Combining the latest artificial intelligence technologies with something as common as cooking leads to very interesting results. With the arrival of ChatGPT on our devices, we now have a tool at that can make us more efficient and creative in the kitchen. From personalized recipes to quick tips for handling unexpected situations, AI offers endless possibilities. Let’s explore how ChatGPT can help us enhance our culinary skills and make the process even more enjoyable.
1. Instant inspiration for daily meals
How many times have we wondered what to cook and drawn a blank? ChatGPT is ready to give us ideas. By simply typing the ingredients we have at home —or even better, by snapping a photo of the fridge— it can suggest to us a list of recipes we can prepare. From simple dishes to more elaborate options, a short chat can open up new possibilities that we might not have considered.
Example request: "I have rice, half a pumpkin, potatoes, and some other vegetables. What can I cook with these in just 20 minutes?"
2. Adapting recipes to any need
Another way ChatGPT simplifies cooking is by helping us adjust recipes to fit our needs. Want to bake a cake but don’t have eggs? Looking to tweak a recipe to work with different ingredients? A quick question is all it takes for the GPT system to offer easy and practical substitutes without compromising the flavor or texture of the dish.
If we’re preparing a vegan recipe, for example, ChatGPT might suggest replacing cheese with nutritional yeast or eggs with hydrated flax seeds. Cooking rapidly becomes more flexible, allowing us to use recipes that might only need a few tweaks to work.
Example request: "I’m making sushi but ran out of nori seaweed for the last rolls. Can I use any alternative ingredients?"
3. Weekly menu planning in seconds
When it comes to planning all the meals for the week, ChatGPT becomes simply indispensable. We can ask it to create a balanced menu based on our preferences, the number of people at home, and the time we have to cook every day. In seconds, we’ll have a well-organized list of varied dishes for every day of the week.
What’s more, ChatGPT can automatically generate a shopping list for us with the ingredients needed for the complete menu. We can even request that it optimize the menu for a single weekly shopping trip, avoiding highly perishable items, or to exclude foods that are out of season.
Example request: "I need a weekly meal plan for lunch and dinner, focusing on high-protein meals without meat. Include a shopping list of the ingredients."
4. Solving on-the-spot doubts while cooking
Being in the middle of a recipe and not knowing how to do something is a situation we’ve all faced. Whether it’s figuring out how long a cake needs to bake or thickening a sauce that turned out too runny, ChatGPT is there to answer all our questions. These requests can be highly varied, whether the recipe comes from ChatGPT itself or another source.
Example request: "I can’t weigh the flour I need for the cake. Can you give me an equivalent measurement in cups or something similar?"
5. Discovering new techniques and enhancing our skills
Beyond recipes, ChatGPT can help us learn new culinary techniques that we might not have tried before. We can ask it to explain how to make sourdough starter, caramelize onions, or emulsify a vinaigrette. With the step-by-step instructions, we can expand our skills and experiment with new cooking methods whenever we have time for that.
Example request: "Can you explain step by step how to prepare croissant dough?"
ChatGPT has the potential to transform how we cook by offering us ideas, solutions, and guidance throughout the entire process. From initial inspiration to the final touches on the presentation, it adapts to our needs and preferences. All that’s left is to enjoy the meal.
On Hanaringo | Now we can have the official ChatGPT app on our Mac—for free