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Recipe Generator from Ingredients

Tell us what is in your kitchen and get up to three Indian vegetarian meals you can cook now.

Indian vegetarianReport a mistakeRuns in your browser

Last updated: October 2, 2026

Your ingredients

Add what you have. Pick the exact form from the list: raw rice and cooked rice are different ingredients.

Try an example

Examples fill in ingredients only. You can edit them, and still choose your own equipment.

No ingredients added yet.

Cooking basics you have

Strict mode counts water, oil, salt and spices as ingredients. Nothing is ticked for you: select only what is in your kitchen.

0 of 14 selected

Your equipment

Choose a heat source and a vessel: an induction hob alone does not mean you have a pan. Your choice is remembered on this device once you make it.

Heat source
Vessel
Appliances
Tools

Preferences

Missing ingredients

Total time, including any soaking or resting.

A preference, not a guarantee: each recipe is only written for certain portion sizes, and we say so when yours is not one of them.

Dietary filters

Filters use each recipe’s listed ingredients. They cannot account for packaging or cross-contact, so always check labels.

Recipes using an excluded ingredient are never shown.

0 ingredients selected

Recipe results

Add the ingredients you have, confirm your cooking basics and equipment, then press Find recipes. Matching runs in your browser: your ingredients are never sent anywhere.

Saved recipes

Saved recipes live only on this device, in this browser. They are not synced, and clearing your browser data removes them.

Storage is not available here, so saved recipes cannot be listed or saved.

No saved recipes yet. Open a recipe and choose “Save on this device”.

Client-Side Processing
Input Data Stays on Device
Instant Local Execution
Something wrong with this tool? Report it
Your ingredient list stays in this browser.Recipes are not all cook-tested; only tested ones are labelled cook-tested.

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What Pantry Recipe Finder does

Pantry Recipe Finder matches the ingredients you have against a growing collection of Indian vegetarian recipes. It is a recipe finder, not a chatbot: every result is a fixed recipe that passed automated checks before it was published, so the amounts, timings and steps you see are the ones written into the recipe. No AI is used in this version, and nothing is generated or rewritten as you type.

You choose the ingredients, cooking basics and equipment you have, then set a time limit and a servings preference. The finder lists up to three recipes that fit, shows what you already have and what is missing, and displays the exact amounts for a supported portion size. When you are ready to cook, cook mode keeps the steps, amounts and timers together.

This is a beta for everyday Indian vegetarian cooking. Dairy is included; eggs, meat and fish are not. The page is in English, and you can type ingredient names in English or Hindi (for example chawal, besan or पोहा). If an ingredient is not in the collection yet, the finder says so instead of guessing, and you can choose to suggest it.

How to use it

1. Add the ingredients you have, and optionally their amounts. If a name could mean more than one thing, such as rice, you are asked which one you mean.

2. Tick the cooking basics you really have, such as salt, oil and water. Nothing is ticked for you, and "Select these basics" is a shortcut you press yourself.

3. Choose your heat source and vessels, a time limit, your servings and any dietary filters. You can also exclude an ingredient or mark one to use first.

4. Open a recipe, check the amounts against what you have, then start cook mode. You can save a recipe on this device, copy it or print it.

How matching works

Strict mode

Only recipes where you have every required ingredient. Water, oil, salt and spices count as ingredients too, which is why you confirm the basics yourself.

Up to 1 or 2 missing

Also shows recipes that need one or two ingredients you would buy. The missing items are listed by name so you can shop for exactly those.

Ingredient forms

Raw rice and cooked rice are different ingredients, and so are besan (gram flour) and atta (wheat flour). The finder never swaps one for another silently.

Amounts and "to taste"

If you enter amounts, they are compared with what the recipe needs. Seasonings given as "to taste" or "as needed" have no number, so they are shown as unconfirmed rather than counted as enough.

Portion profiles, not scaling

Each recipe is written for specific portion sizes. Amounts, equipment and times come from that profile instead of being multiplied. If your servings are not one of them, you are told which are.

Total time includes soaking

The time limit applies to total elapsed time, including soaking or resting. A recipe that needs overnight soaking is not presented as a 30-minute meal.

A worked example

An illustration of how the settings combine. It describes the behaviour, not a promise that a particular recipe is in the collection today.

What you set
Ingredients: toor dal, onion, tomato, turmeric, cumin seeds
Basics ticked: salt, oil, water
Equipment: gas stove, pressure cooker
Servings: 2
Time limit: 45 minutes or less
Missing ingredients: strict
What you see
Matches: only recipes whose required ingredients are all covered by the list above, including the basics you ticked.

Switch to "Up to 1 missing" and a recipe that also needs, say, asafoetida (hing) can appear. It is marked as missing, and you decide whether to buy it.

Every result shows its total time (soaking included), the portion size it is written for, the equipment it needs and its label: not cook-tested yet, or cook-tested.

How labels work

Not cook-tested yet

Recipes are published after automated checks on ingredients and forms, units, amounts inside the steps, equipment, total time and dietary tags. No person has necessarily reviewed or cooked them. "Not cook-tested yet" means exactly that: use your judgement, taste as you go and report anything that looks wrong so it can be fixed.

Cook-tested profile

This label appears only when a successful cook of that exact recipe version and portion size has been recorded. Testing at 2 servings does not make the 4-serving profile tested. If a recipe changes materially it becomes a new version, and the label starts again until that version is tested.

What a saved copy is

Saving a recipe keeps a small reference on this device: which version and portion size you chose. It is not a copy of the text, so opening it later shows the current collection. If the recipe was updated you are offered the new version, and if it was withdrawn, cooking from it is blocked. Text you copy or print is a plain snapshot that cannot update itself, so it carries the line "Saved copy — check the website for corrections."

Dietary filters and their limits

The dairy-free and no onion or garlic filters, and any ingredient you exclude, work from each recipe's listed ingredients, including components such as paneer, which counts as dairy. They are hard rules: a recipe that breaks one is not shown as a match.

They cannot see how a packaged ingredient was made, whether it was handled alongside other foods, or how a kitchen is cleaned, so they are not a safeguard for allergies or intolerances. Read the labels on what you buy. This tool gives cooking information only and is not medical advice; for a medical dietary need, ask a qualified health professional.

Tips for beginners

  • Tick salt, oil and water only if you have them. In strict mode they count as ingredients, so ticking them by habit can hide a real gap.
  • Pick the exact form of an ingredient. Cooked rice and raw rice behave very differently in a recipe.
  • "All required ingredients selected" is not the same as "enough". Enter amounts if you want the shortage check.
  • Read the total time before you start. Soaking and resting count, and they happen before the stove is on.
  • If you only need one thing from the shop, switch to "Up to 1 missing" and shop for exactly that item.
  • Choose your portion before starting cook mode. Amounts stay fixed once you start, so they cannot shift halfway through.
  • For "to taste" seasoning, begin with less than you think you need and adjust at the end.
  • Measures used here are 1 tsp = 5 ml, 1 tbsp = 15 ml and 1 cup = 240 ml. Use level spoons and the same cup throughout.

When it helps

  • Deciding dinner from what is left in the kitchen.
  • Cooking with limited equipment, such as one induction hob and a pan.
  • No onion, no garlic or dairy-free cooking.
  • Seeing exactly what to buy for a nearly-possible recipe.

Privacy

What stays in your browser

Matching, saving, copying and printing run in your browser. Your ingredient list, equipment and preferences are used only here, and saved recipes and remembered choices are kept in this browser's local storage on this device. When the page loads, your browser downloads the recipe collection so that matching can run locally.

What reaches our server

Two things. First, anonymous usage counters that record only that an action happened, such as a search or a save, never what you entered. Second, feedback you choose to send: an issue report, a "cooked it" report or a suggested ingredient. A report holds the recipe and portion reference plus any words you type, and a suggestion holds the ingredient text you typed. Nothing is sent unless you press the button. Site-wide analytics are described in the Privacy Policy.

Frequently asked questions

Where do the recipes come from?

They come from a growing collection of fixed Indian vegetarian recipes that ships with the page. Nothing is written or rewritten on the fly, and no AI is used in this version. Most recipes have not been cook-tested yet, and each one says so.

What is the difference between strict mode and the missing-ingredient modes?

Strict mode shows only recipes where you have every required ingredient, including the water, oil, salt and spices you confirmed. "Up to 1 missing" and "Up to 2 missing" also show recipes that need that many extra ingredients, and name each one so you know what to buy.

Why does it ask whether I mean raw or cooked rice?

They are different ingredients in a recipe. Raw rice needs cooking and cooked rice does not, and the finder will not treat one as the other. The same applies to forms such as dry, soaked and cooked chickpeas, and to besan versus wheat flour.

What does "cook-tested" mean?

It means that exact recipe and portion size was cooked and recorded. Recipes without that record are labelled "Not cook-tested yet": they passed automated checks on ingredients, amounts and times, but nobody has recorded cooking them. If you spot a mistake, use the feedback button and we will fix it.

Why can I not just change the servings to any number?

Doubling or halving amounts does not always give a good result, because cooking times, pan size and seasoning do not scale evenly. Each recipe is written for specific portion sizes, and the finder tells you which sizes a recipe supports.

Does the time limit include soaking?

Yes. The limit applies to total elapsed time, so a recipe that needs soaking or resting is counted with that time included.

Can I rely on the dietary filters for allergies?

No. The filters use the recipe's listed ingredients and cannot account for packaging, cross-contact or how food is prepared. Always check labels, and ask a qualified health professional about medical dietary needs.

Do I need an account, and are my ingredients sent anywhere?

No account is needed. Matching runs in your browser and your ingredient list is not sent to us. Only anonymous usage counters and feedback you choose to send reach our server, as described in the privacy section above.

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