Recipe image import

How to save a recipe from an image or screenshot

Turn a photo, screenshot, handwritten card, or cookbook page into a clean recipe you can edit, search, and cook from.

Save Your First Image Free

A recipe image is useful until you need to search it, change a serving size, or read the instructions with messy hands. Pinch of This uses optical character recognition (OCR) to convert the words in an image into structured ingredients and directions. The result is an editable recipe—not another picture buried in your camera roll.

What kinds of recipe images work?

You can start with a phone screenshot, a photo of an index card, a cookbook page, a printed recipe, or an image somebody sent you. Clear, straight photos with even lighting produce the best first pass, but the extracted recipe remains editable when an old card is faded or the handwriting is unusual.

Recipe screenshots

Convert saved social posts, message attachments, and screen captures into searchable recipes.

Handwritten cards

Preserve family cards while keeping the original image and an editable transcription.

Cookbook pages

Photograph a printed page and separate its ingredients from its instructions.

Shared recipe photos

Save a recipe somebody texts or emails without typing every line again.

Three practical steps

From image to usable recipe

01

Choose a clear image

Keep the whole recipe in frame. Avoid glare, deep shadows, fingers over text, and steep camera angles.

02

Let OCR read it

The app identifies the title, ingredient lines, quantities, and instructions instead of saving one flat image.

03

Review and organize

Correct anything unclear, add notes or tags, and keep the finished recipe in your searchable digital recipe box.

How to get a more accurate scan

  • Photograph the recipe in bright, indirect light rather than under a harsh overhead bulb.
  • Flatten folded cards and curved cookbook pages so every line stays in focus.
  • Capture one recipe at a time and include the title when possible.
  • Review fractions, temperatures, and handwritten abbreviations before cooking.
  • Keep the original image for context while using the clean recipe card in the kitchen.

Image import versus storing screenshots

A screenshot gallery can preserve a recipe, but it cannot reliably search ingredients, combine items into a shopping list, or keep instructions readable across devices. Converting the image makes the recipe part of the same collection as recipes saved from websites and recipes you enter yourself.

If your image came from a handwritten family card, see the detailed guide to preserving handwritten recipes. For broader scanning features, visit the recipe card scanner, or learn how everything fits into a digital recipe box.

Recipe image questions

Can I save a recipe from a screenshot?

Yes. Import the screenshot so its ingredients and instructions become editable text rather than remaining trapped inside the image.

Does OCR work on handwriting?

It can read many handwritten cards, including older recipes. Accuracy varies with handwriting, contrast, focus, and lighting, so review the extracted measurements before cooking.

Can I edit the scanned recipe?

Yes. The imported title, ingredients, directions, notes, and other fields remain editable after scanning.

Turn your camera roll into a recipe box

Your first 20 recipes are free. No credit card required.

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