Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Saya memotong mangga di talenan, lalu menuang teh ke cangkir putih. - I cut mango on the cutting board, then pour tea into a white cup.

Saya memotong …, lalu menuang … (natural and concise)
Saya memotong …, lalu saya menuang … (also fine, slightly heavier; useful if there’s any chance of ambiguity)

Is di in di talenan the passive prefix or the preposition “at/on”?

Here it’s the preposition meaning “at/on,” written separately from the following noun: di talenan = “on the cutting board.” The passive prefix di- attaches directly to a verb with no space, e.g., dipotong “is/was cut,” dituangkan “is/was poured.”

Should it be di atas talenan instead of di talenan?

Both are acceptable:

di talenan = on/at the cutting board (commonly used and natural)
di atas talenan = explicitly “on top of the cutting board,” emphasizing the surface Use di atas when you need to stress the surface relation or avoid ambiguity.

Why ke cangkir putih and not ke dalam cangkir putih or di cangkir putih?

ke marks movement/direction: menuang teh ke cangkir putih = pour tea to/into the cup (context implies “into”).
ke dalam explicitly means “into (the inside of),” so ke dalam cangkir putih emphasizes entering the interior.
di is static location: teh di cangkir putih = the tea is in the white cup (no movement).

What’s the difference between lalu, kemudian, and terus?

All can mean “then/after that”:

lalu: neutral, common in both speech and writing.
kemudian: a bit more formal or narrative.
terus: very colloquial (“and then / so next”), frequent in speech. Your sentence is fine with any of the three, with slight register shifts.

Does memotong mean “to slice,” “to chop,” or just “to cut”? What about mengiris and mengupas?

memotong: general “to cut” (any kind of cutting).
mengiris: to slice thinly (e.g., mengiris bawang).
mencincang: to chop/mince finely.
mengupas: to peel (e.g., mengupas mangga). Choose the verb that best fits the action you mean.

What’s the nuance between menuang and menuangkan?

Both come from the root tuang (pour):

menuang [liquid] (no -kan): focuses on the act of pouring; you can still add a destination with ke.
menuangkan [liquid] (ke …): the -kan form highlights the target/destination or the result.
In your sentence, menuang teh ke cangkir putih is perfectly natural; menuangkan teh ke (dalam) cangkir putih adds a bit of focus to the cup as the goal.

Why is it cangkir putih and not putih cangkir?

In Indonesian, adjectives follow nouns. So it’s cangkir putih (“white cup”), mangga matang (“ripe mango”).
If you want to emphasize the adjective, you can use yang: cangkir yang putih (“the cup that is white”), often for contrast or clarification.

How do I express “a/the (specific) mango” or plurals, since Indonesian has no articles?

Indefinite “a mango”: sebuah mangga or just mangga (context gives “a”).
Definite “the mango”: mangga itu or mangganya (depending on context).
Plural: often just the noun with context or a quantifier: beberapa mangga (some mangoes), dua mangga (two mangoes). Reduplication (mangga-mangga) is possible but not common in everyday speech.

What’s the difference between cangkir and gelas?

cangkir: a cup, typically ceramic and with a handle, often for hot drinks (tea, coffee).
gelas: a (drinking) glass, usually handle-less, often for water/juice/iced drinks.
So cangkir putih suggests a handled cup, not a glass.

Is Saya the only option? What about Aku or Gue?

saya: polite/neutral, safe in most settings.
aku: informal/intimate, with friends/family; common in many regions and in writing like songs.
gue/gua: very informal, Jakarta slang.
Pick based on formality and who you’re talking to.

Is the spelling mangga important? How is it pronounced?

Yes—mangga (double g) means the fruit “mango.” manga (single g) refers to Japanese comics.
Pronunciation: mang-ga with an ng sound followed by a hard g. The doubled g indicates the ng + g sequence.

Why do we get memotong and menuang from potong and tuang?

It’s the meN- active-verb prefix, which adapts to the first consonant:

p → mem- (p drops): potong → memotong
t → men- (t drops): tuang → menuang
s → meny- (s drops): sapu → menyapu
k → meng- (k drops): kirim → mengirim
b/f/v → mem- (consonant stays): baca → membaca
d/j/c → men- (consonant stays): dengar → mendengar; jawab → menjawab; cari → mencari
g/h/a/e/i/u → meng- (initial stays): gambar → menggambar; isi → mengisi

Could I say this in the passive voice? How would the nuance change?

Yes:

Active (agent-focused): Saya memotong …, lalu menuang …
Short passive (object-focused but still shows agent): Mangga saya potong di talenan, lalu teh saya tuang ke cangkir putih.
Passive with di- (agent omitted or added with oleh): Mangga dipotong di talenan, lalu teh dituangkan ke cangkir putih.
Passive often sounds more formal or object-focused; the short passive is very natural in speech.

Do I need a measure/classifier like “a cup of tea” here?

Not in your sentence—you’re talking about pouring tea into a cup (the container), not quantifying the tea.
To quantify, use:

secangkir teh = a cup of tea
segelas teh = a glass of tea
sebuah cangkir putih = one white cup (counting the cup as an object)

Is the comma before lalu necessary?

It’s optional. A comma can make the sequence clearer in writing: …, lalu …. Without the comma it’s still correct: … lalu …. Use a comma if the clauses are longer or you want a slight pause.