What's Your Favorite Recipe/Cooking Site?

[Christine]

I ask because I'm struggling.

I work full-time and I cook 5 nights a week. I like the food I make to be good and varied (doesn't everyone). I'm struggling to find recipes on all these website/blogs that actually come out well. There's a lot of hype and how amazing something is and then, well, it's just not. Seems anyone can create a nice, professional site and make you think they are fantastic cooks and yet they have the food tastes of a 5 year old.

Part of the problem is me. I think my standards are too high when it comes to taste and I'm probably just too hard to please. I'm willing to spend about 45 minutes prepping (although I'd like less). Some of the sites I go to are:

AllRecipes: Recipes are pretty mundane. Some have been just okay but they are fairly lacking.

Pioneer Woman: I like just about everything she does but many of her dishes are more weekend type dishes due to a lot of "from scratch" processes.

Rachael Ray: Never had much success here although more so in the past. A lot of her recipes might be quick but they involve many, many odd ingredients that I don't usually have or would only ever use once. But I do keep looking because I've had a few winners here.

DamnDelicious: Lots of interesting recipes here but they often look better on the site than they turn out. Had this experience last week. I can normally tell by just reading the recipe if it's going to be bland, but I am often tricked by the "WOWs" and "AMAZINGS."

Tasty: Usually pretty good for everything but lots high fat recipes so I use them sparingly.

SkinnyLicious: Generally successful but seems to have a lot of shrimp recipes that I can't use.

I subscribe to Yummly and I forget the other one that's like it but they seem to just feature these "trendy" things that have been passed around for years.

I visit a LOT more sites than I just listed and I'm sure there's some gems out there, but I only have about an hour on Sunday to plan and it gets so hard trying to sift through them.

So yeah, I know I sound whiny but I've sort of hit a wall with my home cooking and trying to see if I'm missing anything.

Got any good sites or recipes?

 

[klacey1]

My favorites are:

How Sweet Eats
Carlsbad Cravings
The Girl Who Ate Everything
Kitchen Swagger

I most use these sites for ideas and inspiration, though I will follow their exact recipes from time to time. If I am in the mood for something specific and need a recipe, I’ll go to All Recipes and find one that’s highly rated.

I also follow a ton of food boards on Pinterest, which also helps with the inspiration.

 

[firefly_ris]

Many of the food manufacturers have recipes on their website as well (I mostly only know this because I code many of their sites otherwise would not cross my mind) like Jennie-O, Smuckers, etc.

I also browse Wegmans recipes, https://www.wegmans.com/meals-recipes/meals.html

And for completely random ones and if you're not sensitive to vulgar words, whatthe$$!@shouldimakefordinner.com - fill in the spaces for the real word..

I also like Food Networks stuff but often they use ingredients I don't have on hand or are expensive for one time use.

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

I like the Tasty videos on Facebook. I’ve had a lot of luck with their recipes.

 

[bigbabyblues]

eatathomecooks.com
We like it because the recipes are simple and don't require ingredients that are hard to find (I live in the sticks) or expensive. We have liked almost everything we have tried.

 

[wenrob]

A lot of the recipes from Skinnytaste have become staples in our home:
https://www.skinnytaste.com/

Generally when I skim Yummly I put in what I have on hand, look at a bunch of recipes suggested and then come up with something of my own based on that. If you just look at the suggestions they have “for you” it’s very repetitive. Pinterest for anything IMO is the same things over and over and over. I gave up on it a long time ago.

I also like Taste of Home and Cooking Light Magazines. I buy the Diabetic Cooking Special recipe mag almost every year. I’m not diabetic but the recipes closely resemble how I eat; high protein, moderate carbs. Anything I make from any source generally gets tweaked to my family’s tastes.

 

[Christine]

Everyone, thanks so much for all of the suggestions. I've got some new things to investigate now!!

wenrob, I forgot that I have actually had a lot of luck lately with Taste of Home. I haven't bought their magazine but have just viewed their site. They have a limited amount of recipes that are for public view and they all seem to be well tested. What I can see leans toward "comfort" food, so I don't use them a lot but maybe I should look into a subscription for better access. As for Cooking Light, I was a big user of them for many years and very active on their message boards back in the day. I'd get their magazine and usually find at least 5 recipes I'd try. But they seemed to have gotten a little more adventurous than I liked to deal with during the week and using different types of ingredients that I'm just not interested in. I realize that is on me and not them but I do wish they'd get some more variations on basics. Now I only find maybe one recipe per magazine that I like, so I have stopped subscribing. But they are probably worth another look.

 

[NYCgrrl]

My current roster of sites for food ideas, techniques and recipes are:

epicurious.com (longtime user but still grumbling about their new format)
egullet. org
seriouseats.com
markbittman.com
chowhound.com
davidlebovitz.com
bonappetit.com (used mostly for holidays)
tigersandstrawberries.com (Asian cookery with an emphasis on various types of Chinese. If you like the info copy to yr hard drive ASAP. She hasn't written a new post in years and who knows when she'll decide to stop paying for the site)
cookinglight.com
cookstr.com (great place to find PBS recipes)
gourmet.com (used mostly for holidays and immersive travel and culinary reading)
thebaldgourmet.com (mostly for camping but many of the recipes can readily be used at home. His shwarma is to die for)
lidiasitaly.com (not as good as her original website which had more recipes but still worthy)

I have paid digital subscriptions to:
finecooking.com (as well their sister publication, Threads; one of those 2 for 1 deals)
and all the sites that devolve from Cook's Illustrated

If you've an interest in bulk cooking I have a few websites that you might find useful. When pork shoulders/Boston butts go on sale I'm all over it using the cut for Shanghai roast pork, shredded pork, American BBQ style and pernil, Latin style pork with tons of garlic. One 10 lber gives me several types of meals with no complaints about "this, again?!"

 

[Astryd]

I love Serious Eats, its my go to site for anything I want to cook. Never been disappointed with anything I have made from there.

 

[dotfurio]

I almost exclusively use skinnytaste. We've liked almost anything we've tried from her. I also like some things from Emily Bites. That said, I'm watching calories so my opinion may be skewed.

 

[tasha99]

I like:

nomnompaleo.com (even when not eating paleo. Spatchcock chicken and crackling chicken recipes there are fantastic. When I'm not doing whole30, I sub soy sauce for coconut aminos.)

cooksillustrated.com (with a subscription to all their products except the cooking school. At $70 /year, it's a luxury. We actually decided to do without this year when it comes up for renewal, but that's just us economizing. I'll get it next year.)

nytimes cooking--no longer free. Thinking of subscribing someday.

skinnytaste.com (only used a little, but I do like the cookbook, too)

I believe both nytimes cooking and cooks illustrated have free trial periods.

 

[Christine]

These suggestions have been great. So far I've pulled a number of things to try next week:

Chicken Saltimbocca - Cooking Light
One Pan Chicken, Sausage and Brussels Sprouts - Serious Eats
Mini Italian Meatloaves - The Girl Who Ate Everything
Ham and Swiss Stromboli - The Girl Who Ate Everything
Game Day Beer Chili - How Sweet Eats
Unstuffed Shells Casserole - The Girl Who Ate Everything

Some of these types of recipes I've made before but these sites had variations or recipes that seemed a little more complex.

 

[wenrob]

Everyone, thanks so much for all of the suggestions. I've got some new things to investigate now!!

wenrob, I forgot that I have actually had a lot of luck lately with Taste of Home. I haven't bought their magazine but have just viewed their site. They have a limited amount of recipes that are for public view and they all seem to be well tested. What I can see leans toward "comfort" food, so I don't use them a lot but maybe I should look into a subscription for better access. As for Cooking Light, I was a big user of them for many years and very active on their message boards back in the day. I'd get their magazine and usually find at least 5 recipes I'd try. But they seemed to have gotten a little more adventurous than I liked to deal with during the week and using different types of ingredients that I'm just not interested in. I realize that is on me and not them but I do wish they'd get some more variations on basics. Now I only find maybe one recipe per magazine that I like, so I have stopped subscribing. But they are probably worth another look.

I have a subscription to the Texture App and those magazines are included so if I only find one or two interesting it’s not a big deal. I forget not everyone has that. I will modify Taste of Home recipes and simplify Cooking Light ones. Something that finally clicked with me several years ago is that I don’t have to follow recipes to the letter but rather use them as a jumping off point.

 

[NYCgrrl]

I have a subscription to the Texture App and those magazines are included so if I only find one or two interesting it’s not a big deal. I forget not everyone has that. I will modify Taste of Home recipes and simplify Cooking Light ones. Something that finally clicked with me several years ago is that I don’t have to follow recipes to the letter but rather use them as a jumping off point.

An important and valuable click you acquired and soooo true. It's about learning the techniques more so than to be tied to a specific recipe worrying if you put too much or too little of an ingredient. Cooking is not baking.

 

[NYCgrrl]

I like:

nomnompaleo.com (even when not eating paleo. Spatchcock chicken and crackling chicken recipes there are fantastic. When I'm not doing whole30, I sub soy sauce for coconut aminos.)

cooksillustrated.com (with a subscription to all their products except the cooking school. At $70 /year, it's a luxury. We actually decided to do without this year when it comes up for renewal, but that's just us economizing. I'll get it next year.)

nytimes cooking--no longer free. Thinking of subscribing someday.

skinnytaste.com (only used a little, but I do like the cookbook, too)

I believe both nytimes cooking and cooks illustrated have free trial periods.

Agreeing on the cost for the CI school addition; excessive and you can learn most if not all of the techniques from youtube and various other sites. I share my CI bundle subscription with my older sister and in return get tons of products from her garden; win/win.

NYTimes, CI and Washington Post all have free subscriptions for limited times. Since I already signed up for the full sites' access for the newspapers I get into to the cooking sections as well. About once every other holiday season I combine the Washington Post's version of Julia's and Jacques' Deconstructed Turkey recipe with the youtube PBS version. The CI version cuts out too many crucial steps thus making it harder for buffet service.

I keep hearing good of nomnompaleo.com so thanks for the reminder!

 

[Katy Belle]

smittenkitchen.com
Simplyrecipes.com

Have had very few fails with either site!

 

[Praying Colonel]

I love Serious Eats, its my go to site for anything I want to cook. Never been disappointed with anything I have made from there.

Yep--if I could only have 1 website available to me, it would be Serious Eats. Great collection of recipes cutting across different cuisines and techniques (stove, oven, grill, slow cooker, pressure cooker).

I also really like Food Wishes on YouTube for a funny and informative collection of recipes that cover all the classics and then some. Also Skinnytaste for tasty low-cal recipes for the family, and Flo Lum on YouTube for a nice collection of Instant Pot recipes.

 

[powellrj]

I like Christy at Southern Plate and Plain Chicken. I hit and miss with Pintress and youtube.

 

[Christine]

I also really like Food Wishes on YouTube for a funny and informative collection of recipes that cover all the classics and then some. Also Skinnytaste for tasty low-cal recipes for the family, and Flo Lum on YouTube for a nice collection of Instant Pot recipes.

I'm still trying to fall in love with my Instant Pot. I haven't found much that appeals to me as far as recipes go. I've done a few different meats in it and not a fan of the texture (feel the same about the crock pot), so I've primarily been using it as a big ole' rice cooker.

 

[tasha99]

Oh--one more website if you like Korean food: maangchi.com. It is phenomenal.