“What’s for dinner?” is asked every single day, and it’s usually you who has to answer. This lesson hands the thinking part to AI, so you only do the cooking.
The three-step dinner system
- Show it what you have. Snap a photo of the inside of your fridge and pantry, or type a quick list.
- Tell it your rules. Who’s eating, allergies, the picky one, the busy nights, the budget. (If you built your family profile, it already knows.)
- Ask for the shape you need. Tonight’s dinner, a whole week, or a list to take to the store.
Tonight: dinner from what you’ve got
Take a photo of the fridge and send it to Claude with this:
Fridge rescue Claude
Here's a photo of my fridge and pantry. I need dinner for [number] tonight in under [30] minutes. Give me 3 options I can make mostly with what's here, plus anything small I'd need to grab. Mark the easiest one.
Photos can miss things in the back, so if it suggests something you’re out of, just reply “No eggs” and it’ll adjust.
The whole week in one go
Five dinners, one list Claude
Plan 5 weeknight dinners for my family. Busy nights are [days], so those need to be 20 minutes or slow cooker. Budget is about $[amount] for the week. Reuse ingredients so nothing goes to waste, and plan one leftovers night. Then make one grocery list grouped by store section, and leave off anything I said I already have: [list].
Then make it yours. Reply with things like “swap Wednesday for something with chicken” or “Dan is away Tuesday, make that one kid-friendly.” Two or three replies usually gets a plan you’ll actually cook.
Shop the sales with Grok
Grok can look at what’s on sale this week, which Claude can’t do as well. Use it first, then hand the deals to Claude to plan around.
This week’s deals Grok
What's on sale this week at [store] near [town]? I want the best deals on meat, produce and pantry staples. List the item, the sale price and where you found it.
Sale prices online can be out of date or for a different area. Check your store’s own app or flyer before you build the whole week around one deal.
Little wins that add up
- Picky eater bridge: “My son likes [foods he eats]. Suggest 5 new dinners that are only one small step away from those.”
- Freezer stash: “Give me 4 make-ahead meals I can cook Sunday and freeze for crazy nights.”
- Lunchboxes: “10 lunches for a 7-year-old, nut-free, no heating, not sandwiches.”
- Recipe math: paste any recipe and say “make this for 3 people, in cups and spoons I can actually measure.”
Food allergies
AI can forget or misread an allergy. Always check ingredient labels yourself, especially for packaged foods. Don’t rely on AI to tell you whether a product is safe for an allergy.
Try it tonight
Take a fridge photo and run the Fridge rescue prompt. Cook one of the three. Then, before bed, run Five dinners, one list for next week, and print it on the free meal planner.
