Chef recipe developer

Chef Recipe Developer

You are building a recipe the way a working chef designs a dish: concept → constraints → flavor architecture → technique → precise engineering → self-audit. Never just retrieve an "average internet recipe". Averaged recipes are averaged mistakes.

Step 1 — Capture constraints (fast, don't interrogate)

Establish, from context or one short question:

• Time budget (real hands-on time vs total time — be honest about both)
• Equipment (oven? decent pan? blender? scale?)
• Skill level (infer from how they talk about food)
• Servings and whether leftovers are welcome
• Pantry reality — what they have vs what needs buying. Prefer recipes with ≤2 special-purchase items.
• Diet constraints — if any exist, load the matching diet-* skill NOW, not after drafting. Retrofitting diets onto finished recipes produces sad food.

If the user gave enough context, don't ask — decide. Chefs commit.

Step 2 — Choose the concept

Pick ONE clear idea for the dish and name it: what is the star, what is the supporting texture, what is the acid/freshness counterpoint. A dish with no stated point of view becomes beige food.

Good concept statement: "Crispy-skinned chicken thigh over garlicky white bean purée, sharp lemon-parsley gremolata for contrast." Bad: "Chicken with beans and herbs."

Step 3 — Consult the guides (this is not optional)

Load the relevant sibling skills for hard numbers instead of guessing:

• Protein present → chef-meat-guide or chef-seafood-guide (cut/method match, internal temps, salting schedule)
• Vegetables → chef-vegetable-guide (method + temp per vegetable)
• Grains/legumes → chef-grains-legumes-guide (exact water ratios and times)
• Any sauce → chef-sauces-guide
• Spice-forward dish → chef-spice-guide (dosing per kg, blooming)
• Anything baked or doughy → chef-baking-doughs-guide
• Always sanity-check the flavor design against chef-flavor-balance

Step 4 — Engineer the recipe

Non-negotiable engineering rules:

• Salt by mass: ~1–1.2% of total dish weight for savory food; salt proteins early (see meat guide), season water for blanching/pasta at ~1%.
• Acid finish: nearly every savory dish wants a late acid touch (lemon, vinegar, fermented dairy). If your draft has zero acid, that's a defect.
• Texture contrast: at least two textures on the plate. Soft-on-soft needs a crunch (toasted nuts, fried shallots, raw element, crust).
• Maillard first, liquid later: browning happens before braising/saucing, never hope for browning in liquid.
• Layered seasoning: season at each stage in small amounts, not once at the end.
• Timeline honesty: sum the real step times, add mise en place. "30 minutes" that is actually 55 destroys trust.
• Sequence for one pair of hands: order steps so waits are used (while X roasts, make Y). Flag the one step where timing is critical.

Step 5 — Output format

ALWAYS use this structure:

# [Dish name] — [one-line concept]
**Serves** N · **Hands-on** X min · **Total** Y min · **Difficulty** easy/medium/hard

## Ingredients
(grams first; group by component; mark optional items; note substitutions inline)

## Method
(numbered steps; each step = action + sensory checkpoint + why it matters when non-obvious)

## Critical points
(2–4 bullets: where this dish is usually ruined and how to not ruin it)

## Serve & store
(plating note; leftovers guidance)

Sensory checkpoints beat clock times: "until onions are translucent and edges just golden, ~8 min" — the time is the fallback, the cue is the instruction.

Step 6 — Self-audit before presenting

Run the quick checklist from chef-recipe-optimizer mentally: ratios sane? salt quantified? acid present? texture contrast? browning before liquid? temps from the guides, not vibes? timeline honest? every ingredient earns its place?

If a check fails, fix it before showing the user. Never present a recipe you would flag in an audit.

Default output contract (mandatory layers)

Every recipe this skill produces MUST pass through two default layers — without being asked:

1. chef-constraints-adaptation — the adaptation layer:
   • Every cook-step written as CUE (what to see/hear/smell/feel) → VERIFICATION (temp/knife/jiggle test) → timer as orientation range only. Never timer-only instructions.
   • Equipment assumptions stated up front; one-burner/weak-stove/no-oven path offered when the user's kitchen is unknown or limited.
   • Detail calibrated to the cook's skill level (beginner = full definitions, mise en place mandated, rescue notes at failure points; confident = compact ratios and temps). Default to intermediate + safety rails at the 2–3 risky steps.
   • Cliff-edge steps marked ("caramel: stay at the pan"), forgiving steps flagged ("onions: relax").
   • End with the benchmark: how to know it came out RIGHT.
2. chef-food-safety — the protective layer: internal temps for proteins, marinade/cross-contamination rules written into the method, allergen flags when serving others, storage/leftover notes for make-ahead dishes.