Cookpad App Review: The Social Network for Home Chefs

Mobile Apps

If you are a real recipe junkie, you know that there’s a lot more to discover than those perfect meals shared by celebrity chefs. Amateur cooks have recipes to share too and, often, they are more practical and easy to follow, and don’t take too much time to prepare. But where can you find them? Well, quit Instagram because Cookpad has them, a social media for no-brainer home recipes.

Also read: 15 Best Recipe Apps to Download

 

What Is the Cookpad App?

Crop person taking photo of food on smartphone of food
© Pexels

The Cookpad app is used by people all over the world who all share a love for cooking. You can have access to over 60,000 Cookpad recipes and learn cool ideas from thousands of chefs and amateur cooks.

This app was first developed in Japan and featured a variety of Cookpad recipes in Japanese. It expanded to the West over the years, although it has a small following in America. Nowadays, the app has diverse international recipes that you can try out in your kitchen.

Cookpad isn’t just for finding inspiration for your next dinner because you can also share your recipes for other people to see. All you need to do is take a picture of your unique dish and decide what you want to call it. You can also add as many details as you want, so people can follow your recipe.

This recipe app caters to all home chefs, no matter where you are in the world. You won’t need to worry about sharing too many food photos on your social media accounts because the Cookpad app has its own cooking community that you can interact with.

Download for Android

Download for iOS

 

Cookpad App Subscription and Cost

If you are interested in enjoying more exclusive features of the Cookpad app, it has in-app purchases that you can avail through Google Play and Apple App Store. The premium subscription also removes unwanted ads and allows you to download recipes for offline use. However, you should note that the Cookpad premium subscription is only currently available in Indonesian, Arabic, and Spanish versions in Argentina and Mexico.

 

Cookpad Premium

Cookpad offers international recipes that you can access and download anytime you want. You can have Cookpad Japan, Cookpad USA, and many other countries’ recipes in the palm of your hands. With just $2.99 monthly, you can have unlimited access to recipes and specialty dishes from different countries. It also allows you to search for the most popular recipes among the app community.

 

Accepted Payment Methods

  • Credit cards
  • iTunes (for iOS users)
  • Google Play (for Android)

 

Cookpad App Features

Cookpad recipe apps
Photo from the App Store

The recipes in Cookpad are guaranteed tried and tested by home cooks from all over the world. Whether you want to explore the Cookpad Japan recipes or you just want to share your grandma’s special dish, the app provides an avenue for you to connect with food enthusiasts.

Here are some of the things you can do on the Cookpad app:

 

Search for Recipes

The Cookpad app is loved by many foodies and home cooks because it offers a wide range of recipes you can choose from. If you are looking for a specific recipe but can’t remember the name, you can input some of the ingredients and the app will show recipes that match what you are looking for.

Another impressive thing about Cookpad is that you won’t have to stress yourself out while looking for the perfect dish for any occasion. You can easily search for seasonal dishes or holiday favorites that you can try at home.

 

Post Your Recipes

With Cookpad, you can create and post your recipes for other home cooks to see. You can experiment with recipes you get from the app and make it your own. Once you have created the perfect dish, you can take photos of the final result and upload them to the Cookpad app. Sharing your unique recipes with other people in the community can inspire them to create their dishes too.

 

Connect With Other Home Cooks

The great thing about recipe apps like Cookpad is that you can connect with other home cooks. You can share your ideas and ask questions if you want to learn more about a specific recipe that they created.

This feature allows you to build your handy cookbook filled with thousands of recipes for all events throughout the year. You can even collaborate with other home chefs to help you make the perfect dish that you’ve always dreamed of using different techniques.

 

Cookpad Pros and Cons

For those who are curious about what other people think of the app, we have highlighted a couple of pros and cons of Cookpad based on the reviews of the cooking community from the app.

Adore

  • Simple user interface and design
  • International recipes
  • Easy-to-follow recipes
  • Bookmarking recipes for later use
  • Sense of community
  • Social integration

DISLIKE

  • Sometimes unresponsive
  • Saved recipes sometimes disappearing
  • Photos taking a while to load
  • Use of the app’s camera to share photos

 

Cookpad vs. Other Recipe Apps

Guess what, Cookpad is not a perfect recipe app and would sometimes experience unresponsiveness. In this section, we will be listing down the best recipe apps to help you weigh out the options on what to choose for your next cooking process.

Here are some of the best recipe apps we have found based on the reviews of the online cooking community:

 

1. Forks Plant-Based Recipes

Forks Plant-Based Recipes
Photo from the App Store

For only $5, you can have unlimited access to hundreds of vegan and plant-based recipes from Forks Plant-Based Recipes. This app is perfect for those who are trying to live a healthier and meat-free lifestyle. The recipes on this app are suggested by more than 50 celebrated chefs from all over the world.

Just like Cookpad, the Forks app is available for both iOS and Android devices. The recipes featured on this app can help control or reverse chronic illnesses such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease. It also has a simple step-by-step process and images to help beginner home chefs.

Go to site

 

2. BBC Good Food

BBC Good Food recipe apps
Photo from the App Store

This recipe app is free and has a massive collection of over 10,000 recipes. These recipes are both from their users who submit their specialties and home culinary experts all over the world. The team behind BBC Good Food ensures that the user-submitted recipes are tried and tested for everyone to enjoy.

You can create an account on this recipe app and create custom collections for your favorite recipes. It is similar to Cookpad because it also allows its users to save recipes and rate them for other users to see. This family-friendly recipe app is available on both Android and iOS devices.

Go to site

 

3. Kitchen Stories

Kitchen Stories Recipes recipe apps
Photo from the App Store

If you are looking for a recipe app that also features videos, you can try Kitchen Stories. What makes this app unique is that they have instructional videos that are simple and polished for those who have a hard time reading recipes. The Kitchen Stories app has been around since 2014.

This recipe app functions like YouTube, but exclusively for cooking videos. Since 2014, Kitchen Stories has gained a lot of members in their community. The app also comes with a shopping list so you can easily write down the ingredients you need for a quick trip to the grocery store. It is available for both Android and iOS devices.

Go to site

 

Is Cookpad a Must for Every Home Chef?

If you are a home cook, you know the importance of having variety in the meals that you prepare. But without inspiration from others, you can easily run out of ideas and recipes, and that’s why Cookpad is helpful. With it, you can find new meal ideas and also inspire others to cook with the recipes you recreate.

For many of its users, the Cookpad recipe app is a great alternative to other social media platforms especially if your focus is only on cooking. It’s a special place to connect with your friends and other people around the world who have the same passion: cooking!