Breakdown of Hij is kip met rijst aan het koken.
zijn
to be
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
koken
to cook
met
with
aan
on / at (attached to, edge)
de rijst
the rice
de kip
the chicken
Questions & Answers about Hij is kip met rijst aan het koken.
Why is the object kip met rijst placed in the middle of the verbs?
In Dutch, to say someone is currently doing something, we use a form of zijn (to be) + aan het + the infinitive verb. The object of the sentence usually goes between the zijn verb and aan het. Literally, this sentence is structured as: He is chicken with rice on the cooking.
How would I add graag to this sentence to say he likes cooking chicken with rice?
To express a general preference, you usually drop the aan het continuous structure. You switch to the simple present tense and place graag right after the verb: Hij kookt graag kip met rijst.
If I want to say he prefers cooking this meal, how do I use liever here?
Just like with graag, you drop the continuous tense and use the simple present. Put liever directly after the conjugated verb: Hij kookt liever kip met rijst.
Why does the sentence say kip met rijst without the article de?
Exactly like in English (chicken with rice), when we talk about ingredients or meals in a general, uncountable sense, we do not use articles like de or het.
Learn Hij is kip met rijst aan het koken and more in Dutch
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free