Pantry Recipe Finder matches recipes against the ingredients you already have. Add what's in your kitchen and the tool returns recipes ranked by how well they match. The tool is free, works in your browser, and doesn't require an account. Your pantry is saved locally on your device.
What this tool is good for
- Find recipes for the ingredients you already have. Type what's in your fridge. Get a list of recipes that use it.
- Reducing food waste. Find recipes that use ingredients close to going off before you forget about them.
- Cooking on a budget. Anything already in your kitchen is paid for. The tool prioritises recipes that use what you have.
How pantry matching works
Pantry Recipe Finder compares recipe ingredients against your virtual pantry. The match percentage shows how many ingredients you already have. Recipes are sorted with the best matches first.
Matching handles many common variations. "Chicken breast" matches "chicken". "Spring onion" matches "scallion". But it isn't exhaustive, so adding synonyms yourself can improve results. Accuracy depends on how recipe sources structure their ingredient data, so treat the percentage as a guide rather than an exact count.
Tips for better matches
- Add staples. Garlic, onion, butter, and common spices improve accuracy beyond the assumed basics (salt, pepper, oil, water).
- Use simple names. "Chicken thighs" works better than "organic free-range chicken thighs".
- Capitalisation doesn't matter. "Tomato" and "tomato" match identically.
- Add synonyms. Common pairs such as courgette and zucchini are matched for you. For anything less common, adding the other name can improve the match.
- Be specific where it matters. "Chicken thighs" beats "chicken". "Greek yogurt" beats "yogurt".
Understanding match percentages
| Match | What it means |
|---|---|
| 90-100% | You likely have everything. Check for minor missing items you can skip or substitute. |
| 70-89% | A solid match. You may need one or two items from the shops. |
| 50-69% | Partial match. Consider whether missing ingredients are essential. |
| Below 50% | You'll probably need to shop, but still useful for meal planning. |
Some recipes list optional garnishes that lower the percentage even when you can make the core dish. A "Match unknown" label means the recipe source didn't provide structured ingredient data, so a percentage can't be calculated.
Cuisine and dietary filters
Filters narrow the results rather than re-ordering them. A recipe that does not match is removed from the list.
- Cuisine filters cover 28 options, including Italian, Chinese, Mexican, Indian, Thai, Greek and Japanese.
- Dietary filters cover 7 options: Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Low-Carb, Keto, and Pescatarian.
Dietary filtering works on best efforts. A recipe is removed when its ingredients show it does not fit, so a recipe with unclear or incomplete ingredient data may still appear. Check the recipe itself if you have an allergy or a strict requirement.
Essential pantry staples
The more staples in your pantry, the more recipes will match. Below is a list of ingredients that appear across many cuisines.
Cooking basics
- Olive oil ("oil" is assumed automatically)
- Butter
- Garlic
- Onion
- Salt and pepper (assumed automatically)
Proteins and dairy
- Eggs
- Milk
- Cheese
- Stock (chicken or vegetable)
Carbohydrates
- Rice
- Pasta
- Flour
Flavour boosters
- Tinned tomatoes
- Soy sauce
- Lemon
- Sugar
- Cumin, paprika, dried oregano, chilli flakes
Common ingredient substitutions
If you're missing one ingredient, most recipes work with a swap. The exceptions are baking, where ratios matter, and recipes where the missing ingredient is structural (e.g. eggs in meringue, yeast in bread).
| Missing ingredient | Substitute |
|---|---|
| Buttermilk | Milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar per cup |
| Sour cream | Plain yogurt |
| Heavy cream | Milk + melted butter (3:1). Works in cooking and baking, but won't whip |
| Fresh herbs (1 tbsp) | Dried herbs (1 tsp) |
| Fresh garlic (1 clove) | 1/8 tsp garlic powder |
| Lemon juice | Lime juice or vinegar |
| White wine (cooking) | Stock + splash of vinegar |
| Breadcrumbs | Crushed crackers, oats, or panko |
For a fuller list and substitution principles, see the pantry-first cooking guide.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best way to find recipes from ingredients I have?
Use a recipe finder that ranks by match percentage rather than filtering by exact overlap. Filtering removes recipes you could make with one substitution. Ranking shows best matches first while keeping other options available.
Can I input ingredients and get recipes back?
Yes. Add ingredients to your pantry list. The tool returns recipes that use them, sorted by how much of each recipe you already have.
What can I make with the ingredients I have?
Depends on what you have, but most kitchens contain enough for several meals. Rice, pasta, tinned tomatoes, eggs, and basic spices cover dozens of dishes. The tool returns specific options based on your pantry.
How do I find meals based on ingredients I have on hand?
Start with ingredients you want to use up, usually whatever's closest to going off. Add those first, then add staples. Recipes returned will prioritise your ingredients.
Can I cook a full meal with just a few ingredients?
Often yes. A meal generally needs a base (rice, pasta, bread, potatoes), a protein (eggs, beans, leftover meat, tinned fish), and seasoning (garlic, soy sauce, lemon, spices). Most kitchens have all three.
What if I am missing an ingredient from a recipe?
Substitute or skip it in most cases. See the substitutions table above. Baking is the exception where substitutions can affect the result significantly.
How do I cook based on ingredients without following a recipe?
Use flexible structures: stir-fries (aromatics + protein + vegetables + sauce), soups (base + vegetables + liquid + seasoning), grain bowls (cooked grain + protein + fresh ingredient + dressing). The pantry-first cooking guide covers these in detail.
Is Pantry Recipe Finder free?
Yes. The tool is free to use. No account needed. Supported by advertising.
Do you host full recipes?
Yes, for most of them. Around 3,700 recipes are published here in full, with ingredients and method, adapted from the Wikibooks Cookbook and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with attribution on every page. A smaller set drawn from TheMealDB and Spoonacular shows the title, ingredients and pantry match, and links to the original publisher for the method.
Why do results vary between searches?
Search covers the Wikibooks Cookbook collection held on this site, plus recipes from TheMealDB and Spoonacular. Different search terms surface different recipes, and some queries return more than others depending on how the underlying recipes are written.
Why do some recipes show "Match unknown"?
Some recipe sources don't provide structured ingredient data. When this happens, the card says "Match unknown" instead of showing an inaccurate percentage. The recipe is still viewable.
Can I save my pantry?
Yes. Your pantry is automatically saved in your browser's local storage. It persists across sessions on the same device and browser. Clearing browser data resets it.
Can I save favourite recipes?
Yes. Click the heart icon on any recipe card to save it. Favourites are stored locally in your browser.
What does "Surprise me" do?
It opens a random recipe, chosen without looking at your pantry. If you have a pantry, the recipe page still shows how well it matches. It avoids repeating your last pick where it can.
How specific should I be when adding pantry items?
More specific usually matches better. "Cheddar cheese" or "chicken thighs" produces more accurate match percentages than "cheese" or "chicken". For staples like rice, pasta, or flour, broad terms work fine.
Trust and transparency
Most recipes here come from the Wikibooks Cookbook, a volunteer-written collection published under CC BY-SA 4.0. Those recipes are reproduced in full, with a link to the Wikibooks original and the licence on every page, and this site's recipe content is available under that same licence. A smaller set from TheMealDB and Spoonacular is shown as titles, ingredients and pantry matches, linking to the original publisher for the method. Photographs come from Wikimedia Commons and are credited and licensed individually. Nothing is scraped.
Your pantry and favourites are saved in your browser, not stored on our servers or tied to an account. When you use /pantry to find recipes, pantry ingredients are sent to our server in a request to calculate matches across the full collection; we do not save them there. The tool doesn't require an account.
The tool is free and supported by advertising.