Adapting a Recipe When an Ingredient Is Missing | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Het recept heeft verse basilicum nodig, maar we hebben alleen gedroogde kruiden.

   The recipe needs fresh basil, but we only have dried herbs.

   recept

   recipe

   heeft … nodig

   needs

   verse

   fresh

   basilicum

   basil

   maar

   but

   we hebben

   we have

   alleen

   only

   gedroogde

   dried

   kruiden

   herbs

   More detail

   recept means “recipe” here. Its base form is recept; the plural is recepten. It is the subject of the first clause: “The recipe needs …” heeft ... nodig is a common Dutch way to say that something needs something. heeft is the present-tense form of hebben (“to have”) for a singular third-person subject such as het recept; nodig completes the need-construction. For example: De plant heeft water nodig. — “The plant needs water.” verse describes basilicum as fresh. The base adjective is vers; verse is the attributive form used in this noun phrase. A useful contrast is verse groenten (“fresh vegetables”) and gedroogde kruiden (“dried herbs”). basilicum means “basil” here. It is the ingredient that the recipe needs. For example: Ik voeg basilicum toe. — “I add basil.” maar connects two contrasting clauses and means “but.” It introduces the contrast between what is needed and what is available. we hebben means “we have.” we is the first-person plural subject pronoun, and hebben is the present-tense form of hebben used with we. For example: We hebben tijd. — “We have time.” alleen means “only” in this sentence. It limits what is available: the speakers have dried herbs, but no fresh basil is stated to be available. gedroogde means “dried” here. It is the attributive form of the past participle gedroogd, from the verb drogen (“to dry”), used before the plural noun kruiden. The related predicate form is De kruiden zijn gedroogd. — “The herbs are dried.” kruiden means “herbs.” Its singular form is kruid, while kruiden is plural. Here it is the thing the speakers have. For example: Ik gebruik kruiden. — “I use herbs.” Together, Het recept heeft verse basilicum nodig says “The recipe needs fresh basil.” maar we hebben alleen gedroogde kruiden contrasts that need with the speakers’ available supply: “but we only have dried herbs.” The complete utterance therefore means: “The recipe needs fresh basil, but we only have dried herbs.”

2. We kunnen het toch maken; de smaak zal alleen een beetje anders zijn.

   We can still make it; the flavor will just be a little different.

   We kunnen

   we can

   maken

   make

   toch

   still

   smaak

   flavor; taste

   zal

   will

   alleen

   just

   een beetje

   a little

   anders

   different

   zijn

   be

   More detail

   We kunnen means “we can.” kunnen is the present-tense form of kunnen used with we (first-person plural). A modal verb is followed by an infinitive: We kunnen het maken = “We can make it.” The subject is the people speaking, and het is the thing being made. maken means “to make” here. Its infinitive is maken; after kunnen, it stays in this infinitive form. In this sentence it combines with het as het maken, “make it,” rather than naming the object again. toch contributes “still” here: despite the missing fresh basil and the use of dried herbs, making the dish remains possible. Dutch toch can have other discourse uses, but this is its concessive meaning in the fixed sentence. smaak is the noun meaning “flavor” here. Its common article is de: de smaak means “the flavor.” It can also mean “taste” in other contexts, but the fixed translation identifies the flavor of the dish. zal is the singular present form of zullen, used here as a future auxiliary with de smaak. The phrase de smaak zal ... zijn means “the flavor will ... be.” Dutch uses the infinitive after this auxiliary, as in zal zijn. alleen means “just” in this sentence. It limits the expected difference: the flavor will be just a little different, rather than presenting a larger or unspecified change. een beetje means “a little.” beetje is a neuter noun, commonly used in this expression with een. Here een does not by itself assert a numeric count; the whole expression indicates a small degree or amount. anders means “different.” It is the form used to describe how the flavor will differ. A useful contrast is hetzelfde (“the same”): De smaak is anders means “The flavor is different,” while De smaak is hetzelfde means “The flavor is the same.” zijn is the infinitive of zijn, “to be.” It follows zal and links de smaak to the description alleen een beetje anders. Together, We kunnen het toch maken says that the speakers can still make the dish despite the ingredient situation. de smaak zal alleen een beetje anders zijn predicts that the resulting flavor will simply be somewhat different. The complete meaning is: “We can still make it; the flavor will just be a little different.”

3. Zullen we de gedroogde kruiden eerder toevoegen, zodat ze zacht worden in de saus?

   Should we add the dried herbs earlier so they soften in the sauce?

   Zullen we

   Shall we?

   gedroogde

   dried

   kruiden

   herbs

   eerder

   earlier

   toevoegen

   add

   zodat

   so that

   ze

   they

   zacht

   soft

   worden

   become

   saus

   sauce

   More detail

   Zullen we is a reusable Dutch way to make a suggestion involving the speaker and the listener: “Shall we …?” It uses zullen plus we and an infinitive. Example: Zullen we beginnen? — “Shall we start?” gedroogde means “dried” here and describes kruiden. It is the adjective form used before this plural noun; Dutch attributive adjectives commonly take -e in this position. The base form is gedroogd. Example: gedroogde tomaten — “dried tomatoes.” kruiden means “herbs” here. Its singular is kruid; the plural is kruiden. Example: Verse kruiden smaken sterk. — “Fresh herbs taste strong.” eerder means “earlier,” referring here to an earlier time for adding the herbs. It is a common temporal comparison form; Dutch also uses vroeg for “early” and vroeger for “earlier” in some contexts. Example: Kom eerder. — “Come earlier.” toevoegen means “to add.” It is an infinitive used after zullen in Zullen we ... toevoegen? The separable verb has the parts toe and voegen; in a finite main clause they can separate: We voegen zout toe. — “We add salt.” zodat introduces the intended result or purpose: “so that.” It connects the suggestion to what is meant to happen afterward. Example: Roer goed, zodat de saus glad wordt. — “Stir well so that the sauce becomes smooth.” ze is the unstressed third-person plural pronoun “they” here. In this sentence it refers to the dried herbs and is the subject of worden. Dutch ze can have other grammatical roles in other sentences, so its role comes from the construction. zacht means “soft.” It is an adjective used here as a complement after worden, describing the resulting state of the herbs. In this use, it does not take the attributive -e ending: De kruiden worden zacht. — “The herbs become soft.” worden means “become” here. Although it has the same spelling as the infinitive, in ze zacht worden it is the finite present-tense form agreeing with the plural subject ze; the subordinate-clause position follows zodat. It expresses a change into a state. Compare De kruiden zijn zacht. — “The herbs are soft” with De kruiden worden zacht. — “The herbs become soft.” saus means “sauce.” With the definite article, the full noun phrase is de saus, “the sauce.” Example: De kruiden zitten in de saus. — “The herbs are in the sauce.” Together, Zullen we de gedroogde kruiden eerder toevoegen? asks whether the speaker and listener should add the dried herbs at an earlier time. The clause zodat ze zacht worden in de saus gives the intended result: the herbs become soft in the sauce. The whole utterance therefore means: “Should we add the dried herbs earlier so they soften in the sauce?”

4. Voeg ze eerder toe en gebruik er minder van, omdat gedroogde kruiden sterker kunnen smaken.

   Add them earlier and use less, because dried herbs can taste stronger.

   Voeg … toe

   add

   ze

   them

   eerder

   earlier

   gebruik

   use

   er … van

   of them

   minder

   less

   omdat

   because

   gedroogde

   dried

   kruiden

   herbs

   sterker

   stronger

   kunnen

   can

   smaken

   taste

   More detail

   Voeg ... toe is the separable verb toevoegen, “to add.” In this sentence, Voeg is the imperative form, and toe appears at the end of the clause. Dutch separable verbs split in main clauses: Ik voeg de kruiden toe means “I add the herbs.” In an imperative, the subject is normally understood as “you.” ze is an object pronoun meaning “them” here. The fixed translation identifies its referent as the dried herbs. It is placed before the separable verb’s final part: Voeg ze ... toe. eerder means “earlier.” It is the comparative form related to vroeg (“early”): vroeg = “early,” eerder = “earlier.” Example: Voeg de kruiden eerder toe. — “Add the herbs earlier.” gebruik means “use.” Here it is an imperative, with an understood “you”; the same form can also be a present-tense form meaning “I use” or “you use,” depending on the subject and context. Example: Gebruik minder zout. — “Use less salt.” er ... van is a reusable Dutch pattern meaning “of it/them” when referring to a quantity. The pronoun er and preposition van are separated here by minder: er minder van = “less of them.” Together with gebruik, it means “use less of them,” not simply “use less” in an unspecified way. minder means “less.” It is the comparative quantity form used with an uncountable amount or an unspecified quantity. Example: Gebruik minder olie. — “Use less oil.” omdat introduces the reason clause “because.” The clause after it gives the reason for the advice in the first part. gedroogde means “dried.” It is the form of gedroogd used before the plural noun kruiden; the -e ending is part of the adjective’s inflection in this noun phrase. Example: gedroogde tomaten — “dried tomatoes.” kruiden means “herbs” here. It is the plural of kruid, “herb.” In the phrase gedroogde kruiden, the adjective describes the herbs rather than expressing a separate action. sterker means “stronger.” It is the comparative of sterk (“strong”). Here it describes the degree or intensity of the taste: the herbs can taste stronger. Example: Deze saus smaakt sterker. — “This sauce tastes stronger.” kunnen means “can” in this clause. It is the plural present form of kunnen, and it expresses possibility or potential. Its subject is gedroogde kruiden, which is plural. The infinitive follows it at the end of the subordinate clause: kruiden kunnen smaken. smaken means “taste” here, in the sense of having a particular flavor. After the modal verb kunnen, it remains in the infinitive form. Example: De kruiden kunnen bitter smaken. — “The herbs can taste bitter.” Together, Voeg ze eerder toe says “Add them earlier.” en gebruik er minder van adds the coordinated advice “and use less of them.” The reason is introduced by omdat: gedroogde kruiden sterker kunnen smaken means “because dried herbs can taste stronger.” The complete utterance therefore means: “Add them earlier and use less, because dried herbs can taste stronger.”

5. In het recept staat ook dat we room moeten gebruiken voor een gladde textuur.

   The recipe also says to use cream for a smooth texture.

   het recept

   the recipe

   staat

   says

   ook

   also

   we

   we

   room

   cream

   moeten

   must; need to

   gebruiken

   use

   gladde

   smooth

   textuur

   texture

   More detail

   het recept means “the recipe.” Recept is a common Dutch noun with the neuter definite article het. The plural is recepten; its article is de. staat is the present-tense singular form of staan (“to stand”). In this pattern, information is presented as standing in a written source, so In het recept staat dat ... naturally means “The recipe says/states that ...”. Example: In de handleiding staat dat je moet wachten. — “The manual says that you have to wait.” ook means “also” or “too.” It adds this information to other information already being discussed. Here it says that the recipe also contains the instruction about cream. we is the subject pronoun “we.” It refers to the people carrying out the cooking action in this sentence. Dutch uses the same form we for subject “we”; the more emphatic form is wij. room means “cream.” It is a mass noun here, referring to cream as an ingredient rather than asserting a particular number of portions or containers. Example: We gebruiken room in de saus. — “We use cream in the sauce.” moeten is the present-tense plural form of the modal verb moeten, “must” or “need to.” Its subject here is we, and it expresses that using cream is required by the recipe’s instruction. The infinitive that it governs is placed later in this subordinate clause: we moeten ... gebruiken. gebruiken is the infinitive “to use.” With moeten, it names the required action: moeten gebruiken means “must use” or “need to use.” Example: We moeten minder zout gebruiken. — “We need to use less salt.” gladde means “smooth” in the phrase een gladde textuur. Its base form is glad. The -e ending appears here because textuur is a singular common-gender (de) noun and the adjective comes before it; the indefinite article een alone does not determine this ending. For contrast, een glad oppervlak has no -e because oppervlak is a singular neuter (het) noun. This describes the texture as smooth, not the cream itself. textuur means “texture.” It is a de-word: de textuur. Its plural is texturen. Example: Deze saus heeft een gladde textuur. — “This sauce has a smooth texture.” The sentence begins with In het recept, meaning “in the recipe,” followed by staat ook dat, “also says that.” The clause after dat has we as its subject, room as the object of gebruiken, and the modal-plus-infinitive sequence moeten gebruiken. The final phrase voor een gladde textuur gives the purpose or intended result of using the cream: “for a smooth texture.” Together, the utterance means: “The recipe also says to use cream for a smooth texture.”

6. Als we in plaats daarvan yoghurt gebruiken, moeten we het vuur lager zetten.

   If we use yogurt instead, we should lower the heat.

   Als we

   if we

   in plaats daarvan

   instead

   yoghurt

   yogurt

   gebruiken

   use

   moeten we

   we should

   vuur

   heat; fire

   lager

   lower

   zetten

   put; set

   More detail

   Als we introduces a condition: “if we…”. Als is the usual Dutch conditional conjunction, and we is the subject “we.” In an als clause, the finite verb normally comes at the end. Example: Als we tijd hebben, koken we samen. — “If we have time, we cook together.” in plaats daarvan means “instead” or “instead of that.” It refers here to using yogurt as the alternative to the cream mentioned in the supplied context. The phrase is useful when replacing an earlier option without repeating it. Example: Neem de trein in plaats daarvan. — “Take the train instead.” yoghurt is the noun “yogurt.” Dutch nouns are normally written with a lowercase letter unless they begin a sentence. Example: Ik koop yoghurt. — “I buy yogurt.” gebruiken means “to use.” In Als we ... gebruiken, it is the present-tense form used with we; it is also identical in form to the infinitive. The full verb phrase is therefore “if we use …,” not a separate past or future form. Example: We gebruiken verse kruiden. — “We use fresh herbs.” moeten we combines moeten, “must / need to / should,” with the subject we, “we.” Here the fixed translation supports the advisory meaning “we should.” Because the conditional clause comes first, the main clause begins with the verb and then the subject: moeten we, rather than we moeten. Moeten is a modal verb, so the other verb in this clause, zetten, remains in the infinitive at the end. Example: Als het regent, moeten we binnen blijven. — “If it rains, we should stay inside.” vuur is the noun “fire”; in the expression het vuur lager zetten, it refers to the cooking heat or flame setting. The article het is part of the noun phrase but does not itself state a numeric quantity. Example: Het vuur is te hoog. — “The heat is too high.” lager means “lower.” It is the comparative form of laag (“low”) and describes reducing the heat level here. The comparison is with the current or previous setting, not necessarily with a named second object. The useful chain is laag → lager → laagst (“low” → “lower” → “lowest”). Example: Zet het vuur lager. — “Turn the heat down.” zetten means “to put” or “to set.” In het vuur lager zetten, it is used in the cooking expression “set the heat lower.” As a modal complement, it stays in the infinitive after moeten. Example: We zetten de timer op tien minuten. — “We set the timer to ten minutes.” Together, Als we in plaats daarvan yoghurt gebruiken means “if we use yogurt instead.” The main clause moeten we het vuur lager zetten means “we should set the heat lower,” with het vuur as the thing being adjusted and lager describing the resulting setting. The complete utterance is: “If we use yogurt instead, we should lower the heat.”

7. Anders kan de saus schiften en er vreemd uitzien.

   Otherwise the sauce might separate and look strange.

   Anders

   otherwise

   kan

   may / can

   saus

   sauce

   schiften

   separate

   vreemd

   strange

   uitzien

   look / appear

   More detail

   Anders means “otherwise” here: it links this possible result to a different choice or action. It is a useful sentence opener for warning about what may happen if the recommended action is not taken. Example: Anders wordt het te zout. — “Otherwise it will become too salty.” kan is the singular present form of the modal verb kunnen (“can” or “may”). Here it expresses possibility: the sauce may separate. After a modal verb, the other verb normally appears as an infinitive later in the clause, as with schiften and uitzien. The form kan is not the past form; the past singular is kon. saus is the noun “sauce.” Its plural is sauzen. The definite article in the sentence is de, giving de saus (“the sauce”); this identifies the sauce relevant to the situation rather than stating a quantity. schiften means “to separate” or “to curdle,” especially when a sauce or other mixture loses its smooth combination. It is an infinitive after kan. Example: De room kan schiften. — “The cream may separate.” vreemd means “strange” or “unusual.” In er vreemd uitzien, it describes how something appears. Here it is a predicative description, so it has no adjective ending before uitzien. Example: De saus ziet vreemd uit. — “The sauce looks strange.” uitzien means “to look” or “to appear” when describing appearance. It is a separable verb: in a finite clause, its parts separate, as in ziet ... uit; after kan, the infinitive remains together as uitzien. The expression er ... uitzien is the usual Dutch pattern for describing appearance. In this sentence, de saus is the thing that may look strange; er is part of that appearance construction and does not independently identify the sauce. The sentence combines the two possible results under kan: de saus kan schiften (“the sauce may separate”) and er vreemd uitzien (“look strange”). En joins these coordinated infinitive phrases after the same modal verb. Together, Anders kan de saus schiften en er vreemd uitzien. means “Otherwise the sauce might separate and look strange.”

8. Als we het tegen het einde langzaam erdoor roeren, zou dat moeten helpen.

   Stirring it in slowly near the end should help.

   Als

   if; when

   we

   we

   het

   it

   tegen het einde

   near the end

   langzaam

   slowly

   erdoor

   through it; into it

   roeren

   stir

   zou

   would

   dat

   that; it

   moeten

   should; must

   helpen

   help

   More detail

   Als introduces a condition: “if” or, in suitable contexts, “when.” Here it starts the conditional clause Als we ... roeren. Dutch places the finite verb at the end of this subordinate clause, so roeren appears after the other clause elements. we is the first-person plural subject, “we.” It is the form used for a group that includes the speaker. Example: We roeren langzaam. — “We stir slowly.” het is the object pronoun “it” here: the thing being stirred. Dutch het is also used as a definite article in other contexts, but in this sentence it functions as a pronoun, not as an article. The fixed translation supports the object reading without identifying the thing more specifically. tegen het einde means “near the end” or “toward the end.” tegen marks an approximate point, not an exact moment. het einde is the noun phrase “the end”; einde has the definite article het in this phrase. Example: Tegen het einde roeren we de saus. — “Near the end, we stir the sauce.” This example introduces a new referent only to show the pattern. langzaam is the adverb “slowly.” It describes how the stirring is done. The related adjective is langzaam as well: een langzaam proces means “a slow process,” while langzaam roeren means “to stir slowly.” erdoor is a Dutch pronominal adverb meaning “through it” or, in this cooking context, “into it.” It combines er with door; the pronoun-like part points to the relevant mixture or substance without repeating its noun. The exact English choice depends on the verb and context, but here it describes stirring the object into the surrounding mixture. roeren is the finite present-tense form used with we, meaning “stir.” It has the same spelling as the infinitive “to stir,” so the surrounding grammar identifies its role here. Compare ik roer — “I stir” and we roeren — “we stir.” In this subordinate clause, the finite form appears at the end. zou is the singular past-tense form of zullen, used here for a conditional or expected result, roughly “would.” zullen can also express future meaning in other contexts; zou in this sentence does not simply mark past time. It combines with the following modal verb in zou ... moeten helpen. dat is the demonstrative pronoun “that.” Here it refers to the preceding action as a whole—the slow stirring-in described in the conditional clause—rather than naming a separate object. It is the subject of the following verb phrase. moeten is the infinitive “to have to” or “must,” and in zou ... moeten helpen it contributes the expected or recommended sense “should.” Its own base form is moeten; the form moet is used in present tense with a singular subject, as in Dat moet helpen. — “That should help.” helpen is the infinitive “to help.” It follows moeten, as Dutch modal constructions place the additional lexical verb in the infinitive. Example: Dit kan helpen. — “This can help.” Together, Als we het tegen het einde langzaam erdoor roeren means “If we stir it in slowly near the end.” The main clause zou dat moeten helpen means “that should help,” with dat referring to the preceding stirring action and zou ... moeten expressing the expected result. The complete utterance therefore means: “Stirring it in slowly near the end should help.”

9. Als het goed uitpakt, schrijf ik de vervanging op.

   If the result turns out well, I will write down the substitution.

   Als

   if

   goed

   well

   uitpakt

   turns out

   schrijf … op

   write down

   vervanging

   substitution

   More detail

   Als introduces a condition: “if …”. It starts a subordinate clause, and Dutch normally places the finite verb at the end of that clause. Example: Als het regent, blijf ik thuis. — “If it rains, I stay home.” goed means “well” here. It describes how the outcome develops, so it functions adverbially with uitpakken; the form is also related to the adjective meaning “good.” uitpakt comes from the separable verb uitpakken, “to turn out” in this use. In the subordinate clause, the finite form appears at the end and the particle is attached: het pakt goed uit becomes als het goed uitpakt. The verb’s meaning here is about an outcome, not the literal act of unpacking. Example: Het plan pakt goed uit. — “The plan turns out well.” schrijf ... op is the separable verb opschrijven, “to write down.” The ik form is schrijf, and the particle op appears at the end of the main clause, separated by de vervanging: Ik schrijf de naam op. — “I write down the name.” vervanging means “substitution” or “replacement.” With de, it is a definite noun phrase: de vervanging means “the substitution/replacement” intended in this context. Example: Ik zoek een vervanging. — “I am looking for a replacement.” The indefinite article een does not by itself assert a numerical count; it presents the noun non-definitely. Together, Als het goed uitpakt means “If the result turns out well.” After this subordinate clause, schrijf ik ... op has inversion: the finite verb schrijf comes before the subject ik. The complete utterance therefore means: “If the result turns out well, I will write down the substitution.” The present-tense form schrijf can express this intended future action because the condition makes the timing clear.

10. Dan hoeven we de volgende keer niet te gokken.

    Then next time we will not need to guess.

    Dan

    then

    hoeven we

    we need

    volgende

    next; following

    keer

    time; occasion

    gokken

    guess

    More detail

    Dan means “then” and places this statement as a consequence or later result. Here it connects the statement to the situation described previously. hoeven we contains hoeven, the present-tense form of hoeven, with we as its subject. Dutch commonly uses hoeven ... niet te to express that someone does not need to do something: We hoeven niet te wachten. — “We do not need to wait.” The negation is essential here: hoeven together with niet means “not need to,” while the following infinitive names the unnecessary action. Hoef is used with ik, and hoeft with jij/je or u in the present tense; hoeven is used here with plural we. volgende means “next” or “following” when it identifies a later item in a sequence. It is the inflected form of the adjective volgend before keer in de volgende keer; it is not a comparative form. The expression de volgende keer is a reusable way to say “next time.” keer is a noun meaning “time” in the sense of an occasion or instance. For example, De eerste keer was moeilijk. — “The first time was difficult.” gokken is the infinitive meaning “to guess” or “to gamble,” depending on context. Here it means “to guess” in the sense of making an uncertain choice. After hoeven ... niet te, the infinitive appears with te: Je hoeft niet te gokken. — “You do not need to guess.” Together, Dan + hoeven we ... niet te gives “Then we will not need to ...”; de volgende keer identifies the later occasion, and gokken supplies the action. The complete utterance therefore means: “Then next time we will not need to guess.”