Sixteen Essential Cooking Apps for Your Android Device

Face it -  at some point in your life, you are going to have to prepare  a meal for yourself. Maybe your wife will be out of town or your college buddies will be at school.  Or maybe mom has finally kicked you out on your own and you'v run out of Doritos.  What are you going to do now?  Make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?  No, you want to go big and cook up some Yogurt-Marinated Chicken Kebabs with Aleppo Pepper, bro.  The problem is, you know your way around an Android phone but you can't navigate your own kitchen.  We're here to help.
We've put together a list of Android applications that will make sure you always have something new and exciting to cook. Be it a simple appetizer or mind-blowing dessert, we'll get you pointed in the right direction.  With hundreds of thousands of recipes from dozens of valuable resources, you'll never run out of inspiration nor ways to share your ideas.  Many of the titles listed below are further enhanced with online accounts so be sure to check when you are setting up your apps.

1. Lawry's Digital Dinner Bell: Ring the various Dinner Bells (Grilling, Southwest, Mexican, etc.) to let friends and family know what's for dinner through SMS, Facebook Posts, or a good old fashioned phone call. FREE, Android 2.1+
2. Campbell's Kitchen: Scan the UPC barcode on any Campbell’s product and pull up a bunch of recipes or use the Quick Ideas shaker to discover something random and new!  Free, Android 2.1+
3. Allrecipes.com Dinner Spinner: Choose from more than 40,000 user submitted recipes based on dish (appetizers, side dishes, main dish, etc) or from ingredients in your pantry or fridge.  Need to cook in a pinch?  Try the "Ready In" feature and tell the app how much time you have to work with!  FREE, Android 2.1+  Pro version is $2.99
4. Real Simple No Time to Cook: Nearly 1,000 recipes with preparation time of under 40 minutes as well as interactive grocery lists and how-to videos.  Start with a type of food (seafood, poultry, pasta, pork, etc) and indicate how much time you have to prepare the meal. $4.99, Android 1.6+
5. In the Kitchen: Recipes, Chefs: Official application of the Food Network, provides recipes from your favorite personalities such as Rachael Ray, Paula Deen, Bobby Flay, and Guy Fieri.  Features shopping lists, cooking timers, and unit converters among other options.  $1.99, Android 1.6+
6. Epicurious Recipe App: More than 28,000 delicious recipes from professionals, top cookbooks, restaurants,  and sources such as Gourmet and Bon Appétit magazines. Desktop widget with recipe of the day makes sure you always have something new to prepare.  FREE, Android 1.5+
7. Easy Chef Recipes (15,000+): Find the right meal based on your special occasions, including Christmas, Thanksgiving, Valentine’s Day, and more.  Share your results on  email, and twitter, or save them to your device for offline access.  FREE, Android 2.2+
8. What's for Dinner Premium: Browse recipes and building shopping lists using a variety of online resources, including FoodNetwork.com, Epicurious.com, AllRecipes.com, and MyRecipes.com.  $2.99, Android 1.6+
9. Mario Batali Cooks!: Official application for the Food Network star, provides 63 handpicked recipes with videos and exclusive photos.  As close as it gets to having Mario over for dinner.  $4.99, Android 1.5+
10. Recipe Search: Create and share recipes with AllTheCooks.com, bookmark your favorite selections, and access all features of their forums. Pick meals based on specific needs such as diabetes, gluten-free, vegetarian, and more.  FREE, Android 1.5+
11. Happystove: Quick and easy meals with photos from Happystove.com, features  a random recipe feature that changes every hour.Search for recipes based on items you already have on hand.  FREE, Android  2.2+
12. Healthy Recipes-Spark Recipes: Browse and search thousands of recipes from SparkPeople.com, access nutritional information, and more in this diet-friendly application.  FREE, Android 1.5+
13. Jamie's 20 Minute Meals: Sixty recipes from Jamie Oliver, each of which take 20 minutes or less to prepare.  Features videos, pictures, essential kitchen tools, and more.  Learn to how to properly sharpen a knife,  cut an onion, and other handy pro tips. $7.99, Android 1.6+
14. 170,000+ Recipes Big Oven: Access more than 170,000 recipes, create shopping lists, and find out what locals are cooking near you.  Tons of online integration and cross-platform sync.  Some features require a $15.99 annual membership to Big Oven.  FREE, Android 1.6+
15. Baconnection: Nothing but bacon-related recipes from Allrecipes.com, Taste of Home, and Every Day with Rachael Ray.  Play the bacon trivia or read the bacon facts while you're waiting on the Apple-Bacon Green Beans to finish in the oven.  FREE, Android 2.1 - 2.3.3
16. Betty Crocker Mobile Cookbook: Next to mom, she's the most famous woman to step into your kitchen. Official app includes more than 2,500 tried-and-true recipes, ingredient search, step-by-step instructions, and coupons for General Mills products.  FREE, Android 2.1+

As always, we know this list is not complete.  That's where you come in.  What apps are you using in the kitchen or out in the yard for grilling?  Leave a comment below and share your experiences.

Posted in: Android,apps