Saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.

I cook fried chicken on the gas stove.

Breakdown of Saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.

• saya: I
• memasak: to cook
• di: on
• ayam: the chicken
• goreng: fried
• kompor gas: the gas stove

Questions & Answers about Saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.

Does this sentence mean I cook, I am cooking, or I cooked? How is tense shown in Indonesian here?

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense, so memasak on its own can mean:

• I cook (habitual / general fact)
• I am cooking (right now)
• I cooked (in the past)
• even I will cook (in the future), depending on context

In Saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas, the time is understood from context, or from additional words such as:

• tadi (earlier): Saya tadi memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas. – I cooked earlier.
• sedang (in the middle of doing): Saya sedang memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas. – I am cooking right now.
• nanti (later): Nanti saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas. – I will cook later.

So the basic sentence is tenseless; your listener decides the time from context.

What is the difference between memasak and masak?

Masak is the root word meaning to cook / cooked.

Memasak is the active verb form with the prefix me-, and it is the most neutral written / formal form for to cook:
Saya memasak ayam. – I cook chicken / I am cooking chicken.

In everyday speech, Indonesians very often just say masak as the verb:

• Saya masak ayam. – less formal, very common in conversation.

So:

• memasak = standard, slightly more formal, textbook form
• masak = informal conversational verb form or an adjective meaning cooked

Context tells which one is meant. In your sentence, using memasak is completely correct and sounds neutral–formal.

Can I drop Saya and just say Memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas?

You can drop Saya, but it changes how the sentence feels:

• Saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.
  Clear statement: I cook / am cooking fried chicken on the gas stove.

• Memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.
  Looks more like:

  • a fragment (e.g. in a list: “Hobinya: memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.”), or
  • an instruction / headline, not a full “I” sentence.

Indonesian often drops subject pronouns when the subject is already obvious from context, but for a stand‑alone sentence it’s more natural to keep Saya if you mean I.

What is the difference between saya and aku for I?

Both mean I, but they differ in formality and social distance:

• Saya

  • More formal / polite / neutral
  • Safe for talking to strangers, older people, at work, in writing
  • Works almost everywhere

• Aku

  • More informal / intimate
  • Used with close friends, family, romantic partners
  • Common in songs, social media, among young people

Your sentence with aku:

• Aku memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas. – sounds more casual / intimate.

Grammatically, both are correct. Choose based on how close you are to the listener and the level of formality.

Why is it ayam goreng and not goreng ayam?

In Indonesian, the typical pattern is:

Noun + describing word (adjective or participle)

So:

• ayam = chicken
• goreng = fried (from the verb menggoreng = to fry)

ayam goreng literally means fried chicken (chicken that is fried).

If you say goreng ayam, goreng is usually understood as a verb:

• Saya menggoreng ayam. – I am frying chicken.
• Informally: Saya goreng ayam.

So:

• ayam goreng = the dish / the thing (fried chicken)
• (meng)goreng ayam = the action (to fry chicken)

Is goreng here a verb or an adjective?

In ayam goreng, goreng functions like an adjective or past participle: fried.

Indonesian often uses verb roots directly as modifiers:

• ikan bakar – grilled fish (bakar from membakar = to grill / burn)
• nasi goreng – fried rice
• roti panggang – toasted bread (panggang from memanggang)

So:

• menggoreng = to fry (full verb)
• goreng as a verb (informal): Saya goreng ayam.
• goreng as an adjective/participle in a noun phrase: ayam goreng (fried chicken)

Could ayam goreng also mean “chicken that is being fried right now,” not just the finished dish?

By default, ayam goreng is understood as fried chicken (already fried), i.e., the dish.

If you want to clearly say chicken that is being fried (right now), you would usually phrase it differently:

• ayam yang sedang digoreng – chicken that is being fried
• ayam yang lagi digoreng – (more informal)

So in your sentence, ayam goreng is naturally interpreted as fried chicken, not necessarily “in the process of frying.”

What does di mean in di kompor gas? Is it the same di- used for passive verbs?

There are two different di in Indonesian:

1. The preposition di (separate word)

   • Means at / in / on (location)
   • Always written separately from the noun:
     • di rumah – at home
     • di sekolah – at school
     • di kompor gas – on the gas stove

2. The passive prefix di- (attached to verbs)

   • Used to form passive verbs:
     • masak → dimasak – is cooked / was cooked
     • goreng → digoreng – is fried / was fried
   • Always attached to the verb: no space

Spelling rule to remember:

• di + space + noun → preposition (place)
• di- + verb (no space) → passive verb prefix

In di kompor gas, this is the preposition indicating location.

Does di kompor gas mean “on the gas stove,” “at the gas stove,” or “on a gas stove”?

Literally, di kompor gas means at / on (the) gas stove. Indonesian does not mark articles (a / the) the way English does.

Possible translations:

• I cook fried chicken on the gas stove.
• I cook fried chicken on a gas stove.

If you want to be more specific in Indonesian:

• di atas kompor gas – on top of the gas stove (emphasizes the surface)
• di dekat kompor gas – near the gas stove
• di kompor listrik – on an electric stove (contrast with gas)

But in everyday speech, di kompor gas is perfectly natural and usually understood as on the gas stove.

What exactly does kompor gas mean? Is gas an adjective here?

Kompor gas is a noun–noun phrase:

• kompor = stove / cooker
• gas = gas

Together: kompor gas = gas stove.

In Indonesian, this Noun 1 + Noun 2 pattern is very common to show what kind/type something is:

• kompor listrik – electric stove
• mobil bensin – gasoline car
• kartu kredit – credit card
• rumah sakit – hospital (literally “sick house”)

So gas is not an adjective in the English grammatical sense, but in Indonesian it acts like a noun modifier describing the type of stove.

Is this sentence formal, informal, or neutral?

Saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas. sounds neutral to slightly formal because of:

• saya (politer / more formal pronoun)
• memasak (full me- verb form)

To make it:

• More formal/polished (e.g. in writing):

  • You could add time markers or connect it in a longer text, but this sentence is already acceptable as is.

• More casual / conversational:

  • Aku masak ayam goreng di kompor gas.
  • Aku lagi masak ayam goreng di kompor gas nih. (very informal, with lagi and nih)

How would I say this in the passive voice, like “The fried chicken is (being) cooked on the gas stove”?

Active voice (your sentence):

• Saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.
  I cook / am cooking fried chicken on the gas stove.

Passive voice:

• Ayam goreng dimasak di kompor gas (oleh saya).
  The fried chicken is (being) cooked on the gas stove (by me).

Notes:

• dimasak = is / was cooked (passive form of memasak)
• oleh saya (by me) is optional and often omitted.

In Indonesian, passive often puts more focus on the object (fried chicken) than on the doer.

If I say Saya sedang memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas, how does that change the meaning?

Adding sedang marks an action in progress right now:

• Saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.
  Could be present, past, or general habit, depending on context.

• Saya sedang memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.
  Very clearly: I am (currently) cooking fried chicken on the gas stove.

Informal alternative:

• Saya lagi masak ayam goreng di kompor gas. – same idea, more casual.

So sedang (or lagi) makes the “continuous” meaning explicit.

Is there any difference in meaning between Saya memasak ayam goreng and Saya menggoreng ayam?

Yes, there is a nuance difference:

1. Saya memasak ayam goreng di kompor gas.

   • Focuses on cooking fried chicken as a dish.
   • ayam goreng = “fried chicken” (the specific type of food).

2. Saya menggoreng ayam di kompor gas.

   • Focuses on the action of frying chicken.
   • You are explicitly saying you are frying it (maybe to become fried chicken, but the emphasis is on the process).

In many real contexts, people might use them interchangeably, but:

• memasak ayam goreng = cooking the dish “fried chicken”
• menggoreng ayam = performing the frying action on chicken

How do I indicate “some fried chicken” versus “the fried chicken”? Indonesian has no articles, so how is that understood?

Indonesian does not use articles like a / an / the, so ayam goreng by itself is flexible:

• Saya memasak ayam goreng.
  Could be:
  • I cook fried chicken.
  • I cook some fried chicken.
  • I cook the fried chicken.

Context usually makes it clear. If you want to be explicit:

• some fried chicken:
  • beberapa potong ayam goreng – a few pieces of fried chicken
  • sedikit ayam goreng – a little (bit of) fried chicken
• the fried chicken (previously known/specific):
  • ayam goreng itu – that / the fried chicken
  • ayam goreng tadi – the fried chicken from earlier / that we mentioned

But in everyday conversation, just ayam goreng is usually enough, and people understand from context whether it’s specific or not.