Top 10 Open Source Alternatives to BrainChef Recipe Assistant in 2025

As the BrainChef Recipe Assistant continues to be a popular tool in the culinary sphere, many open-source alternatives have emerged, offering a range of features that cater to different requirements. Below, we explore the top 10 open-source alternatives to BrainChef Recipe Assistant in 2025, providing insights into their key features, platforms, and licenses.

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1. RecipeSage

Description: A free, donation-based, open-source personal recipe keeper, meal planner, and shopping list manager. It's available on the web, iOS, and Android.
Key Features:
Imports recipes from any URL.
Offers drag-and-drop meal planning.
Automatically categorizes and groups shopping lists.
Allows sharing of recipes and meal plans.
Supports importing from Pepperplate, Living Cookbook, and Paprika.
Platform: Web, iOS, Android
License: AGPL-3.0
RecipeSage Website

2. Grocy

Description: A web-based, self-hosted groceries and household management solution. It's open-source and designed for home use.
Key Features:
Meal planning based on recipes.
Shopping list generation.
Household equipment management.
Tracking of household chores.
Pantry inventory management.
Platform: Web-based
License: MIT
Grocy Website

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3. Krecipes

Description: A highly configurable recipe manager designed to organize personal recipe collections quickly.
Key Features:
Generates shopping lists.
Provides nutrient analysis.
Advanced search capabilities.
Detailed recipe ratings.
Imports/exports various formats.
Platform: Desktop (Linux, KDE)
License: GPL
SourceForge Project

4. Tandoor Recipes

Description: A Django-based application for managing, tagging, and searching recipes. It uses either built-in models or external storage.
Key Features:
Powerful recipe editor.
Recipe searching by ingredients.
Sharing recipes with others.
Shopping list creation.
Meal planning capabilities.
Platform: Web-based
License: MIT
Tandoor Website

5. Mealie

Description: A material design-inspired recipe manager with category and tag management, shopping lists, meal planner, and site customizations.
Key Features:
Simple user interactions.
Category and tag management.
Shopping-lists creation.
Meal-planning features.
Site customizations.
Platform: Web-based
License: MIT
Mealie GitHub

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6. Gourmet Recipe Manager

Description: A cross-platform open-source recipe tool written in Python, working on Linux, Windows, and Mac.
Key Features:
Built-in timer and unit converter.
Imports recipes from various formats.
Webpage import feature.
Search by regular expressions.
Multi-platform support.
Platform: Linux, Windows, Mac
License: GPL v2
Open Source Article

7. groceri.es

Description: A web-based application to manage recipes, plan meals, and generate grocery lists.
Key Features:
Menu planning.
Grocery list generation.
Uses Flask framework.
Supports SQL databases.
Self-hosted.
Platform: Web-based
License: MIT
groceri.es Website

8. AnyMeal

Description: Free and open-source recipe management software built using SQLite3 and Qt6.
Key Features:
Manages over 250,000 MealMaster recipes.
Allows import, export, search, display, edit, and print functions.
Available for GNU/Linux and Microsoft Windows.
Platform: GNU/Linux, Microsoft Windows
License: Not specified
AnyMeal GitHub

9. KitchenOwl

Description: A cross-platform app for shopping list, recipe storage, expense tracking, and meal planning.
Key Features:
Shopping list management.
Recipe storage.
Expense tracker.
Meal planning.
Follows the material design language.
Platform: Cross-platform
License: AGPL-3.0
DevOpsSchool

10. Recipya

Description: Simple, clean, and powerful recipe manager built in Go.
Key Features:
Measurement system conversions (metric to imperial and vice versa).
Website scraper for importing recipes.
Automatic calculation of nutrition facts.
Platform: Web-based
License: Not specified
Reddit

These alternatives offer a range of features and platforms that can cater to various culinary needs, from meal planning to grocery management. Make sure to explore each tool's website for the most up-to-date information.

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FAQ

1. What is RecipeSage?

RecipeSage is a free, donation-based, open-source personal recipe keeper, meal planner, and shopping list manager available on the web, iOS, and Android. Learn more about RecipeSage Website

2. What features does Grocy offer?

Grocy features include meal planning based on recipes, shopping list generation, household equipment management, tracking of household chores, and pantry inventory management. Explore Grocy Website

3. What are the key capabilities of Krecipes?

Krecipes can generate shopping lists, provide nutrient analysis, perform advanced searches, offer detailed recipe ratings, and import/export various formats. Discover Krecipes on SourceForge

4. How does Tandoor Recipes help manage recipes?

Tandoor Recipes allows users to edit and search recipes by ingredients, share them with others, create shopping lists, and plan meals. Visit Tandoor Website

5. What unique features does Mealie offer?

Mealie features simple user interactions, category and tag management, shopping-lists, meal-planning tools, and site customizations. Check out Mealie GitHub

6. What can Gourmet Recipe Manager be used for?

Gourmet Recipe Manager includes a built-in timer, unit converter, webpage import feature, search by regular expressions, and supports Linux, Windows, and Mac platforms. More details on Gourmet Recipe Manager

7. What is groceri.es?

groceri.es is a web-based application that helps manage recipes, plan meals, and generate grocery lists. It uses the Flask framework and supports SQL databases. Visit groceri.es Website

8. What is AnyMeal used for?

AnyMeal is free and open-source recipe management software that manages, edits, and prints over 250,000 MealMaster recipes, available for GNU/Linux and Microsoft Windows. Learn more on AnyMeal GitHub

9. What functionalities does KitchenOwl provide?

KitchenOwl offers shopping list management, recipe storage, expense tracking, meal planning features, and follows the material design language. Explore more on DevOpsSchool

10. What benefits does Recipya offer?

Recipya includes measurement system conversions, a website scraper for importing recipes, and automatic calculation of nutrition facts. Discover Recipya on Reddit

References

About the Author

Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.

Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).

She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond and launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks.

For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.

About the Publication

Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.

Mission and Purpose

Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.

Key Features

The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:

Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials

Impact and Growth

Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:

3,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
100+ startup tools built
5,000+ pieces of articles and news written

Partnerships

Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.

Recognition

Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.