NYT Cooking AI review: hands-on with the new recipe customization feature

Key Points:

• The New York Times Cooking app has introduced an AI assistant feature for iOS subscribers that helps users customize recipes by suggesting ingredient substitutions, adjusting portions, and converting measurements without altering the original recipe.
• The AI assistant is trained on user comments and cooking data to provide practical, reliable guidance, such as ingredient swaps and cooking adjustments, while avoiding suggestions that would ruin a dish’s flavor.
• Users can interact with the assistant via a text box on the recipe page, allowing for detailed customization requests like making a recipe vegan, gluten-free, or scaled for more servings, enhancing flexibility for home cooks.
• In practical tests, the assistant successfully adapted recipes based on available ingredients and equipment, producing dishes that were both easier to prepare and well-received, though users are advised to double-check amounts and cooking times.
• While some purists remain skeptical, the AI tool is viewed as a helpful sous chef that streamlines meal preparation and reduces the need to search through lengthy recipe comments, potentially increasing app engagement.