炊く

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 炊く (たく) is a godan transitive verb for cooking rice with water and heat until it becomes edible.
• Basic usage: 米を炊く cooks two measures of raw rice in a pot, while 炊いてくれたご飯 modifies the finished rice prepared by one’s mother.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Raw grain and cooked rice
  • The object of 米を炊く is uncooked grain, whereas 炊いたご飯 is the cooked result. The verb should not be broadened to boiling every kind of food.