Create a recipe or formula
All plans
The ways to create a recipe (document, sample or by hand) and the minimum steps in the editor so it calculates cost, allergens and nutrition.
What it is for
The recipe is the heart of Recipok. You write it once and, from its ingredients and quantities, Recipok works out the real cost, adds up the allergens, calculates the nutrition information and prepares the label, the technical sheet and the production order. If the price of butter changes, the cost of every recipe that uses it updates by itself.
It is used by whoever designs the products (bakery, kitchen, R&D) and whoever sets the prices. This tutorial explains the ways to create a recipe and the minimum steps to leave it complete.
Before you start
- Make sure your ingredients are set up with their price and unit. Without a price, the cost comes out as zero.
- If you want to see the full cost (staff and overheads), set up your fixed and staff costs first.
- Create the semi-finished products (doughs, creams, bases) first, and then the products that use them.
How to create a recipe
Click New recipe in the Recipes menu. The Create recipe or formula window opens with three paths:
| Option | When to use it |
|---|---|
| Already have the recipe in a document? Import with AI | You upload the recipe as a PDF, Excel, Word or CSV file, or a photo of your notebook, and Recipok builds it with its ingredients, matched to your catalogue. You review and confirm. It uses one scan, which you get back if the document cannot be read. We explain it in Create recipes from a document. |
| Start with a sample recipe | It is created instantly with its ingredients, allergens and costs. Useful for learning the editor or as a starting point that you then adapt. |
| I'd rather create it by hand from scratch | You type the Recipe Name, choose the Quantity format (kilograms or units), the desired quantity and the estimated production time. From here you can also click Analyze with AI so that Recipok suggests a generic recipe based on the description (spoken or typed). |
To load lots of recipes at once from a spreadsheet, use Recipes and formulas › Import.
The recipe editor, step by step
At the top is the action bar; in the centre, the ingredients table; on the left, the Recipe options menu with a tab for each block of data.
| Ingredient | Quantity | Weight | Use | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cream cheese | 1,000 g | 1,000 g | Filling | €6.90 |
| Cream 35% | 400 ml | 400 g | Filling | €1.48 |
| Eggs | 5 pcs | 300 g | Filling | €1.10 |
| Sugar | 220 g | 220 g | Filling | €0.24 |
| 1Recipe - Biscuit base | 320 g | 320 g | Base | €1.15 |
| 2Cardboard cake box 22 cm | 1 pc | 0 g | Packaging | €0.62 |
- 1A recipe inside another: the biscuit base is a semi-finished product and goes in like any other ingredient, with its cost and its allergens.
- 2The packaging is an ingredient counted in pieces with a weight of 0: it adds to the cost, but not to the weight or the nutrition.
Recipe data
Enter the Price by (kilograms or units), the Units obtained, the Handling time in minutes (it feeds the staff cost) and the actual weight after baking or losses, which corrects the cost per kilo and the weight on the label. The advanced data include shelf life, family, SKU, barcode and critical stock.
Ingredients
Click Edit ingredients and search for each ingredient or semi-finished product. For each one, type the quantity; the weight is calculated by applying the waste. The usage notes (“filling”, “base”) appear on the preparation sheet.
Instructions
The method. It appears on the recipe sheet and on the production order. Write it for someone who has never made it before.
Costing and charts
Read only: ingredient, staff and overhead costs, the total and the cost per unit or per kilo. We explain it in Recipe costing: how the cost is calculated.
Selling prices
From the profit percentage and VAT, Recipok suggests the Recommended retail price. Type the price you actually sell at next to it to see your real margin. More in Selling price and margins.
Everything else, depending on the product
Production Formats (the same product in another size), Process control (steps with times and temperatures for the production order), Label configuration and Technical Sheet. Each one has its own tutorial.
The actions in the top bar
- Print: recipe sheet, labels, technical sheet and cost report.
- Produce: creates a production order for this recipe.
- Reformulate and Duplicate: scale the quantities or start from a copy. See Reformulate, duplicate and cost trends.
- Replace ingredients: swaps one ingredient for another in the recipe.
Check the allergen card of every finished recipe. If it says “No allergens” and the recipe contains flour, there is an ingredient that has not been classified.