TheCookingPlanner.com

DinnerPlanner User Guide

Welcome to DinnerPlanner — your all-in-one tool for planning meals, tracking pantry ingredients, building shopping lists, and organizing recipes. Everything you create is saved automatically on your device. No account needed.

Table of Contents

  1. Getting Started
  2. Dinner Scheduler
  3. Pantry Minder
  4. Shopping List
  5. Recipe Box
  6. Settings
  7. Export and Import Your Data
  8. Tips and Shortcuts

Getting Started

You will see a sidebar on the left side of the screen with links to each section:

  • Dinner Scheduler — Plan your meals and cooking schedules
  • Pantry Minder — Track the ingredients you have at home
  • Shopping List — Build and manage grocery lists
  • Recipe Box — Save and browse your recipes
  • Settings — Change app preferences

On a phone, tap the menu button (☰) in the top-left corner to open the sidebar.

Your Data Is Saved Automatically

Everything you type, add, or change is saved right away. If you close the browser and come back, your work will still be there.

Dinner Scheduler

The Dinner Scheduler helps you plan when to start and finish each dish so your whole meal is ready at the same time.

Starting a New Meal Plan

  1. Click the Dinner Scheduler link in the sidebar if you are not already there.
  2. Type a name for your meal in the Meal name field at the top (for example, "Sunday Roast").
  3. Click + Add Dish to start adding dishes.

Adding a Dish

  1. Click + Add Dish (or tap the "Add Dish" card at the bottom of your dish list).
  2. Fill in the details:
    • Dish Name — what you are cooking (e.g., "Roast Chicken")
    • Prep (min) — how many minutes of prep work
    • Cook (min) — how many minutes of actual cooking
    • Rest (min) — resting time after cooking (optional)
    • Temperature — cooking temperature
    • Cook Method — Oven, Stovetop, Grill, Air Fryer, Slow Cooker, Microwave, or Other
    • Space — how many dishes can cook at the same time using this method:
      • Exclusive — only 1 dish at a time
      • Limited - 2 — up to 2 dishes at a time
      • None — no limit
    • Notes — any extra instructions or reminders
  3. Click Save.

Adding Ingredients to a Dish

While editing a dish, scroll down to the Ingredients section:

  1. Click Add Ingredient.
  2. Enter the ingredient name, quantity, unit, and optional notes.
  3. Repeat for each ingredient.
  4. Click Save on the dish.

Why add ingredients? This lets the app check what you already have in your pantry and help build shopping lists.

Editing or Removing a Dish

  • Click the pencil icon on any dish card to edit it.
  • Click the trash icon to delete a dish.

Reordering Dishes

Use the up (↑) and down (↓) arrows on each dish card to change the order.

Setting a Main Course

Click the star icon next to a dish name to mark it as your main course. It will be highlighted with a gold border.

Choosing Your Schedule Direction

You can plan your meal in two ways:

  • Forward — pick a start time, and the app works out when everything will be done.
  • Reverse — pick a "serve by" time, and the app works backward to tell you when to start each dish.

Toggle between Forward and Reverse using the buttons near the date/time picker.

Setting a Target Time

Click the date/time field next to Start Time (Forward) or Serve Time (Reverse), then pick your desired date and time.

Reading Your Schedule

Once you add dishes and set a time, two views appear below your dish list:

Gantt Chart

A timeline bar chart showing when each dish is being prepped and cooked. Each color represents a different cooking method.

Cooking Steps

A numbered checklist of every action you need to take, in order. Each step shows:

  • The type of action (Prep, Cook, Rest, Wait)
  • What dish it belongs to
  • What time to start
  • How long it takes

You can tap or click each step to check it off as you cook. A progress bar at the bottom shows how far along you are.

You can also switch between two views by clicking the button in the Cooking Steps header:

  • Flat list — all steps in order
  • Group by time — steps grouped by the time they start

Schedule Warnings

If the app detects a problem (like two oven dishes at different temperatures that cannot overlap), a yellow Schedule Warnings box appears at the top with details.

Saving a Meal Plan to Your Library

  1. Click Save to Library.
  2. Your current meal plan is saved and can be loaded later.

Loading a Saved Meal Plan

  1. Click Library.
  2. Find the meal you want and click Load.
  3. It replaces your current meal plan on the scheduler.

Note: Save your current plan first if you do not want to lose it.

Printing Your Schedule

Click Print to open a clean, printer-friendly version of your schedule.

Pantry Minder

Track what ingredients you have at home, how much is left, and when items expire.

Adding an Item

  1. Click the Pantry Minder link in the sidebar.
  2. Click Add Item.
  3. Fill in the details:
    • Item Name — what it is (e.g., "All-Purpose Flour")
    • Category — select a category like Produce, Dairy, Spices, etc.
    • Packaging — how it is stored (bag, jar, can, bottle, etc.), or leave as None
    • Quantity Mode — choose Bulk (a single amount) or Packaged (count of packages with amount per package)
    • Quantity and Unit — how much you have (pieces, cups, lbs, kg, etc.)
    • Min. Stock — the minimum amount before the app flags it as low
    • Expiration Date — when the item expires (optional)
    • Location — where it is stored (e.g., "fridge", "pantry shelf")
    • Notes — any extra details
  4. Click Save.

Bulk vs. Packaged Mode

  • Bulk — enter a total amount directly (e.g., 3 cups of flour).
  • Packaged — enter how many packages you have and how much is in each (e.g., 2 bags of 2 lbs each = 4 lbs total).

Viewing and Searching Your Pantry

  • Type in the Search bar to find items by name or location.
  • Items are grouped by category. Tap a category heading to collapse or expand it.

Filtering Items

Use the filter buttons to narrow what you see:

  • Category dropdown — show only one category
  • Low Stock Only — show items that have fallen below their minimum stock level
  • Expired Only — show items past their expiration date
  • Clear filters — remove all active filters

Editing or Removing a Pantry Item

  • Tap or click an item card to open the edit form.
  • Change any field and click Save.
  • Click the trash icon to remove an item.

Pantry Summary

At the top of the Pantry Minder page, you will see summary stats like total items, low-stock count, and expired count.

Shopping List

Build grocery lists from your saved meal plans, or add items manually.

Generating a List from Meal Plans

This is the easiest way to build a list. The app looks at the ingredients in your saved meals and subtracts what you already have in your pantry.

  1. Click Shopping List in the sidebar.
  2. Click Generate from Meals.
  3. A window opens showing all your saved meal plans. All meals are selected by default.
  4. Deselect any meals you do not need.
  5. Click Generate List.

The shopping list is created with ingredients grouped by category. Items you already have enough of in your pantry are left off the list.

Adding Items Manually

  1. Click Add Item.
  2. Enter the item name, quantity, unit, and category.
  3. Click Save.

Checking Off Items

Tap or click an item on your list to check it off. Checked items are hidden by default.

To see checked items again, click Show Checked.

Managing Checked Items

  • Add Checked to Pantry — move all checked items into your Pantry Minder (useful after you return from the store).
  • Remove Checked — delete all checked items from the list.
  • Uncheck All — uncheck every item so you can reuse the list.
  • Clear List — delete every item on the list.

Filtering the Shopping List

  • Use the category dropdown to show items from one section of the store.
  • Click Show Checked / Hide Checked to toggle visibility of completed items.

Recipe Box

Save, browse, and organize your favorite recipes.

Adding a Recipe

  1. Click Recipe Box in the sidebar.
  2. Click Add Recipe.
  3. Fill in the recipe details:
    • Recipe Name
    • Category — Dinner, Dessert, Appetizer, etc. (you can also create custom categories)
    • Description — a short summary
    • Servings — how many people it feeds
    • Prep Time and Cook Time
  4. Add ingredients with name, quantity, and unit.
  5. Add cooking steps with details like dish name, prep time, cook time, temperature, cook method, and notes.
  6. Click Save.

Importing a Recipe from a URL

If a recipe page online has structured data, you can import it automatically:

  1. Click Import URL.
  2. Paste the recipe page URL.
  3. Click Fetch Recipe.
  4. Review the imported details, make any changes, and click Save.

Viewing a Recipe

Click on any recipe card to open the full recipe view, showing all ingredients and steps.

Editing or Deleting a Recipe

  • Click the Edit button on a recipe card to make changes.
  • Click the Delete button to remove a recipe.

Managing Categories

  1. Click the Categories button in the toolbar.
  2. Type a new category name and click Add.
  3. Click the X next to a custom category to remove it.

Built-in categories (Dinner, Dessert, Appetizer, etc.) cannot be removed.

Adding a Recipe to Your Dinner Schedule

  1. Click Add to Schedule on a recipe card.
  2. A window opens showing all the cooking steps in the recipe.
  3. Adjust the servings number if you want to cook more or less. Ingredient quantities scale automatically.
  4. Select which steps to include (all are selected by default).
  5. Click Add to Schedule.
  6. You are taken to the Dinner Scheduler with the recipe steps loaded as dishes.

Adding a Recipe's Ingredients to Your Shopping List

Click Add to Shopping List on a recipe card. The app checks your pantry and only adds ingredients you are missing or running low on.

Searching and Filtering Recipes

  • Type in the Search bar to find recipes by name or description.
  • Use the category dropdown to filter by category.
  • Click Clear filters to show all recipes again.

Settings

Click Settings in the sidebar to change app-wide preferences. Changes are saved automatically.

Dinner Scheduler Settings

  • Temperature Unit — switch between Celsius (°C) and Fahrenheit (°F)
  • Time Format — choose 24-hour (14:00) or 12-hour (2:00 PM) clock
  • Default Direction — set Forward or Reverse as the default scheduling direction
  • Number of Cooks — how many people are helping in the kitchen (allows more prep tasks to happen at the same time)

Reset to Defaults

Click Reset to defaults in the top-right corner to restore all settings to their original values.

Export and Import Your Data

Exporting

  1. Go to the Dinner Scheduler page.
  2. Click Export.
  3. A JSON file downloads to your device. It includes your meal library, pantry items, shopping list, recipes, and settings.

Importing

  1. Go to the Dinner Scheduler page.
  2. Click Import.
  3. Select the JSON file you exported earlier.
  4. Your data is loaded into the app.

Tip: Use export to back up your data or move it to another device.

Tips and Shortcuts

  • Everything auto-saves. You do not need to click a save button after every change.
  • Use the cooking steps checklist while you cook to stay on track. Tap each step as you complete it.
  • Mark a main course to make it easy to spot among many dishes.
  • Add ingredients to your dishes so the app can check your pantry and build shopping lists for you.
  • Set minimum stock levels in Pantry Minder to get warned when you are running low.
  • Use the "Add Checked to Pantry" button after grocery shopping to quickly update your inventory.
  • Reverse scheduling is great for dinner parties — tell the app what time guests arrive, and it tells you when to start cooking.
  • Forward scheduling is great for weekday dinners — tell the app when you start cooking, and it tells you when dinner is ready.

Thank you for using DinnerPlanner! Happy cooking.