Meal Planner

Adding Recipes

• Click + Add Recipe to create a new recipe
• Enter a title (required), prep time, cook time, and servings
• Add ingredients with quantities and units (e.g., "2 cups flour")
• Add step-by-step instructions
• Select diet tags to categorize your recipe

Importing Recipes

• Click Import to paste recipe text
• The app will automatically parse ingredients and instructions
• Review the parsed data and make adjustments before saving
• You can also enter a URL (works best with recipe sites that use structured data)

Searching Recipes Online

• Click Search Recipes Online to discover new recipes from TheMealDB
• Search by dish name (e.g., "chicken", "pasta", "curry")
• Browse by category using the dropdown filter
• Click View to see full recipe details including ingredients and instructions
• Click Import to add a recipe to your saved collection
• Imported recipes are stored locally and available offline

Searching & Filtering

• Use the search box to find saved recipes by title or ingredient
• Click on tags to filter recipes by diet type
• Multiple tags can be selected for combined filtering
• Click the Clear All button to remove all filters and show all recipes

Recipe Actions

• View - See full recipe details with nutrition info
• Edit - Modify any recipe information
• Cook - Start interactive cooking mode
• Delete - Remove a recipe permanently

Weekly Calendar

• View your meal plan in a 7-day calendar format
• Each day has slots for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks
• Use the arrow buttons to navigate between weeks
• Today's date is highlighted for easy reference

Adding Meals

• Click + Add on any meal slot
• Search and select a recipe from your collection
• Multiple recipes can be added to the same meal slot
• Click the X to remove a meal from the plan

AI Suggestions

• Click AI Suggest to auto-generate a week's plan
• The algorithm considers your diet preferences from Settings
• It avoids recently used recipes for variety
• Suggestions favor quicker recipes when available

Planning Streak

• Your streak counts consecutive days with planned meals
• Build your streak to stay motivated
• View your current streak on the Dashboard

Generating Lists

• Click Generate from Meal Plan to create your list
• The app combines ingredients from all planned meals
• Duplicate ingredients are merged (e.g., 2 eggs + 3 eggs = 5 eggs)
• Items are organized by store aisle/category

Pantry Integration

• Enable Subtract pantry items to only show what you need
• Items you already have are marked as "In pantry"
• Quantities are adjusted based on your pantry stock

Using Your List

• Check off items as you shop
• Click Copy to Clipboard to share the list
• Click Print for a paper copy

Adding Items

• Click + Add Item to add pantry items
• Enter the item name, quantity, and unit
• Select a category (produce, dairy, meat, etc.)
• Optionally add an expiration date

Expiration Tracking

• Items expiring within 3 days show a warning
• Expired items are highlighted in red
• Check the Dashboard for expiring item alerts

Waste Reduction

• The app suggests recipes using items you already have
• Prioritize cooking with expiring ingredients
• Keep your pantry updated for accurate shopping lists

Starting Cooking Mode

• Click Cook on any recipe card
• The app displays one instruction step at a time
• Progress dots show your position in the recipe

Navigation

• Use Previous and Next buttons to navigate steps
• Check Mark complete to auto-advance to the next step
• Click Exit Cooking when finished

Timers

• Quick-set timers: 1 min, 5 min, or 10 min
• Click Start to begin the countdown
• Click Pause to stop temporarily
• An alert plays when the timer completes

Voice Features

• Click Read Aloud to hear the current step
• Great for hands-free cooking
• Works in browsers that support speech synthesis

Screen Wake Lock

• The app prevents your screen from sleeping while cooking
• Works on supported browsers and devices

How It Works

• Nutrition is calculated from recipe ingredients
• Uses a database of 100+ common foods
• Estimates calories, protein, carbs, and fat
• Values are approximate - for reference only

Daily Goals

• Set your goals in Settings
• Progress bars show your average vs. goal
• Red indicates when you're over your goal

Charts

• Weekly Calories - bar chart of daily totals
• Macro Distribution - pie chart of protein/carbs/fat
• Based on your current week's meal plan

Preferences

• Diet Filters - default tags for AI suggestions
• Nutrition Goals - daily calorie and macro targets

Customization

• Custom Tags - add your own recipe categories
• Aisle Categories - customize shopping list organization
• Dark Mode - toggle with the moon/sun icon in the header

Data Management

• Export All Data - download a JSON backup file
• Import Data - restore from a backup file
• Clear All Data - delete everything (use with caution!)

Privacy

• All data is stored locally on your device
• Nothing is sent to any server
• Your recipes and plans are completely private

Offline Mode

• The app works fully offline after first load
• All features are available without internet
• A banner appears when you're offline
• Data syncs automatically when online

Installing the App

• Look for the install icon in your browser's address bar
• Or use the browser menu: "Install app" or "Add to Home Screen"
• The app will appear like a native app on your device
• Launch it anytime without opening a browser

Supported Browsers

• Chrome 80+ (recommended)
• Edge 80+
• Firefox 75+
• Safari 13+ (iOS and macOS)