the construction The reason I am asking.
- 7. Correct adverb placement Original: it just would be Suggested revision: it would be Why it matters: Removing just produces the natural modal verb order and preserves the intended meaning.
- 8. Match future meaning Original: could Suggested revision: can Why it matters: Can matches the planned future party, whereas could creates an unnecessary past or hypothetical shift.
- 9. Separate letter purposes Suggested revision: Use short paragraphs for the party details, the recipe request, and the reason for choosing this Japanese dish. Why it matters: Separating the three prompt points would make the friendly request easier to follow.
Suggested Rewrites
- writing this letter writing
- Japanese Ramen Noodle Soup Japanese ramen noodle soup
- in at
- item dish
- after since
- The reason, for which, The reason
Why this response received Band 7.0
The letter fully achieves its purpose through a warm, appropriate tone and well-developed details about the reunion, the requested ramen recipe, and the reason for serving it. Its main weakness is presentation: all ideas sit in one dense paragraph, and a few phrases are wordy or overenthusiastic; prioritise clear paragraph breaks and more concise, natural phrasing while preserving the friendly voice.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The letter clearly requests a specific recipe, explains the party in relevant detail, and gives a convincing reason for wanting a dish from the friend’s country.
Refine the request by asking for any special ingredients or preparation advice needed to reproduce the soup successfully.
Coherence and Cohesion
The ideas follow a logical sequence from the request to the party and reasons, but the entire letter is presented as one dense paragraph.
Use separate paragraphs for the party, the recipe request, and the reason for choosing Japanese food.
Lexical Resource
The response uses a flexible range of appropriate informal vocabulary, although phrases such as “include this item” and “awesome and delicious dish” are less natural or precise.
Prefer concise everyday wording such as “serve this dish” and avoid stacking broad evaluative adjectives.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A varied mix of simple and complex sentences is generally accurate, with only occasional punctuation and word-order lapses.
Remove unnecessary commas in “The reason for which I’m asking” and use the more natural order “I thought it would be.”
Write this task while it is fresh
Try the same task now. It helps you remember the feedback and write better next time.
IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You have a friend who lives in a different country. You will organise a party soon and have thought to use a foreign recipe. Write a letter to the friend asking for a recipe from his/her country for the party you are organizing. In your letter:
- tell your friend about the party
- ask for the recipe
- explain why you need the recipe from his/her country
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.