Deigen blir for våt hvis jeg heller i for mye vann, så jeg tilsetter mer mel.

The dough gets too wet if I pour in too much water, so I add more flour.

Breakdown of Deigen blir for våt hvis jeg heller i for mye vann, så jeg tilsetter mer mel.

• jeg: I
• vannet: the water
• hvis: if
• bli: to become
• så: so
• mer: more
• tilsette: to add
• for mye: too much
• melet: the flour
• deigen: the dough
• for våt: too wet
• helle i: to pour in

Questions & Answers about Deigen blir for våt hvis jeg heller i for mye vann, så jeg tilsetter mer mel.

Why does it say deigen and not en deig?

Deigen is the definite form: deig (dough) + -en = deigen = the dough. In Norwegian it’s very common to talk about a specific dough you’re working with using the definite form.
En deig would mean a dough (more generic / introducing it for the first time).

Why use blir here instead of er?

Blir means becomes / gets (a change of state). The dough becomes too wet as a result of adding too much water.
Er would describe a more static state (is too wet), without focusing on the change.

What does for mean in for våt? Isn’t for usually “for” like in English?

Here for means too:

• for våt = too wet
• for mye = too much
  This for is not the same as English “for” meaning “for someone” or “in order to.”

Why is it våt and not something like vått?

Adjectives agree with gender/number in Norwegian:

• deig is common gender (en deig)
• With a common gender singular noun, the adjective base form is used: våt
  If it were a neuter noun (et …), you’d often see -t: e.g., et vått håndkle (a wet towel).

What’s going on with the word order in hvis jeg heller i for mye vann?

In the hvis (if) clause, Norwegian uses normal clause word order: subject + verb:

• hvis jeg heller i … = if I pour in …
  You only get inversion (verb before subject) when a different element is placed first in a main clause (e.g., I dag heller jeg i vann).

Why is there a comma after vann?

Because it separates two clauses: 1) Deigen blir for våt hvis jeg heller i for mye vann (main clause + conditional subordinate clause)
2) så jeg tilsetter mer mel (a following main clause explaining the result)

Norwegian generally uses commas more consistently to separate clauses than English does.

Does så here mean “then” or “so”?

Here så means so / therefore, introducing a consequence:

• …, så jeg tilsetter mer mel. = …, so I add more flour.

It can also mean then, depending on context, but with this structure it’s typically “so/therefore.”

Could I replace så with derfor?

Often, yes, with a slightly different feel:

• …, så jeg tilsetter mer mel. (more conversational, “so I add…”)
• Derfor tilsetter jeg mer mel. (a bit more explicit/formal: “Therefore I add…”)

Note that with derfor first in the main clause, you get inversion: Derfor tilsetter jeg …

Why is it heller i and not just heller?

Å helle i is a common verb phrase meaning to pour in (into something).

• helle = to pour (general)
• helle i = pour in (emphasizes adding it into a container/mixture)

In many sentences you can say just helle, but helle i is very idiomatic for adding an ingredient.

What does for mye mean grammatically—why not mye alone?

• mye vann = a lot of water
• for mye vann = too much water (more than is desirable)

So for mye is the “excess” version of mye.

What does tilsetter mean, and how is it different from legger til?

Å tilsette means to add (an ingredient/substance) and is very common in recipes and processes: tilsette mel, salt, sukker.
Å legge til also means to add, but more in the sense of adding an item/piece or adding information (e.g., add a comment, add a name to a list). In cooking, tilsette is usually the better choice.

Why is it mer mel and not mer av mel or et mer mel?

Mel (flour) is an uncountable/mass noun here, so you typically don’t use an article:

• mer mel = more flour

mer av mel can occur, but it’s less natural here unless you’re contrasting sources/types (“more of the flour we have”).
et mer mel is not correct: mel isn’t treated as a countable “one flour.”

Is the present tense used to describe a general rule here?

Yes. Norwegian uses the present tense for general truths/habits and for recipe-style statements:

• Deigen blir … hvis jeg …, så jeg … describes what typically happens in that situation, not necessarily a single one-time event.