26 votes

Does anyone use self-hosted recipe server/software like Mealie?

Posted by Pavouk106
Tags: recipes, ask.survey, technology, software, servers, hosting.self, mealie, books.cook

Hello,

I'm into self-hosting and when my daughter (elementary school) started writing her own recipe book, I kinda went "She is young, she shouldn't be doing this in paper form" and I started looking around for a solution for kinda non-existing problem.

I stumbled upon Mealie, which is server that can be used in docker and is self-hosted recipe book/website. It seems like you can come in and say like "I have these ingrediants, what can I do?", it also seems to be able to generate shopping lists based on your selected recipe, you can use checkboxes when bringing all the ingredients on the kitchen board/table/top (non-English native speaker here) and so on.

It seems like the right software for me, but before I delve into it, I wanted to ask if someone else possibly runs such service for themselves at their home. Is there somebody who is using something like this? It doesn't have to be Mealie, specifically. But it should be server-side service, not some smartphone app. I know there are other such services, which are also open-source, but I forgot the names, sorry.

Thanks for any relevant answers!

33 comments

  1. [9]
    goose
    Link
    I've been using Mealie for a number of years now. Not to my knowledge, but I also haven't explored that kind of functionality, perhaps it can be achieved with additional settings/configuration....

    I've been using Mealie for a number of years now.

    It seems like you can come in and say like "I have these ingrediants, what can I do?"

    Not to my knowledge, but I also haven't explored that kind of functionality, perhaps it can be achieved with additional settings/configuration.

    it also seems to be able to generate shopping lists based on your selected recipe, you can use checkboxes when bringing all the ingredients on the kitchen board/table/top

    Yes, this is one of its very useful features.

    My primary use for Mealie is:

    1. A recipe archive, websites change or go down over time, by scraping my recipes to Mealie I have a copy of them locally
    2. "Trimming the fat" -- I don't care for the life back story about how a recipe reminds the author of a summer they spent in Boston 18 years ago, I just want the recipe and the steps. Scraping the recipe to Mealie achieves that.
    3. The Meal Planner, self explanatory

    I love it. I use it with postgres so I can get "fuzzy search" results, would recommend. It's pretty easy to get up and running, but I'd be happy to help if I can!

    7 votes
    1. [3]
      sum4
      Link Parent
      I've always wanted to spin it up and I think I will this weekend! Just using a big list of bookmarks in Docmost at the moment.

      I've always wanted to spin it up and I think I will this weekend!

      Just using a big list of bookmarks in Docmost at the moment.

      3 votes
      1. [2]
        goose
        Link Parent
        I also have a big list, but GitHub stars. Although I do love DocMost, it's a fantastic wiki.

        I also have a big list, but GitHub stars. Although I do love DocMost, it's a fantastic wiki.

        1 vote
        1. sum4
          Link Parent
          Yeha I'm really enjoying it for home docs and a shared space for informal things for the household it's a great tool.

          Yeha I'm really enjoying it for home docs and a shared space for informal things for the household it's a great tool.

          2 votes
    2. [5]
      Pavouk106
      Link Parent
      Thank you for your reply. It is the best of what I could get - someone using it. I have technical question: When I use docker for it to run, how do I set up postgres? Do J have to set it up myself...

      Thank you for your reply. It is the best of what I could get - someone using it.

      I have technical question: When I use docker for it to run, how do I set up postgres? Do J have to set it up myself or is it part of docker container or do I have to choose when first starting it up? I would love to use this option.

      And just to add to the first thing you quoted: According to @shiruken, you can search recipe based on what ingredients you have at hand (in case you haven't looked at other replies).

      Once again, thank you for your reply!

      1 vote
      1. [3]
        goose
        Link Parent
        Postgres is a separate container, it's a database backend. To give you a quick explanation of DB backends (that a technical someone will probably hate, but I'm trying to keep it simple): SQLite is...

        Postgres is a separate container, it's a database backend. To give you a quick explanation of DB backends (that a technical someone will probably hate, but I'm trying to keep it simple):

        • SQLite is a file. It's like a notebook. A single file stored directly on your device that is incredibly fast for one person to jot things down. It is the perfect, zero-setup choice for mobile apps or small prototypes, but just like a real notebook, it breaks down if hundreds of people try to write in it at the exact same time.
        • PostgreSQL is more like a fully automated, industrial-scale mega-warehouse of databases, built to enforce strict rules and process deeply complex requests without a single error. It is the ultimate choice for massive enterprise apps or financial systems, but because it requires so much power and setup, using it for a simple project is like hiring a logistics company to deliver a single pizza.

        By default, Mealie uses sqlite, which requires no additional setup. It's just a DB file that lives inside the container (or rather/ideally, on the file system where you have a volume or bind mount set up). Postgres is a separate service (therefore separate container) that your Mealie will need to "talk to".

        So you'll want to:

        1. Spin up a PostgreSQL container
        2. Add a user for mealie (e.g. mealie-user)
        3. Create a DB for mealie (e.g. mealie-db), and grant mealie-user permissions for mealie-db

        For context, here's the snippets of my docker-compose.yaml referencing my Mealie and Postgres:

        networks:
  default:
    enable_ipv6: true
    ipam:
      config:
        - subnet: 172.18.0.0/16
        - subnet: fd00:1::/80

services:
  postgresql:
    image: postgres:18
    hostname: postgresql
    container_name: postgresql
    environment:
      TZ: "America/New_York"
    volumes:
      - "/etc/timezone:/etc/timezone:ro"
      - "/etc/localtime:/etc/localtime:ro"
      - "/docker/config/postgresql:/var/lib/postgresql"
      - "/docker/config/postgresql/socket:/var/run/postgresql"
    restart: "unless-stopped"
    command: postgres -c log_line_prefix='%m [%p] %q[%u@%d] %h:%p '
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD", "pg_isready", "-U", "postgres"]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5
    logging:
      driver: json-file
      options:
        max-file: "1"
        max-size: "10M"

  mealie:
    container_name: mealie
    hostname: mealie
    image: ghcr.io/mealie-recipes/mealie:latest
    depends_on:
      nginx:
        condition: service_healthy
      postgresql:
        condition: service_healthy
    deploy:
      resources:
        limits:
          memory: 1000M
    volumes:
      - "/docker/config/mealie:/app/data/"
    environment:
      PUID: "1003"
      PGID: "998"
      TOKEN_TIME: "8760"
      TZ: "America/New_York"
      WEB_CONCURRENCY: "2"
      BASE_URL: "https://[redacted]"
      DB_ENGINE: "postgres"
      POSTGRES_USER: "mealie"
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: "[redacted]"
      POSTGRES_SERVER: "postgresql"
      POSTGRES_DB: "mealie"
      POSTGRES_PORT: "5432"
      SMTP_HOST: "smtp.fastmail.com"
      SMTP_PORT: "587"
      SMTP_FROM_NAME: "Mealie"
      SMTP_AUTH_STRATEGY: "TLS"
      SMTP_FROM_EMAIL: "[redacted]"
      SMTP_USER: "[redacted]"
      SMTP_PASSWORD: "[redacted]"
    restart: "unless-stopped"
    logging:
      driver: json-file
      options:
        max-file: "1"
        max-size: "10M"
        4 votes
        1. [2]
          Pavouk106
          Link Parent
          I know differences between SQLite and Postgres, I just didn't want to spin up my own database. I'd rather have it all inside one docker container. In the meantime I went on Mealie website and...

          I know differences between SQLite and Postgres, I just didn't want to spin up my own database. I'd rather have it all inside one docker container.

          In the meantime I went on Mealie website and started going through the docs and it seems they have it all-in-one now and you just select which way you want to go (Postgres here). If I understand that correctly, this will start Postgres and Mealie containers at once and all the work will likely be done automatically. I will try and start it up in upcoming hours, as I still have something else to do.

          Thank you for your reply. I will come back to it if the process isn't as automatic as I hope.

          1 vote
          1. goose
            Link Parent
            It looks like their docs walk you through spinning up your own postgres. So it's still not all-in-one, but they help simplify the setup! Happy to help if I can, happy meal-ing!

            It looks like their docs walk you through spinning up your own postgres. So it's still not all-in-one, but they help simplify the setup!

            Happy to help if I can, happy meal-ing!

            1 vote
      2. shiruken
        Link Parent
        I've always just run it using the default SQLite database without issue. Mealie's dedicated backup and restore system should make it trivial to swap between the two should you have the need.

        I've always just run it using the default SQLite database without issue. Mealie's dedicated backup and restore system should make it trivial to swap between the two should you have the need.

        1 vote
  2. [2]
    shiruken
    Link
    Confirming that you can indeed do this with the Recipe Finder feature. You can specify any ingredients (or tools) and it surfaces an "Almost Ready to Make" recipe list based on what you've selected.

    It seems like you can come in and say like "I have these ingrediants, what can I do?"

    Confirming that you can indeed do this with the Recipe Finder feature. You can specify any ingredients (or tools) and it surfaces an "Almost Ready to Make" recipe list based on what you've selected.

    6 votes
    1. Pavouk106
      Link Parent
      Thank you for confirming that!

      Thank you for confirming that!

      1 vote
  3. [7]
    joshbuddy
    Link
    I've been using a LaTex project to maintain recipe book. It's nice because I can print it off in a three-ring binder. Happy to share it as a template if that route is interesting to you. With an...

    I've been using a LaTex project to maintain recipe book. It's nice because I can print it off in a three-ring binder. Happy to share it as a template if that route is interesting to you. With an LLM its very easy to maintain now and doesn't require more than a git repo from a hosting perspective.

    4 votes
    1. [2]
      ajwish
      Link Parent
      Would you be able to share that template with me? I want to work with my mum on converting some of my grandmother's old recipes and it would be nice to be able to share a printed version with...

      Would you be able to share that template with me? I want to work with my mum on converting some of my grandmother's old recipes and it would be nice to be able to share a printed version with older family members.

      2 votes
    2. [4]
      Pavouk106
      Link Parent
      Thank you for the reply. It isn't for me though, I want to use it in the family, so ease of use is of utmost importance, this is why I'm going the server route and others will just use it, not...

      Thank you for the reply. It isn't for me though, I want to use it in the family, so ease of use is of utmost importance, this is why I'm going the server route and others will just use it, not manage it.

      Your reply might come handy to some more technical people out there though, so thanks for replying!

      1. [3]
        joshbuddy
        Link Parent
        Well, fwiw, now I basically just feed it a URL from a recipe I like, and it translates it to LaTex in a second. Or I've been able to take a photo of a recipe from my phone and do the same thing....

        Well, fwiw, now I basically just feed it a URL from a recipe I like, and it translates it to LaTex in a second. Or I've been able to take a photo of a recipe from my phone and do the same thing. But I understand if that's too much effort.

        The sad truth of recipe solutions is its hard to overcome the convenience of paper and pen. Web interfaces always feel a bit clunky for this, but hey if you can make it work, well done!

        1 vote
        1. [2]
          Pavouk106
          Link Parent
          The thing is there are some recipes I always go find on the web everytime I want to cook them. And to save the hassle of finding the exact same one each time, I will spin up my own personal...

          The thing is there are some recipes I always go find on the web everytime I want to cook them. And to save the hassle of finding the exact same one each time, I will spin up my own personal solution and build up the recipes I use myself.

          And then there are those 200+ recipes my wife has in paper form...

          1. joshbuddy
            Link Parent
            I wrote this recipe book for my wife's birthday because we were both so frustrated with the clumsiness with which most web-based recipes were presented. We are both avid cooks and we just wanted...

            I wrote this recipe book for my wife's birthday because we were both so frustrated with the clumsiness with which most web-based recipes were presented. We are both avid cooks and we just wanted the presentation and prep to be simplified so we can get the food out quick and not rely on the internet.

            So sounds like we're coming from the same place :)

            2 votes
  4. [4]
    bitwyze
    Link
    I use tandoor as my back-end and kitshn as my front-end for both my wife and myself. I don't think it does the "make a meal from these ingredients," but it does allow you to generate a shopping...

    I use tandoor as my back-end and kitshn as my front-end for both my wife and myself. I don't think it does the "make a meal from these ingredients," but it does allow you to generate a shopping list from your recipes. I can't speak to how well it works because we use a different shopping list app (for now).

    The kitshn dev is very responsive and has fixed a bug I found and added in a feature I requested in pretty short order!

    3 votes
    1. [3]
      Pavouk106
      Link Parent
      Thabjs. Tandoor is one of "the others". I didn't look much into it before and now it seems it's subscription based on-line thing. Not my kind of thing. But thanks for replying, it may be useful...

      Thabjs. Tandoor is one of "the others". I didn't look much into it before and now it seems it's subscription based on-line thing. Not my kind of thing.

      But thanks for replying, it may be useful for others.

      1. [2]
        bitwyze
        Link Parent
        It is self-hostable, though it looks like they took that off the home page. I host it on my local Proxmox machine. https://docs.tandoor.dev/install/docker/

        It is self-hostable, though it looks like they took that off the home page. I host it on my local Proxmox machine.

        https://docs.tandoor.dev/install/docker/

        1 vote
        1. Goblin
          Link Parent
          I do see the selfhost option on their front-page in the pricing section, it's the last option

          I do see the selfhost option on their front-page in the pricing section, it's the last option

          2 votes
  5. [5]
    Zorind
    Link
    This is the opposite of an answer to your question, but if you don't want an additional thing to self host, there's also some decent options. I use mela, primarily because it supports iCloud...

    This is the opposite of an answer to your question, but if you don't want an additional thing to self host, there's also some decent options.

    I use mela, primarily because it supports iCloud syncing, grocery list export to the "Reminders" app, and I can also export all of the recipes to pdf, html, or markdown (which I've used to share recipes here in the past). Its internal files are just custom JSON, so they'd be easy enough to export/import as well. It cost $6.99 which seemed fair to support the developer.

    I think mealie can likely do all of that too (in fact, I have thought about switching, but I don't have anything else I'm self hosting yet...so I haven't made the plunge).

    2 votes
    1. [3]
      Weldawadyathink
      Link Parent
      In the same vein, I'll give a shout out to Paprika. I also paid a flat fee for it years ago. Also to Mixel for cocktail recipes. I only self host if there is a clear feature, cost, or privacy win...

      In the same vein, I'll give a shout out to Paprika. I also paid a flat fee for it years ago. Also to Mixel for cocktail recipes.

      I only self host if there is a clear feature, cost, or privacy win over a public option. For me, for recipe usage isn't in my personal privacy or security threat model, and paprika is really good already. Just haven't found a reason to look into anything else.

      2 votes
      1. [2]
        Pavouk106
        Link Parent
        I wanna self-host because I want it as long-term solution - I don't want to rewrite all those recipes into some service I don't have control over only to get them wiped out once the service...

        I wanna self-host because I want it as long-term solution - I don't want to rewrite all those recipes into some service I don't have control over only to get them wiped out once the service decides it's ending its existence.

        This is the sole reason why I self-host some things, I want to be independent.

        1. Weldawadyathink
          Link Parent
          Very reasonable. That is the same reason I self host auduibookshelf and booklore.

          Very reasonable. That is the same reason I self host auduibookshelf and booklore.

          1 vote
    2. Pavouk106
      Link Parent
      It is the opposite, but I'm glad you mentioned it. Someone might find that info useful.

      It is the opposite, but I'm glad you mentioned it. Someone might find that info useful.

      1 vote
  6. [2]
    ShroudedScribe
    Link
    I run Mealie, but an older version of it for now. My only word of warning about it is that the author/maintainer has introduced multiple breaking changes in updates in the past. So don't just...

    I run Mealie, but an older version of it for now. My only word of warning about it is that the author/maintainer has introduced multiple breaking changes in updates in the past. So don't just auto-update or blindly update your image version, be sure to read the changelog.

    Other than that I do like it a lot, it's a great recipe book that translates ingredients effectively into a shopping list.

    1 vote
    1. Pavouk106
      Link Parent
      Thank you for the warning! It will come in useful, I'm sure. I would like to make our recipes digital and on top of that, why not run a service like Mealie when I have to write them all down...

      Thank you for the warning! It will come in useful, I'm sure.

      I would like to make our recipes digital and on top of that, why not run a service like Mealie when I have to write them all down anyway. It could have photos attached, easy sharing (even with "outside" world), easy editting, easy search... And the shopping list and "what can I do with these ingredients" is just the topping on the cake.

  7. PetitPrince
    Link
    I'm trying to use [Grocy] (https://grocy.info/) to manage my pantry but it turns out I don't have the mental fortitude to manage my stock. It runs as an addon to my home assistant instance, and I...

    I'm trying to use [Grocy] (https://grocy.info/) to manage my pantry but it turns out I don't have the mental fortitude to manage my stock. It runs as an addon to my home assistant instance, and I can either use the webapp or use a third party mobile app.

    1 vote
  8. [2]
    pumpkin-eater
    (edited )
    Link
    Maybe not the reply you're looking for, but don't dismiss the benefits of a tactile, tangible, personal artifact with handwritten entries and things pasted in. It's something that can survive...

    Maybe not the reply you're looking for, but don't dismiss the benefits of a tactile, tangible, personal artifact with handwritten entries and things pasted in. It's something that can survive being forgotten about for a decade, whereas a software solution won't... and years down the line, it's something that she can give to her children who can cook the recipes that she cooked for them, and follow not just her steps but her handwriting.

    Edit to add: this is partially driven by me noticing that the younger generations are recognising the benefits of analogue solutions that we (I'm assuming you're a millennial) discount as old-fashioned and uncool... and partially the ballooning complexity in just getting and keeping software running with the modern software engineering approach of "let's break backwards compatibility all the time and constantly be re-engineering"

    P.S. We don't have kids, I keep my recipes in Obsidian, it's simple and flexible... I can put photos, record different variations of a recipe, or how baking recipes reacted in different ambient temp/humidity. I can't really fathom the "I have these ingredients, what can I cook?" use-case because key ingredients are intertwined in my brain with my favourite recipes.

    1 vote
    1. Pavouk106
      Link Parent
      I'm 1986, I don't know how that is classified. One way of describing can be Maverick or Top Gun :-D And I kinda seem a bit like Maverick as I tend to do things my way and go against the trend, at...

      I'm 1986, I don't know how that is classified. One way of describing can be Maverick or Top Gun :-D And I kinda seem a bit like Maverick as I tend to do things my way and go against the trend, at least in my friend circle.

      I also don't plan to use all the features like "I have these, what can I make?", but it can be good for searching like "I know it has curry and cream in it, what was that called?"

      I also like analogue solutions. I still drive my two stroke 50+ years motorcycle, it is easy to ride, easy to repair and it just gets the job done. But I would also take EV for a spin if I had enough (spare) money to afford one, as I see what advantages it has and it would be well suited for our family usecase.

      Daughter can still handwrite her own recipe book, but I plan to support my server as long as would be possible and in the end you can always print everything (I have printer, which is not that common nowadays, I guess; I also have Blu ray drive, which is probably even less common).

      The electronic recipe book, I'm speaking about Mealie specifically now, also allows me to share the recipe with anyone. You probably was in a situation like "I really love this meal you brought here, do you know the recipe for it?" - in that case, I can generate a link to the recipe on my own server sitting at home and they will get it served on a nice webpage from where they can (probably) print it out in useful form. Or read it from smartphone while cooking it.

      And it is digitalized, which is always a great thing, as you can easily make copies or backups.

      But I still love to have a book in my hands, have my movies on physical discs (I own them, but actually rip them and watch from Jellyfin media server), play games on dedicated handhelds instead of smartphone, solve sudoku in paper form etc. But I also tend to use modern things for some of that (ie. e-book reader, which is just more convenient than book).

      1 vote
  9. HunterRobot
    Link
    I've been using the NextCloud addon Cookbook. It suffices for me, with a simple searchable recipe library with tagging and the possibility to scale up or down ingrediënts. But I'm sure some of the...

    I've been using the NextCloud addon Cookbook. It suffices for me, with a simple searchable recipe library with tagging and the possibility to scale up or down ingrediënts. But I'm sure some of the other solutions listed here provide more functionality. I just happened to have NextCloud running already.

    1 vote