To be honest, it’s been awhile since I’ve been truly excited about what’s on offer in the iPhone section of the App Store. Sure, I’ve found some neat apps, but nothing that really gave me butterflies and the overwhelming urge to share it with the world, shouting from the rooftops. It’s like being in a long-term relationship where the magic has worn off. Or, it was like that, until I discovered something new, something exciting. This is big, and it’s going to change everything in the same way Instagram did.
Ok Foodies, it’s time to meet your new favorite thing: Cookbooth.
Keep reading to find out more about an app that’s going to revolutionize the way you record and share recipes.
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What is Cookbooth?
Cookbooth is a unique tool for creating step-by-step photo recipes. Just released this month, the app offers users a combination of functions that no app since Instagram has been able to achieve. The idea is that you’ll photograph each step of the recipe as you prepare it, using your phone. Keep your recipe collection private or share it publicly with the community who can like, comment, save and share your dish.
Create an account and set up your profile to join the chefs and foodies sharing recipes on Cookbooth. You’ll find me sharing recipes as La Domestique.
The creators of Cookbooth have basically taken Instagram a few steps further. Instead of just sharing mouthwatering images of your supper, you can show others how to make it with a series of mouthwatering photos. This brings more meaning and value to a practice that’s often criticized as narcissistic, shallow and useless. It’s genius!
Why You’re Going to Love It
You’re going to love Cookbooth because the app makes it so easy to create beautiful, highly visual recipes. The other great thing about Cookbooth is that it connects you to other foodies and chefs. If you are passionate about learning new techniques and sharing delicious recipes with others, you’re going to be addicted to this app.
Upload photos for each step of your recipe and type ingredients lists. It’s fun to watch your recipe come together in a few easy steps.
Uploading recipes is easy and intuitive. Type in the title and pull the photos from your camera roll. Use the Photo Editor to adjust focus, rotation, brightness, contrast, saturation and sharpness. Get creative by applying Effects to your images, which are like Instagram filters. Type in a list of ingredients and written steps that will appear when the + sign on the photo is pressed.
Enter all the details of your recipe and the app turns the information into a beautifully crafted recipe card.
Add tags to make your recipe easier to find by topic and archive the dish in your own themed cookbooks. The artistic nature of Cookbooth will inspire you to use fewer words and more photos. Rotate the iPhone screen horizontally to view step-by-step photos in full-screen mode
Photos tell the story, but you can tap on the + sign to reveal written instructions.
Right now the app doesn’t restrict users much, so it’s fun to see how people use the medium differently. Some will have only ingredients lists and photographed steps, with no concrete written instructions. Some recipes will be clear and concise while others will be simply be an idea you can be inspired by, with no details or measurements. It’s the lack of structure that makes this platform so artistic and beautiful. Hopefully this quality won’t be lost as the app evolves over time.
What Cookbooth is Doing Right
They’re keeping things simple while still allowing for creativity. Popular recipe sites like Epicurious and Food52 utilize standardized recipe forms that are very organized and efficient, the total opposite of Cookbooth’s use of freeform text. This app is about cooking and stimulating your senses visually. It harnesses the power of images to tell the story and discourages wordy descriptions.
The app distinguishes users as Foodies or Chefs, which lends credibility to the platform. Discover new chefs and foodies to follow in the Explore section.
Another thing Cookbooth is doing right is distinguishing users as Foodies or Chefs. The cheffy branding is a smart move, lending the app credibility and drawing more professional cooks into the community. The people behind the app want this to be a place renowned for the sharing of knowledge and useful cooking techniques. It’s a great platform for chefs to gain a following, because as they say, the cream rises to the top.
How It Could Be Better
This app is just in its infancy, so there is a lot of room for improvement. Though the recipe uploading process has good infrastructure, it’s not very flexible. Once you’ve uploaded a photo, there’s no going back (deleting or changing the order of images). If you make a mistake you’ve got to scrap the recipe and start over. Fortunately, the text editing works well, but there’s no designated place for how many servings the recipes yield, so many users may forget to include that important fact.
A Spanish company, InQBarna, created Cookbooth and so most of the current users are Spanish speaking only. The photo rich platform helps users get past language barriers.
The lack of structure in recipe formatting means many recipes have little or no instructions. You’ll find recipes with tons of photos that effectively communicate the instructions and those with one photo and no instructions at all. A Spanish company, InQBarna, developed Cookbooth and so most of the current users are Spanish speaking. It will take time for the app to build English-speaking users, but this will happen organically. The beauty of this photo-rich platform is that language isn’t such a huge barrier to the transmission of ideas.
Conclusion
It seems this is only the beginning for Cookbooth, which promises “new functions that will help you every day in the kitchen” with the next updates. The developers of this app are onto a winning concept: anyone can create a beautifully displayed recipe with an iPhone and share it with the world. The young app is buggy and slightly awkward, but it’s got good genes and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for this over achiever. If you love cooking and sharing recipes, this app will feed your passion and inspire new dishes. Don’t miss the next big advance in recipe sharing — a wee free app that’s going to change everything.
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