Now that there are about 200 zillion recipes on the internet, there’s no end to the culinary inspiration that can be found online. But did you know that you can use your smartphone for more than just searching for menu ideas? Here are six ways to save money, time and stress in the kitchen with just a few clicks, taps or swipes.
No time to make a grocery list? Just open the fridge and pantry doors and snap quick photos of the contents. Glance at the photos as you go through the store and restock as needed.
I’ve used my smartphone as a level for hanging pictures, but never knew until recently that soon I’ll also be able to use it use it as a kitchen scale [1]! There are still some bugs to be resolved in these apps but I’m looking forward to having one that works, if only so I don’t have to drag my kitchen scale out of the cupboard quite as often.
Take advantage of sales! I’ve got photos stored in my phone of some of my family’s favourite recipes that typically only get made when certain items go on sale (hello, baby back ribs!). I’ve even had my husband help me out by texting images of recipes to me at the store when I arrive and see something on sale and I want to be sure to buy everything needed to make the dish
Have a recipe that needs converting from ounces to tablespoons, or grams to cups? There’s an app for that, [2] and it’s fantastic.
Keep your recipes organized and accessible anywhere with a digital filing system like Evernote [3]. Best of all, there’s also a cool iPhone add-on called Grocery Trip [4] that extracts ingredient items from recipes and notes and creates organized grocery lists for you.
No more yelling: when my family members leave a mess behind in the kitchen, I no longer have to yell at them or feel angry as I clean it up myself. Instead, I just snap a photo of their debris and text it to them with a polite note such as, “your kitchen privileges, including eating, are revoked until you clean this up.” Works every time.
Paula Roy readily admits that she’s obsessed with food. Typically, it’s the first thing she thinks of in the morning and the last of the day as well. She recognizes that not everyone shares her passion for cooking, so she channels much of her enthusiasm into creating family-friendly recipes that are easy to prepare and yield delicious results.
Although her husband and kids are eager taste testers, Paula knows she’ll eventually be paying for their therapy thanks to her constant cries of, “don’t touch that plate, I haven’t taken a photo yet!”
Paula loves to travel and explore whatever culinary treasures a destination has to offer. In addition to leading cooking classes and making frequent TV appearances, she’s also a busy freelance writer and serves as the food editor of popular style magazine Ottawa At Home [12]. In addition to her contributions for YMC, you can also follow Paula’s edible adventures through her blog, Constantly Cooking [13], and keep up with her daily kitchen antics on Twitter and Instagram (@paulajroy).