Quick start

How to use Plated

Plated turns restaurant dishes, cravings, and cooking videos into realistic home recipes that cost less. Follow this flow to get the most out of the app.

1. Step 1

   Start with a menu, a craving, a photo, or a video

   On the home page, pick a mode: Menu to paste menu text and get every dish at once, Describe for a craving or whatever's in your fridge, Photo to snap a menu, or Video to paste a TikTok or Instagram Reel link. For TikToks, Plated reads the caption, what the creator says, and the cover image; for Reels, the caption and cover image, then writes it up as a recipe that credits them.

2. Step 2

   Get affordable home versions

   Plated builds practical ingredients and steps so you can cook a similar dish at home. Not quite right? Retry it, or use "Change this recipe…" and say what you want, like "make it dairy-free" or "less spicy."

3. Step 3

   Save favorites to your library

   Save the ones you like. In your Library you can edit a recipe, swap a single ingredient (cheaper, vegetarian, gluten-free, pantry staples and more), or chat with the AI to make bigger changes like "double the servings."

4. Step 4

   Cook step by step

   Open a recipe and tap Start Cooking for a full-screen walkthrough of the ingredients and each step.

5. Step 5

   Plan your week

   In the Planner, fill each day with a saved recipe, a night out, leftovers, or a custom note. For nights out, pick from your recent restaurants or look up a new one's menu. Invite a friend from the Planner or Settings to share one household plan.

6. Step 6

   Build a grocery list

   Generate a grocery list from saved recipes or straight from a planner week. Ingredients are merged and grouped by store section so you can check items off as you shop.

7. Step 7

   Share recipes and connect with friends

   Set each recipe to Public, Friends only, or Private. Tap Share to send it with your phone's share sheet; the link shows a preview card with the recipe. Browse other people's recipes on Explore, add friends from their profile, and save their recipes to your own library.

Helpful tips

• Longer menu text usually gives better dish detection than very short snippets.
• Describe mode is great when you don't have a menu. Say what you're in the mood for or what ingredients you have on hand.
• If a video's caption doesn't include the recipe, type what they say in the video into the notes box under the link.
• On Android, install Plated to your home screen and you can share a TikTok or Reel straight to Plated from the TikTok or Instagram app.
• Add a profile handle in Settings before sharing recipes.
• Friends only recipes open just for your accepted friends. Their link preview shows the name, but not the ingredients or steps.