Cooking can be fun and rewarding, but there’s always a lot of work involved, whether that’s preparation, shopping for items, or just finding recipes. While you can also use the traditional pen and paper, Ece or even a note-taking app, Recipe management apps offer a tailored experience. They allow you to save recipes from various websites, work your way through them step-by-step, connect with other cooks, and much more. I’ve curated a list of the top 5 recipe management apps. Let’s begin.
Recipe Organizer App
1. Basil
Best for: Those looking for an end-to-end cooking experience
Basil is a great option if you want an integrated cooking experience with key recipe organizer functions such as recipe saving, discovery and a shopping assistant. The recipe discovery is simple, you can add recipes from several supported apps and websites by entering the URL into the extension or you can add your own recipes too. Basil can scale ingredient quantity and does the unit conversion for you. The assistant can read recipes and help create your shopping list with an option to buy healthier substitutes for certain ingredients.
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While its list of supported sites and apps for discovery include prominent ones like Epicurious and Food.com, it’s still a limited selection of 22 sites. However, at an asking price of just $4.99, it’s a great all-in-one package.
Pros
- Huge feature list
- Conversions and timer function make cooking easier
Cons
- Limited website support
- No Android app yet
Install Basil ( iOS)
2. Paprika
Best for: Those who want an all-in-one solution, with better website integration than Basil
Paprika calls itself a “recipe manager” but its strongest element is discovery. While Basil was limited to a selection of 22 prominent food platforms, Paprika’s recipe discovery function uses a built-in web browser to cover literally any recipe from any website or blog. It intelligently parses online food content online and discards any useless stuff.
You can tap share on a recipe page when accessing it on Safari and import it right into Paprika which makes organizing super easy. The multi-timer feature lets you set multiple timers at a time and the timings are fetched from the recipes directly.
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However, the browser-based discovery feature has trouble parsing blog recipes, especially if the content’s formatted in a non-standard way. I still prefer this over Basil’s limited site integration. The app is priced at $4.99 and is available for both Android and iOS.
Pros:Â
- Huge feature set
- Search makes it very convenient to find your recipes
- The in-app browser can parse recipes from almost any website
Cons:
- The website parser isn’t perfect and can have trouble with non-standard formats
Install Paprika ( Android | iOS)
3. Copy Me That
Best for: Free alternative to Paprika
Copy Me That offers similar features to Paprika such as import recipes from any site, automatic exclusion of useless stuff, and automatically formatted for simplicity. One of the highlighted feature of Copy me That is the tags support. You can organize your meals with tags, making it easier to find.
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In my opinion, the free version should be sufficient for most people. However, some basic functions like the searching for the recipe and the ability to edit item falls under a paid plan which you can get for $12/yr.
Pros:Â
- Available on both Android, iOS and Web
- Tags support
- Meal planner
- Shopping list
Cons:
- Basic function such as searching recipe and ability to edit items on your shopping list is paid
Install Copy Me That (Android | iOS)
4. ChefTap
Best for:Â Those who just want to save recipes easily
ChefTap is one of the easiest to use recipe manager. Its tight browser integration means that you can import recipes right from your regular browser. ChefTap allows you to import recipe boxes from your accounts on Epicurious and AllRecipes. Apart from ease of recipe discovery, ChefTap’s a bit behind the other options in this list on just about all fronts. The free account limits you to just 100 recipes, and one instance of cross-device sync per week.
ChefTap also has ingredient quantity scaling and grocery assistant functionality but it locks these behind the Pro paywall. However, if you’re looking for ease of use and just want to get recipes into your digital cookbook as easily as possible then ChefTap features the best browser integration in the market. However, it features a $19.99 annual subscription for ChefTap pro for just one year of service which might be a deal-breaker for some of you.
Pros:
- Tight platform integration makes it easy to store recipes from any site by just inputting the URL
Cons:
- Terrible monetization model
- Convenience features like quantity scaling are locked behind a paywall
- Cooking aids and recipe display are not as advanced as those in other solutions
Install ChefTap (Android | iOS)
5. KeepRecipes
Best for: Social users who want to crowdsource opinions on community recipes
KeepRecipes is unique because it incorporates a significant social component and lets you create and share recipes even the ones that you’ve discovered. KeepRecipe community can give suggestions and comments to your recipes which effectively builds a trust factor for other people discovering your dishes.
Because of KeepRecipe’s emphasis on sharing and social elements, it does lose out in other crucial ways. For starters, most of the discovery functionality is only possible on the desktop/browser-based version of KeepRecipe. Although there’s a KeepRecipe bookmarklet, you have to save instruction text and ingredients manually. The mobile app is quite basic and while it lets you look up recipes and use the platform’s social functions, it doesn’t have a dedicated discovery feature. While the limited functionality can make it frustrating to use, KeepRecipe’s price is great: It’s free!
Pros
- Social features allow you to like and comment on community recipes
- Lots of great recipes within the KeepRecipes community itself
- It’s free
Cons
- Mobile app has limited functionality
Install KeepRecipes ( iOS)
6. Cookpad
Best for:Â Social users who want to connect directly with recipe authors
Cookpad goes a few steps further than KeepRecipe. Cookpad allows users to not only share recipes but connect with other cooks through its messaging platform. Whenever you cook using someone else’s recipe there’s always the risk that there’s something you’re missing out on Cookpad takes this element out of the picture by letting you communicate directly with the recipe author.
It doesn’t even have the quality of life features like timers and measurement conversion but it has a nifty daily meal planner to help you schedule meals over time. These might seem a drawback until you realize that the Cookpad platform itself has over 3 million user-submitted recipes. Most functionality is available for free users. While a premium monthly subscription option exists sitting at $2.99/mo, it just enhances search functionality and gives you some handy offline features.
Pros:
- Connect with and message recipe authors
- Huge community with over 3 million recipes
Cons:
- No convenience features for cooking
- No easy way to add recipes from other platforms
Install Cookpad ( Android | iOS)
Which recipe management app should you use?
Each of the recipe management apps we reviewed has strengths and drawbacks. If you want an all-in-one cooking app, Paprika and Basil are really neck-and-neck: Both offer great recipe discovery as well as a range of convenient functions to make cooking itself less of a hassle. If all you’re worried about is getting hold of recipes easily, ChefTap parses online recipes more easily than the other options. It lacks in several areas, though, and has a terrible monetization model. Lastly, if you’re a social user, CookPad is a better option than KeepRecipe because it lets users make personal contact with the original recipe authors. Which recipe management app did you find the most useful and why? Let us know in the comments below. And if you love food but want to gain weight healthily, check out this feature.
