I Used NYT Cooking’s New AI-Powered Recipe Modifier, and It’s Actually Pretty Good
News Source
•Sun, 08 Nov 2026 12:00:00 +0000
📰 What Happened
The New York Times has added an AI tool to its Cooking app that lets subscribers change recipes. The feature is in a test version for iPhones only. A "customize this recipe" box sits above the ingredients. You can ask for swaps, like using chicken breast instead of thighs, or changes for a dietary need. Every edit shows up in red-orange text.
The change caused a backlash. After 172 mostly angry comments, the Times turned off commenting on the announcement. Readers asked who wanted the feature and how to switch it off. A Wired writer tested it and found it worked better than expected.
🔍 The Backstory
The Times already used AI to scale recipes up or down and to convert cups to grams. The new tool draws on the recipe, the paper's substitution guide, reader comments and its own expertise, in that order. The general manager says the AI should be a helper, not the main act, and that you should not be chatting with it.
The writer found one real problem. When swapping in chicken breast, the tool said to simmer the shredded meat for another 30 minutes, which dried it out. Otherwise the changes made sense, and the original recipe's voice was kept.
🎯 Why It Matters
Recipe apps are where many people first meet AI in daily life. It is worth knowing what these tools get right, and where a human cook still knows better.
The New York Times has added an AI tool to its Cooking app that lets subscribers change recipes. The feature is in a test version for iPhones only. A "customize this recipe" box sits above the ingredients. You can ask for swaps, like using chicken breast instead of thighs, or changes for a dietary need. Every edit shows up in red-orange text.
The change caused a backlash. After 172 mostly angry comments, the Times turned off commenting on the announcement. Readers asked who wanted the feature and how to switch it off. A Wired writer tested it and found it worked better than expected.
The Times already used AI to scale recipes up or down and to convert cups to grams. The new tool draws on the recipe, the paper's substitution guide, reader comments and its own expertise, in that order. The general manager says the AI should be a helper, not the main act, and that you should not be chatting with it.
The writer found one real problem. When swapping in chicken breast, the tool said to simmer the shredded meat for another 30 minutes, which dried it out. Otherwise the changes made sense, and the original recipe's voice was kept.
Recipe apps are where many people first meet AI in daily life. It is worth knowing what these tools get right, and where a human cook still knows better.