Learn Hardcore Malay: Ibu menggoreng ikan dengan sedikit minyak dan bawang di dalam kuali kegemarannya. - Mother fries the fish with a bit of oil and onions in her favourite pan.

Family terms often imply “my” without saying it.
Words like Ibu (mother), Ayah (father), Abang (older brother), etc., can implicitly mean my mother / my father / my older brother when it is clear from context.
No separate word for “my” is needed.
Malay can use saya (my) as in ibu saya, but it is very common to just say Ibu when talking about your own mother.
Capitalization:
When Ibu refers to your own mother as a kind of name or title, it is often written with a capital I, similar to writing Mum in English instead of mum.

So Ibu menggoreng ikan… is naturally understood as Mum / My mother is frying fish… even though saya is not written.

Why is it menggoreng and not just goreng? What does the meN- prefix do?

The base word is goreng (to fry). The meN- prefix turns it into an active verb:

goreng – fry (root, used in dictionaries, commands, etc.)
- Example: Goreng ikan itu. = Fry that fish.
menggoreng – to be frying / to fry (active verb used with a subject)
- Example: Ibu menggoreng ikan. = Mother is frying fish.

Function of meN-:

It normally marks an active verb with an explicit subject (I, you, he, she, etc.).
It often corresponds to English “to / is -ing”.

In this sentence, because we have a clear subject (Ibu), we use the active form menggoreng, not the bare root goreng.

What is the basic word order in Ibu menggoreng ikan dengan sedikit minyak dan bawang? Is it like English?

Yes, the basic word order here is very similar to English:

Subject – Verb – Object – (extra information)

Breaking down the sentence:

Ibu – subject (Mother)
menggoreng – verb (is frying)
ikan – direct object (fish)
dengan sedikit minyak dan bawang – prepositional phrase (with a little oil and onion)
di dalam kuali kegemarannya – another phrase (in her favourite pan/wok)

So structurally it’s close to:

Mother / is frying / fish / with a little oil and onion / in her favourite pan.

What exactly does dengan mean here? Is it “with”, “using”, or something else?

In this sentence, dengan can be understood as both “with” and “using”:

dengan sedikit minyak dan bawang
= with a little oil and onion
= using a little oil and onion

Common roles of dengan:

To show instrument / means:
- Tulis dengan pensel. = Write with a pencil.
To show accompaniment:
- Saya pergi dengan kawan. = I go with a friend.
To show manner:
- Dia bercakap dengan lembut. = He/She speaks gently.

Here, it’s instrument/ingredient: she fries the fish using a little oil and onion.

Does sedikit describe only the minyak (oil), or both minyak dan bawang (oil and onion)?

Grammatically, sedikit is closest to minyak:

Literal structure: sedikit minyak dan bawang
→ a little oil and onion

Native speakers will usually understand:

Oil: clearly a little oil
Onion: simply onion (some amount is implied but not specified as “little”)

If you want to be very clear that both are in small amounts, you would normally repeat sedikit:

dengan sedikit minyak dan sedikit bawang
= with a little oil and a little onion

Why is it minyak dan bawang instead of minyak dengan bawang? What’s the difference between dan and dengan?

dan = and (joins equal items: noun + noun, verb + verb, etc.)
- minyak dan bawang = oil and onion
- makan dan minum = eat and drink
dengan = with / using / together with / in a … way
- dengan minyak = with oil / using oil
- dengan gembira = happily (literally with happiness)

In the sentence:

dengan sedikit minyak dan bawang
→ dengan introduces the whole phrase,
→ dan joins minyak and bawang (oil and onion).

So the structure is:
dengan (with) sedikit minyak dan bawang (a little oil and onion).

What is the difference between di dalam and just dalam? Could the sentence say dalam kuali kegemarannya instead?

Both di dalam and dalam can mean “in / inside”, and both are acceptable here:

di dalam kuali kegemarannya
dalam kuali kegemarannya

Difference in nuance:

di dalam
- Literally “at in-side”, a little more explicit/complete.
- Often slightly more formal or emphatic about being inside something.
dalam
- Shorter, very common in speech.
- Can also mean inside, within.

In everyday conversation, dalam kuali kegemarannya would sound completely natural.

What does kuali refer to exactly? Is it a wok, a frying pan, or a pot?

kuali is a general word for a shallow cooking pan used on a stove, and in many Malay contexts it is closest to a wok.

In traditional Malay/Indonesian kitchens, kuali is often a round-bottomed or deep pan similar to a wok.
In modern usage, it can also refer to a frying pan, especially if that is the main pan used for frying.

So translating kuali kegemarannya as her favourite wok or her favourite frying pan are both acceptable, depending on context.

How is kegemarannya formed, and what exactly does it mean?

kegemarannya is built from three parts:

Root: gemar = to like / be fond of
Noun-forming circumfix: ke-…-an
- kegemaran = favourite, liking (noun)
Possessive/definite suffix: -nya
- kegemarannya = his/her favourite (literally the favourite of him/her)

So:

kuali kegemarannya
= her favourite pan (wok)
Literally: the pan [which is] her favourite.

The -nya often translates to his / her / their (or sometimes the), and attaches directly to the noun (kegemaran).

Why is the order kuali kegemarannya and not kegemarannya kuali like in English “her favourite pan”?

In Malay, describing words usually come after the noun, unlike in English.

English: her favourite pan
→ possessive + adjective + noun
Malay: kuali kegemarannya
→ noun + descriptive phrase

Examples of the same pattern:

rumah besar = big house (literally house big)
baju baru = new shirt (literally shirt new)
kawan baik saya = my good friend (literally friend good my)

So kuali kegemarannya follows the normal Malay order: noun (kuali) + description (kegemarannya).

Could we say kuali kegemaran Ibu instead of kuali kegemarannya? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say both:

kuali kegemarannya
→ her favourite pan (with -nya referring to someone already mentioned, here Ibu)
kuali kegemaran Ibu
→ Mother’s favourite pan (using the full noun Ibu as the possessor)

Differences:

kegemarannya
- Shorter, more compact.
- -nya is less specific by itself (it could be his/her), but the context (Ibu) makes it clear.
kegemaran Ibu
- Slightly more explicit, because Ibu is named again.
- Useful if you want to be 100% clear who the owner is, or if there could be confusion.

In this sentence, kuali kegemarannya is natural because Ibu is the only logical owner mentioned.

If -nya means his/her, why don’t we say something like Ibu-nya earlier in the sentence to mean her mother?

The suffix -nya does mean his/her/their/the in many contexts, but:

For close family members, Malay often omits explicit possession when the owner is obvious (usually the speaker).
Ibu by itself is enough to mean my mother in this sentence.

Using Ibu-nya would usually mean:

his/her mother (someone else’s mother), or
the mother (mentioned earlier in context)

So:

Ibu menggoreng ikan…
→ natural: My mother is frying fish…
Ibunya menggoreng ikan…
→ likely: His/Her mother is frying fish… (the mother of some person already discussed)

Is it possible to move the phrases around, like putting di dalam kuali kegemarannya before dengan sedikit minyak dan bawang?

Yes, Malay allows some flexibility in where you place prepositional phrases (like in the pan, with oil), as long as the meaning stays clear.

The original:

Ibu menggoreng ikan dengan sedikit minyak dan bawang di dalam kuali kegemarannya.

Possible variant:

Ibu menggoreng ikan di dalam kuali kegemarannya dengan sedikit minyak dan bawang.

Both are understandable and grammatical. Differences are minor:

Original order slightly highlights what ingredients are used first.
The variant slightly highlights where it is done first.

In normal conversation, both would sound fine.