Recipes can be passed down from generations, written in a cookbook, or written on a sticky note. No matter how you come across a recipe, they all have one thing in common: they were made by people… until now.  

Artificial Intelligence has done many things including writing code, assisting in image editing, and helping with branding. Recently, AI has made its way to the kitchen. AI is in refrigerators, along with being in Alexa and Google Play.  

Now, AI is making meal suggestions. Some of the suggestions for Thanksgiving Day are Pumpkin Soup and Vegan Nut Roast. AI in the kitchen can be helpful, such as referring to AI when you need a recipe for a certain occasion or if you are making a dish for someone with an allergy. 

Although AI can be extremely helpful in the kitchen, like everything else, it still has its flaws. Priya Krishna from New York Times Cooking tried making a Thanksgiving meal using AI. It produced a naan stuffing that had 32 different ingredients. I am not sure about you, but in my opinion, the easier the recipe, the better. Along with that, AI created a roasted turkey recipe with soy glaze. Only one issue arose when the recipe called for one clove of garlic for the turkey, which was a twelve-pound bird.  

With all the recipes that AI is making, it makes me wonder how it produces them? I learned that all the recipes are original, which is why sometimes they come out a little wonky. As Krishna talks about cooking with AI, she said it tasted a little odd because the turkey was very dry because AI called for no butter or oil.  

I wanted to try this out myself. I found a website called DisGen and attempted to make a dish. To start, you type in ingredients that you currently have sitting in your kitchen. I really wanted to make this interesting, so I typed in some crazy ingredients, such as flour, honey, mustard, and mayo. This brought up a recipe for honey mustard bites. I was very committed to this recipe, and it gave me some ingredients I did not have. This recipe turned out so scrumptious. I did not have exceedingly lofty expectations after reading articles about the recipes that AI creates, but it proved me wrong. I will for sure be making this again, as well as even using AI to cook again. It does give you a warning on the website that the recipe has not been verified for safety or taste, which made me very reluctant to attempt a recipe, but it is such a useful resource when you do not have a lot of produce or food left and need to make it to grocery day. 

Overall, I would recommend this to anyone who wants to get outside their comfort zone cooking. Along with that, bring an AI recipe to Thanksgiving this year and see if anyone notices. AI has so many benefits, and making cooking recipes is just one of them. Will you be using AI to make a dish for Thanksgiving? 

“What Happens When You Let Artificial Intelligence Decide What’s for Dinner | CBC Radio.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 8 Nov. 2022, www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/new-york-times-ai-recipes-1.6643268 

Emma Arteaga is a Dakota Student General Reporter. She can be reached at [email protected].