How fridge scan works.
- Open the fridge and take a photo in Chefie. One clear shot of the shelves is enough to start.
- Chefie lists what it spots. The eggs, the half-used bag of spinach, the lemons at the back.
- Get recipes that use them. Ideas built around what you already have, checked against your allergies and diet, with the time and calories up front.
- Cook it step by step. Open a recipe and cook mode takes you through it with timers and read-aloud.
No photo handy? Type what you have into the chat, like "eggs, spinach, feta and some tired tomatoes", and you get ideas the same way. Chefie uses your photo to answer you and doesn't keep it.
A worked example.
Say your fridge has eggs, spinach, cherry tomatoes, chicken thighs, a couple of lemons and a block of feta. That's a week's worth of loose ends. Depending on what you ask, you might be offered ideas like these:
"Something quick for tonight"
A spinach, tomato and feta frittata. It uses the eggs, spinach, tomatoes and feta in one pan.
"Something more filling"
Lemon and garlic chicken thighs roasted with the tomatoes, with the spinach wilted in at the end.
"Lunch tomorrow too"
A chicken, feta and spinach traybake that makes extra, so tomorrow's lunch is sorted.
These show the kind of ideas you will see. What you actually get depends on your fridge, your diet and what you ask for.
Need a few extras?
Sorted.
Add a recipe and every ingredient lands on your shopping list, grouped by aisle. Add two recipes and the amounts combine.
- Grouped by aisle for a quicker shop
- Amounts combine across recipes
Tips for a better scan.
- Good light helps. Take the photo with the fridge light on and the door wide open.
- Mind the back row. Jars and tubs can hide what's behind them. If something is out of shot, mention it in the chat.
- Mention the cupboard. Rice, pasta, tins and spices rarely make it into a fridge photo. Say what you have and Chefie can use them too.
- Say what needs using up. Tell Chefie "the spinach is on its last legs" and it can build dinner around that.
- Say how much time you have. "Under 20 minutes" or "I've got all evening" changes the ideas a lot.
Why cook from what you have?
It saves a trip to the shop, it saves money and it saves food. A lot of what gets thrown away at home is food that was bought and never got used. Cooking from the fridge first, then shopping for the gaps, is one of the simplest ways to waste less.
Short on time as well? See our quick weeknight dinners guide, or browse recipes for ideas.
Good questions.
Does Chefie keep my fridge photos?
No. Chefie uses your photo to find ingredients and answer you, and doesn't keep it. Read the Privacy Policy.
What if it misses something?
Tell Chefie in the chat, for example "I also have half a courgette and some rice", and it can use those too.
Can I just type my ingredients?
Yes. List what you have in the chat and you get recipe ideas the same way.
Is there a limit on fridge scans?
Fridge scan is one of Chefie's AI features, which have fair daily limits that reset each day. Daily fair-use limits are the same on every plan.
Open the fridge.
Find dinner.
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