Learn Hardcore Ukrainian: Готування смачної їжі займає час.

Готування is a verbal noun (also called a gerund noun) derived from the infinitive готувати (“to cook”). It’s formed by taking the verb stem готува- and adding the suffix -ння, which turns the action into a noun meaning “the act or process of cooking.”

Why is смачної їжі in the genitive case instead of the nominative?

With verbal nouns ending in -ння, the thing being acted upon is usually put in the genitive. Here готування needs a genitive object (the food that’s being cooked). So їжа becomes їжі (genitive singular), and the adjective смачна also takes genitive singular feminine ending, becoming смачної, to agree with їжі.

What case is час, and why is it used here?

Час is in the accusative case as the direct object of the verb займає (“takes”). In Ukrainian, when you say something “takes time,” час remains in the accusative.

What does займає mean, and how is it conjugated?

The verb займати means “to occupy,” “to take up” (in this context, “to take time”). Займає is the third-person singular present tense form. If you wanted to use it with different subjects:

я займаю
ти займаєш
він/вона займає