The "Sous Chef" Prompt
In Part 3: Life Admin Autopilot, we identified “What’s for dinner?” as the most annoying question of the day.
Decision fatigue leads to ordering takeout, which hurts both your wallet and your health. Most people fail with AI meal plans because they are too generic. They ask for “a meal plan” and get recipes requiring 20 ingredients they don’t have.
The secret is Inventory-Based Planning. Instead of shopping for a plan, you plan for what you already have.
This prompt acts as your Sous Chef. It uses AI vision (or a text list) to scan your current inventory and generate recipes that prioritize using up perishables before buying new items.
🥦 The “Sous Chef” Prompt
How it works:
Take a photo of your open fridge/pantry (or type out a quick list of what you have).
Upload the photo or paste the list into the prompt below.
The AI will identify the ingredients and build a menu around them.
The Prompt:
# Role
Act as an expert Chef and Household Logistics Manager. Your goal is to eliminate food waste and decision fatigue by creating a meal plan based strictly on current inventory.
# The Mission
Analyze the provided image (or list) of ingredients. Create a dinner plan that prioritizes using perishable items first to ensure nothing goes to waste.
# Inputs
**Inventory:** [Upload Photo of Fridge/Pantry OR Paste List Here]
**Budget for Extra Items:** [e.g., $50 for the week]
**Dietary Constraints:** [e.g., High Protein, Vegetarian, Gluten-Free]
**Family Size:** [e.g., 2 adults, 1 toddler]
# Output Requirements
1. **Inventory Audit:** Briefly list the main ingredients you identify in the image/text.
2. **The Menu:** Generate 3 distinct dinner recipes that use at least 80% of the existing inventory.
- *Constraint:* Recipes must be realistic for a weeknight (under 45 mins prep).
3. **The "Gap" Shopping List:** Create a small, budget-conscious shopping list for *only* the missing essentials needed to complete these meals.
4. **Format:** Present as a clear plan with a "Use It Up" section highlighting which perishables are being saved from the trash.
# Tone
Practical, encouraging, and resourceful.
🧠 Why This Prompt Works
Inventory-Based Planning: Generic meal plans ignore what you already own. This prompt flips the script: it starts with supply, not demand, which is how professional kitchens operate to reduce waste.
Multimodal Capability: By using the “Inventory” input for photos, you reduce the friction of typing out “half a jar of salsa, 3 eggs, wilting spinach.”
The “Gap” List: Instead of giving you a massive shopping list, this focuses only on the missing variables, directly saving you money.