Eggs
What to Make With Eggs
Frittatas, shakshuka, fried rice, scrambled eggs you'd actually want to eat — plus pantry pairings and storage tips. The egg is the original use-what-you-have ingredient.
See egg ideas →Ingredient Guides
What to make with
what you already have.
These are the 28 ingredients that show up in almost every kitchen, every week. Each guide covers what to actually make — no vague suggestions, no equipment you don't own. Just the practical ideas a working cook reaches for when the fridge looks unremarkable and dinner still needs to happen.
Chicken
What to Make With Chicken
Sheet pan dinners, quick braises, stir-fries, and the easiest pan sauce you can make on a weeknight. Covers every cut and technique.
See chicken ideas →
Rice
What to Make With Rice
Fried rice, grain bowls, congee, coconut rice, and the case for always making more rice than you need. Day-old rice is an asset.
See rice ideas →
Pasta
What to Make With Pasta
Aglio e olio, puttanesca, cacio e pepe, and why pasta water is an ingredient. The cucina povera approach to cleaning out the pantry.
See pasta ideas →
Ground Beef
What to Make With Ground Beef
Tacos, bolognese, Korean beef bowls, cottage pie, and how to brown ground beef properly — the technique that makes everything taste better.
See ground beef ideas →
Canned Tomatoes
What to Make With Canned Tomatoes
Shakshuka, pasta sauce, tomato soup, bean braises, and why canned tomatoes are often better than fresh for cooked applications.
See canned tomato ideas →
Potatoes
What to Make With Potatoes
Crispy roasted potatoes, hash, soup, smashed potatoes, and the Spanish tortilla — plus why potatoes need high heat and salt to be interesting.
See potato ideas →
Chickpeas
What to Make With Chickpeas
Quick curry, hummus from scratch, crispy roasted chickpeas, pasta e ceci, and why a can of chickpeas is one of the best pantry investments.
See chickpea ideas →
Spinach
What to Make With Spinach Before It Goes Bad
Ten ways to use a wilting bag of spinach tonight — including frittata, pasta, soups, and why slightly past-prime spinach is actually better for cooked dishes.
See spinach ideas →
Mushrooms
What to Make With Mushrooms
Crispy mushroom toast, mushroom ragu, pasta, stir-fry, and the technique for getting a real sear on mushrooms instead of steaming them.
See mushroom ideas →
Lemons
What to Make With Lemons
Lemon pasta, lemon chicken, gremolata, preserved lemons, and why every savory dish you make probably needs more acid than you're adding.
See lemon ideas →
Leftover Chicken
What to Make With Leftover Rotisserie Chicken
Tacos, soup, grain bowls, fried rice, sandwiches — and why you should always make stock from the carcass. A rotisserie chicken is a three-meal event.
See rotisserie chicken ideas →Wave 3 — New guides: Cilantro, Canned Coconut Milk, Leftover Cooked Rice, Half Jar Pesto, Wilted Spinach, Extra Tortillas, Leftover Buttermilk, Overripe Bananas
Cilantro
What to Do With a Half-Bunch of Cilantro
Salsa verde, green rice, herb oil, and why you should stop picking leaves and just use the whole bunch. The fix for the bunch that always dies in the fridge.
See cilantro ideas →
Canned Coconut Milk
What to Do With Leftover Canned Coconut Milk
Coconut rice, quick curry, coconut lentil soup, and why that open can in the fridge is worth using before the week is out. Store and freeze correctly.
See coconut milk ideas →
Leftover Cooked Rice
What to Do With Leftover Cooked Rice
Fried rice, congee, pan-fried rice cakes, and why day-old rice is actually better than fresh for most applications. The fridge start to dinner.
See leftover rice ideas →
Pesto
What to Do With a Half Jar of Pesto
Pesto flatbread, pesto-marinated chicken, grain bowl dressing, and how to prevent that grey surface from forming. More useful than just pasta sauce.
See pesto ideas →
Wilted Spinach
What to Do With Wilted Spinach Before It Goes Bad
Wilted spinach is better for cooked dishes than fresh — frittata, pasta, green soup, and creamed spinach. Use the whole bag in one move.
See wilted spinach ideas →
Extra Tortillas
What to Do With Extra Tortillas Before They Go Stale
Quesadillas, flatbread pizza, chilaquiles, baked chips, and how to freeze a stack so nothing goes stale. Beyond taco night.
See tortilla ideas →
Leftover Buttermilk
What to Do With Leftover Buttermilk
Pancakes, biscuits, fried chicken marinade, ranch dressing, and mashed potatoes. The cultured carton that does more than its one intended recipe.
See buttermilk ideas →
Overripe Bananas
What to Do With Overripe Bananas
Banana bread, pancakes, pan-fried bananas, smoothies, and no-bake energy balls. Brown spots mean peak flavor — don't throw them out.
See banana ideas →Wave 2 — New guides: Salmon, Ground Turkey, Sweet Potatoes, Bell Peppers, Avocados, Butter, Lentils, Basil
Salmon
What to Do With Salmon
Pan-searing, sheet pan dinners, soy glaze, flaking into pasta — and how to store salmon so it doesn't slip past its window. Fast weeknight cooking from a rich, forgiving fillet.
See salmon ideas →
Ground Turkey
What to Do With Ground Turkey
Tacos, Korean rice bowls, meatballs, turkey chili, and the seasoning technique that fixes the flavor problem most people complain about with ground turkey.
See ground turkey ideas →
Sweet Potatoes
What to Do With Sweet Potatoes
Roasted cubes, hash, coconut soup, curries, stuffed potatoes, grain bowls — sweet potatoes work savory or sweet depending on what you put next to them.
See sweet potato ideas →
Bell Peppers
What to Do With Bell Peppers Before They Go Soft
Roast, stir-fry, stuff, blend into romesco, or add to sheet pan dinners. Slightly soft peppers have more sugar and are better for cooking than fresh ones.
See bell pepper ideas →
Avocados
What to Do With Avocados Before They Go Brown
Beyond guacamole and toast — avocado pasta sauce, baked eggs, dressings, and the storage method that extends peak ripeness by 2–3 days.
See avocado ideas →
Butter
What to Do With Butter
Brown butter, compound butters, pan sauces, butter basting — the techniques that turn butter from a spread into the most useful fat in the kitchen.
See butter ideas →
Lentils
What to Do With Lentils
Red lentil dal, 30-minute soup, warm salads, tacos, and a pasta sauce that doesn't need meat. Lentils don't need soaking — dinner is 30 minutes away.
See lentil ideas →
Basil
What to Do With Basil Before It Wilts
Pesto, basil oil, herb sauces, finishing pasta — plus the storage mistake almost everyone makes that destroys fresh basil in 24 hours.
See basil ideas →Not sure what to make tonight?
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Frequently asked questions
How does NowCook handle ingredient recognition?
You take one photo of your pantry or fridge and NowCook identifies what is visible. The recognition is trained on real home kitchen scenarios — not studio food photography — so it works with real shelves, partial labels, and typical fridge arrangements.
Can NowCook work with just a few ingredients?
Yes. NowCook is specifically designed for the half-empty fridge scenario. Even with a modest pantry — eggs, pasta, canned tomatoes, a few spices — it can suggest multiple real dinner options without requiring a grocery run.
Does NowCook support ingredient substitutions?
Yes. When a recipe calls for an ingredient you do not have, NowCook suggests practical substitutions from what your pantry already contains — so a missing item does not automatically become a shopping trip.
How does NowCook help use up ingredients before they expire?
NowCook sequences the week's meals to use the most perishable items first. An ingredient close to its use-by date gets prioritised in the earliest dinners of the week, which dramatically reduces the food waste most households experience.
What does NowCook cost?
NowCook is $9/month or $72/year ($6/month effective). There is a 14-day free trial with no credit card required and full access to every feature.