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iPad and iPhone Visual Cookbook: Viz Chef Makes Cooking Easy

Thu May, 2011 by Derek Mehraban

Viz Chef is changing the way we think about cooking applications. The visual cookbook contains more than a list of ingredients with a few pretty pictures and average recipes. The iPad and iPhone cookbook is designed for beginner and intermediate cooks, and contains over 60 dishes and 900 high quality images.

This app is better than a cooking show and is perfect for last minute dinner parties. The iPhone cookbook app can be used while at the grocery store to quickly search recipes and view a detailed list of ingredients with instruction on what each ingredient should look like. A helpful tool when trying to differentiate between different kinds of lettuce and spices at the grocery store, not to mention a great time saver. Network connection isn’t needed for the core recipes and perfect for people who have an iPod or iPad without 3G.

The instructions on the Viz Chef app are very interactive and makes cooking fun; swipe across the screen, zoom in and out of images, easily review previous steps and cook at your own pace. There are images for nearly every step of each recipe. There’s an image of nearly every ingredient, what the ingredient portion size should look like, images of the equipment for each recipe and even images of the ingredients throughout the cooking process. Viz Chef has the option to run two different timers at once. The iPad cookbook is great for the kitchen taking the guesswork out of a task some may find daunting.

Photo: VizChef.com

The visual cookbook is very personalized, adjusting ingredient descriptions based on skill level and the option to view quantities in decimals or fractions which is useful if you want to weigh an ingredient out. Beginner cooks shouldn’t be intimidated when they read traditional French culinary terms. The app explains these images through text descriptions and visualizes terms with images. It can help teach newbie cooks what Mierpoiz and julienning mean and how to actually do it.

The photo cookbook includes recipes from great chefs and restaurants including Common Grill, Jolly Pumpkin, Mainstreet Ventures, and Paesanos. Reading the titles of the recipes is enough to make your mouth water. Recipes include: Gruyere Cheese Sticks, Croque Monsieur, Pumpkin Bisque, and Stout and Chocolate Braised Short Rips.

Anyone really can cook with Viz Chef cooking application for iPhone and iPad. The visual cookbook is a great way to learn how to prepare and present beautiful meals for friends and family.

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