Minél többet mázazunk, annál sötétebb a tál.

This is a very common Hungarian correlative pattern meaning:

• the more ..., the ...
• sometimes the less ..., the ... depending on the words used

So in:

• Minél többet mázazunk, annál sötétebb a tál.

the structure is:

• minél többet = the more
• annál sötétebb = the darker

This pattern is very similar to English sentences like:

• The more we glaze, the darker the bowl.
• The longer you wait, the harder it gets.

A useful formula is:

• Minél + comparative/adverbial idea, annál + comparative result

Több means more, but here Hungarian uses többet, which is the accusative form.

• több = more
• többet = more / a greater amount, as the object of the verb

The verb mázazunk (we glaze) is acting on some implied object, such as glaze or surface coverage, so Hungarian uses the object-like form többet.

You can think of it as something like:

• the more of it we glaze
• the more glazing we do

This is very common after verbs when more functions as the thing affected by the action.

Mázazunk comes from the verb mázaz, which means to glaze or to apply glaze.

Breaking it down:

• máz = glaze
• mázaz = to glaze
• mázazunk = we glaze

The ending -unk / -ünk is a common marker for 1st person plural:

• írunk = we write
• tanulunk = we study
• mázazunk = we glaze

So the sentence specifically says we glaze, not you glaze or they glaze.

Hungarian often leaves out the verb van (is/are) in the present tense when it would simply link a subject and an adjective or noun.

So:

• a tál sötétebb = the bowl is darker

Hungarian does not normally say a tál van sötétebb here.

That is why the second clause is:

• annál sötétebb a tál
• literally: by that, darker the bowl
• naturally: the darker the bowl is

This is completely normal Hungarian.

Sötétebb is the comparative form of sötét (dark).

• sötét = dark
• sötétebb = darker

The ending -bb is the usual comparative ending in Hungarian, like English -er or more.

Examples:

• nagy = big → nagyobb = bigger
• gyors = fast → gyorsabb = faster
• sötét = dark → sötétebb = darker

So:

• annál sötétebb = that much darker / the darker

In this pattern, annál means something like:

• by that
• to that degree
• the ...er

It works together with minél.

So:

• minél többet = the more
• annál sötétebb = the darker

Outside this pattern, annál can also mean than that or by that much, depending on context. But here its job is mainly grammatical: it completes the the more ..., the ... structure.

Hungarian word order is flexible, but it is strongly influenced by focus and information structure.

In:

• annál sötétebb a tál

the important new information is sötétebb (darker), so it comes before the subject a tál.

This sounds natural in Hungarian in a comparative-result structure.

If you said:

• annál a tál sötétebb

that would sound odd in this context, and it could even be confusing because annál can have other uses too.

So the given order is the natural one.

A tál means the bowl.

Hungarian usually uses the definite article a / az when talking about a specific thing or a thing understood from context.

So here:

• a tál = the bowl

You could not normally drop the article here in standard usage.

• tál by itself would sound incomplete in this sentence.
• az a tál means that bowl, which is more specific and contrastive than the original.

So a tál is the neutral, natural choice.

It is related to the idea of degree, but in usage it is its own fixed form.

For a learner, the most important thing is to treat minél ... annál ... as a set pattern meaning:

• the more ..., the ...
• the less ..., the ...

You do not need to analyze minél every time in conversation. It is best learned as a chunk.

Examples:

• Minél tovább vársz, annál idegesebb leszel.

  • The longer you wait, the more nervous you will be.

• Minél többet gyakorlok, annál jobb vagyok.

  • The more I practice, the better I am.

Yes. Even if the exact English translation shown to the learner is slightly different, that is a very natural interpretation.

Because többet is somewhat general, the sentence can suggest:

• the more we glaze
• the more glaze we apply
• the more glazing we do

Hungarian often leaves some of this implicit when the situation makes it obvious.

Yes, very often. It is a productive and useful pattern.

Examples:

• Minél többet tanulok, annál okosabb leszek.

  • The more I study, the smarter I will become.

• Minél gyorsabban futsz, annál hamarabb odaérsz.

  • The faster you run, the sooner you arrive.

• Minél kevesebbet eszünk, annál éhesebbek maradunk.

  • The less we eat, the hungrier we remain.

This is one of the most important comparative sentence patterns in Hungarian.

Hungarian often uses the present tense where English might also allow a general present or a future-like meaning.

So:

• Minél többet mázazunk, annál sötétebb a tál.

states a general relationship or rule:

• whenever we glaze more, the bowl is darker
• the more we glaze, the darker the bowl becomes

Hungarian does not need a future marker here, because this is not mainly about one future event; it is about a general cause-and-result pattern.

It can be either, depending on context, but by itself it most naturally sounds like a general observation or process description.

For example:

• in pottery-making generally
• during a demonstration
• while explaining how glaze affects color

If you wanted to make it clearly about a specific future result, Hungarian could add other context, but the basic sentence already works well as a general rule.