Recipe Creator

Step 1: Understand the Request

Consider these dimensions:

• What cuisine or tradition?
• What ingredients are available or desired?
• Any dietary restrictions? (vegan, halal, gluten-free, nut allergy, etc.)
• Serving size and occasion? (weeknight, entertaining, comfort food, holiday)
• Skill level? (beginner, intermediate, advanced)
• What equipment is available? (assume standard home kitchen unless stated otherwise)

When to ask vs. when to infer: If the request is specific enough to build a recipe ("give me a soul food collard greens recipe for 4"), go straight to cooking. If it's open-ended ("make me a chicken recipe"), ask 1-2 clarifying questions — focus on the most impactful unknowns (cuisine direction and dietary needs matter most; serving size and skill level can be assumed). Don't interrogate — a short "Any cuisine preference or dietary needs I should know about?" covers it.

Step 2: Select Cuisine Foundation

• Identify the cuisine's aromatic base (mirepoix, sofrito, trinity, etc.)
• Determine the foundational fat and cooking method
• Reference cuisines.md for detailed profiles
• For soul food, reference soul-food.md

Step 3: Choose Flavor Profile

• Apply flavor pairing principles (see flavor-science.md)
• Balance the 5 basic tastes: sweet, salty, sour, bitter, umami
• Consider aromatic layering: base notes, middle notes, top notes
• Add texture contrast and temperature interplay

Step 4: Build Ingredient List

• Select primary protein or base ingredient
• Choose aromatic foundation appropriate to the cuisine
• Layer seasonings and spices
• Include acid, fat, and finishing elements
• Group ingredients by recipe component

Step 5: Develop Technique Sequence

• Select cooking techniques matched to ingredients and desired outcome
• Reference techniques.md for method details
• Sequence steps for efficiency (what can happen in parallel)
• Include sensory cues at each stage
• Stick to standard home kitchen equipment (oven, stovetop, sheet pans, pots, skillets) unless the user mentions specific tools. If a recipe genuinely needs something less common (cast iron, Dutch oven, food processor), note it upfront and suggest alternatives

Step 6: Write Complete Recipe

• Follow the Standard Recipe Output Format below
• Include "Why This Works" flavor science notes
• Provide substitutions for common restrictions
• Add make-ahead and storage guidance

Step 7: Suggest Beverage Pairing

• Include at least one drink pairing with every recipe
• Offer both alcoholic and non-alcoholic options
• For special occasions or when asked, create a custom drink to accompany the dish
• Reference beverage-pairing.md for pairing science and custom drink creation

Standard Recipe Output Format

### [RECIPE NAME]
*[One-sentence evocative description]*

**Cuisine**: [tradition and region]
**Story**: [1-2 sentences on cultural origin or inspiration]
**Servings**: [number]
**Prep Time**: [minutes]
**Cook Time**: [minutes]
**Total Time**: [minutes]
**Difficulty**: [Beginner / Intermediate / Advanced]

#### Ingredients

**For the [component name]:**
- [amount] [unit] [ingredient], [prep instruction]
- [amount] [unit] [ingredient], [prep instruction]

**For the [second component]:**
- [amount] [unit] [ingredient], [prep instruction]

#### Instructions

1. **[Phase name]**: [Detailed instruction with sensory cues —
   what it looks like, sounds like, smells like when done]
2. **[Phase name]**: [Next step with timing AND visual/tactile cues]
3. ...

#### Why This Works
[2-3 sentences explaining the flavor science: what compounds interact,
why the technique matters, what the cultural context is]

#### Variations & Substitutions

| Original | Substitute | Notes |
|----------|-----------|-------|
| [ingredient] | [alternative] | [impact on flavor/texture] |

#### Pairs With
- **Wine/Beer**: [specific recommendation with why]
- **Cocktail**: [a cocktail that complements the dish, with brief recipe]
- **Non-alcoholic**: [a non-alcoholic option — tea, agua fresca, lemonade, shrub, etc.]

#### Cook's Notes
- **Make ahead**: [what can be prepped in advance]
- **Storage**: [how to store, how long it keeps]
- **Scaling**: [notes on doubling/halving]

Key format principles:

• Sensory cues over timers: "until translucent and fragrant" not just "5 minutes"
• Group ingredients by component for complex dishes
• Always include substitutions, noting impact on authenticity

"Why This Works" is the differentiator — this is what separates a great recipe from a list of steps. Go beyond "the acid brightens the dish" into which compounds interact and why the technique produces the result. Name the reactions (Maillard, caramelization, denaturation) and connect them to what the cook will taste.

Good: "The buttermilk's lactic acid denatures surface proteins, tenderizing the meat while its sugars participate in Maillard browning with the flour — producing pyrazines and furanones that create that complex, savory crust."

Weak: "The buttermilk tenderizes the chicken and helps the coating brown."

Scaling guidance: Doubling a braise or soup is mostly linear — just use a bigger pot. But baking is chemistry: leavening agents (baking powder, yeast) don't scale linearly past 2x, fats can over-tenderize at high ratios, and oven time changes non-linearly with mass. When scaling baked goods past 2x, note that the user should increase leavening by only 1.5x per doubling and add 10-15% more baking time. For fried foods, batch size stays the same — scale by frying more batches, not bigger batches.

Core Flavor Principles

The 5 Basic Tastes (+ Fat)

Pairing Approaches

For molecular compound families, scientific pairings, and the full pairing decision tree, see flavor-science.md.

Soul Food & Southern Cuisine

The skill's area of deepest expertise. African American Southern cuisine — soul food — is a tradition born from West African culinary knowledge transformed through the experience of slavery in the American South.

Signature elements:

• The Trinity: onion, celery, green bell pepper (aromatic base)
• Smoke as seasoning: ham hocks, smoked turkey, bacon drippings
• Core spices: garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, black pepper
• Techniques: slow-braising greens, deep-frying in cast iron, baking custard-set mac & cheese
• Key ingredients: collard greens, cornmeal, okra, black-eyed peas, sweet potatoes, buttermilk

Classic dishes: fried chicken, collard greens, cornbread (no sugar), baked mac & cheese, candied yams, gumbo, red beans & rice, peach cobbler, banana pudding, catfish, oxtails, hoppin' John, sweet potato pie

For the complete deep dive — history, regional variations, classic dish breakdowns, and vegan soul food adaptations — see soul-food.md.

World Cuisine Quick Reference

For full profiles with signature dishes, essential pantry, and cuisine affinities, see cuisines.md.

Dietary Adaptations

When adapting recipes for dietary needs, follow these principles:

1. Respect the dish's soul: Preserve the essential character and flavor profile
2. Match the function: Replace based on what the ingredient DOES (binding, fat, acid, umami)
3. Acknowledge trade-offs: Be honest when a substitution changes the dish significantly
4. Cultural sensitivity: Note when an adaptation moves away from traditional preparation

Common Substitution Strategies

Supporting Files