Filed under: Software, Reviews, First Look
First Look: SousChef stores your recipes, allows Mac to cook
SousChef interacts with an optional online database of other SC users to allow you to share your culinary creations. Each time you enter a new recipe, it can be sent to the database where others can look it up and create the same dishes you do. If you have a collection of secret family recipes, you can turn off sharing. It would be nice if this were available for each recipe, instead of affecting your entire library.
You can search through your recipes by ingredient; this allows you to find only the recipes that you can execute using the items you have on hand, without a trip to the store. You can search using multiple ingredients, and if you find an ingredient that you don't have, you don't need to make another shopping run -- just use SousChef's built-in substitutions. The application ships with several substitution suggestions, but you can also add your own in the preferences.
Gallery: First Look: SousChef for Mac
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If sharing recipes is your thing, then you will probably love the built-in sharing options (besides the community database feature). SousChef allows you to email or blog your recipe. You can blog your recipe using the applications built-in Blogger feature, or you can export your post to MarsEdit, or as an HTML snippet. Importing recipes is a breeze with the applications ability to import from almost anywhere you can copy text. SousChef will automatically import in the correctly marked spaces.
Overall, SousChef is an amazing bit of software. Many of the features are well thought out, and just plain work like you'd expect. If you want to take your recipes to the next level, then I would have to recommend SousChef. You can purchase the application from the developer's website for $30. A free trial is also available.
Be sure to check out our gallery of screenshots for SousChef.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jean-Pierre said 1:53PM on 10-07-2008
"Overall, SousChef is an amazing bit of software"
I don't get it!
I was searching today for a online recipe website that syncs with an Iphone native app and creates automatically a shopping list when I choose a recipe.
And then you get this, a new software "old school".
As I learned: Are you do the "things right" or are you doing "the right thing" ?
I believe they are doing "things right" but.......
Sites/apps like 101 cookbooks - Tastebook - IQ grocer are the way to go.
I have my Iphone in the Kitchen when I cook Thai with "Modern Thai cooking" a native Iphone app.
That's innovation !
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Matt said 8:16PM on 10-07-2008
It looks like a nice simple program for storing your recipies, but I think if you looking for full on features MacGourmet still is the best around.
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Tomahawk said 2:05PM on 10-07-2008
This looks much better then MacGourmet, I glad you posted this bfore my trial version of MacGourmet ran out. Now I will have to test this one out and make my own decision which one to purchase.
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Stephen said 3:09PM on 10-07-2008
I am a happy user of Yummy Soup, by Hungry Sea Cow Software. It is constantly updated, has the nifty front row type recipe viewer and has strong import from website capabilities. The developer really works hard to improve the program.
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Jehan said 4:04PM on 10-07-2008
Bump for YummySoup. I use it on a daily basis, and the Any-Site Web Importer is pretty much the best thing in history.
http://hungryseacow.com/Automatic_and_AnySite_Imports.html
PhxMacBear said 5:52PM on 10-07-2008
Gotta give it to YummySoup!
Tried MANY different recipe software apps when I switched to Mac last year, and YummySoup was by far the best. I don't know what I'd do without the AnySite Importer, and viewing recipes while cooking is a snap with the Full Screen mode.
I seem to keep bumping into articles and announcements about SousChef, so I'm guessing the only thing they have that's better than YummySoup is someone in charge of PR/Marketing.
bingbong said 12:14PM on 10-09-2008
Having used MacGourmet and YummySoup! and now having tried Sous Chef, I have to agree that YS! comes out on top. I wrote an unnecessarily lengthy summary of my opinions in a comment on http://osx.iusethis.com/app/souschef#opinions and all told I think YS! is superior for the time being, but Sous Chef is worth keeping an eye on. After I left that comment, the developers responded pretty quickly, which at least shows that they're listening.
Vernal said 3:14PM on 10-07-2008
The program is really nice, but the voice recognition & recipe reading is really buggy (not due to voice recognition limitations).
Other than that it's a great app. I'd *love* to see it sync with an iphone version for cooking in the kitchen without lugging my laptop out there.
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martintaylor said 4:23PM on 10-07-2008
Recipes.
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Jim C. said 4:22PM on 10-07-2008
It's not quite a glamorous as what's in SousChef, but MacGourmet Deluxe has had a "10-foot" option called "Chef View" for ages. It bumps up the recipe to roughly 72-point type, and makes it easy to see from across the kitchen.
http://www.macgourmet.com/chef_view.html
Sadly, SousChef lacks a critical feature for me: nutritional analysis. I like that I can take any recipe in MacGourmet and immediately calculate the rough nutrition (calories, fat, carbs, protein, etc.) for that recipe.
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Quix said 4:36PM on 10-07-2008
Me, I'm waiting for Cookbook from the My Dream App scam. I mean, "competition." Should be out any day now...
/sarcasm
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azuravian said 5:09PM on 10-07-2008
Also a fan of Yummy Soup here. I'm a recent switcher (got my first Mac in July) and Yummy Soup was the first app I purchased. It has most of the features listed here, and the best recipe import system I've ever seen, all for 10 bucks less than SousChef.
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Rory Hinnen said 8:20PM on 10-07-2008
Mmmm....Yummy Soup for me, please!
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posty said 10:00PM on 10-07-2008
This is the first recipe software that I've bothered to look at.
I find the concept of telling me what i can make with what's in my fridge intruiging. (although i can't find it? maybe it's the 'add ingredient' bit.).
but like the above poster, the one thing where it falls down is nutrition.
I would REALLY appreciate, maybe even a 5 start "healthometer", so I could quickly sort what the healthiest options are.
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panicgirl said 3:16AM on 10-08-2008
Wow, I hope theres a twitter app like this, app that will just open in the menubar.
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panicgirl said 3:21AM on 10-08-2008
sorry my recent post is for a other post.
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Kevin said 10:30AM on 10-08-2008
Its almost like you listen to MacBreak Weekly too.
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