Crouton

Active

Country: New Zealand (NZ)
Founded: 2019
Developer: Crouton Pty Ltd (New Zealand)
Pricing: Freemium (Free with In-App Purchases)
Open source: No
Platforms: iOS, iPadOS, macOS, visionOS, watchOS

Indexes

Recipe Managers

Overview

Crouton is a recipe organizer and meal planner that allows users to store recipes from websites, cookbooks, or notes, import them automatically, and plan weekly meals. It supports assigning recipes to days, generating meal plans, creating grocery lists, and hands-free cooking aids like timers. Targeted at home cooks seeking an intuitive Apple ecosystem app for recipe management and meal preparation.¹³⁶

Key Features

Recipe Import - Automatically pulls ingredients and steps from website URLs or scans books using AI and OCR.
Meal Planning - Assign recipes to weekly days or auto-generate plans from stored recipes.
Grocery Lists - Add ingredients from recipes and sync with Apple Reminders.
Multiple Timers - Tap recipe steps to create timers for cooking.
Recipe Organization - Store and categorize recipes from various sources in custom formats.
Cooking Mode - Step-by-step guidance with hands-free features.
Export Options - Export recipes as Crouton file, PDF, Markdown, or plain text.
Paprika Import - Direct import of recipes from Paprika app.

Pricing

Plan	Price	Includes
Free	Free	Basic recipe storage, import, and meal planning with core features.
Pro (In-App Purchases)	In-App Purchases	Advanced features like AI import, auto meal plans, unlimited storage, and cooking aids.

Platforms & Requirements

Available on iOS, iPadOS, macOS, visionOS, and watchOS as native Apple apps. Requires compatible Apple devices; no minimum specs detailed beyond App Store listings. Limited to Apple ecosystem with no Android or Windows support.¹⁶

Integrations & Ecosystem

Website URL import
Paprika import
Apple Reminders sync for grocery lists
AI/OCR for photo scans
Export to PDF/Markdown/plain text
Crouton file format

Alternatives

App	Difference
Paprika	More established with broader import options but lacks native Apple cooking timers.
AnyList	Stronger sharing and collaboration features but less focus on AI recipe import.
Mealime	Emphasizes quick meal plans with fewer customization options for recipe storage.
BigOven	Larger recipe database but web-heavy with less seamless Apple integration.

Reputation

Crouton is praised for its elegant interface, simple meal planning, and effective recipe import from websites and Paprika, making it a strong cooking companion in the Apple ecosystem. Users appreciate the cooking aids like timers and step-by-step modes. Some note limitations in grocery list usage and that advanced features require in-app purchases.⁴⁵

Sources (6)