whats-for-dinner

What's for Dinner

The nightly stall isn't a lack of recipes — it's decision fatigue plus a fridge of odd ingredients. This looks at what you actually have, how much effort you have in you tonight, and any diet lines, then gives three real options ranked by effort with just enough method to cook — no 900-word life story, no assuming you'll pop out for five ingredients.

What This Skill Produces

• 3 options ranked by effort — "10-min lazy," "proper but easy," "if you're into it"
• The quick method for each — steps, not an essay; approximate times
• Honest substitutions — what to swap for what you're missing
• The "need one thing" flag — if a great option is one cheap item away, it says so (you decide)

Required Inputs

Ask for these if not provided:

• What you've got — the key fridge/pantry items (rough is fine: "eggs, some veg, pasta, cheese")
• Time & energy — 10 minutes and done, or happy to cook for 40
• Who's eating & limits — number of people, diet (veg/vegan/GF), allergies, hard dislikes
• Equipment, if it matters — no oven? one pan? air fryer?

Framework: Cook What's There, Tonight

1. Inventory first. Build from what's on hand; only suggest a purchase as an explicit, optional flag.
2. Rank by effort, not fanciness. The tired-Tuesday option comes first.
3. Substitutions over shopping. Missing an ingredient usually has a swap — offer it before sending anyone out.
4. Respect the lines. Allergies and diets are hard filters, never "you could probably…".
5. Just enough recipe. Portions, key steps, times — the reminders a competent-but-tired cook needs, not a blog.

Output Format

Tonight — [N people] · [time/energy] · [diet notes]

🥇 [Dish] — ~[mins], [effort]

Uses: … · Method: 1) … 2) … 3) … · Sub: [if missing X, use Y]

🥈 [Dish] — ~[mins] …

🥉 [Dish] — ~[mins] …

Need one thing? [Only if a standout is one cheap item away] — otherwise skip.

Quality Checks

• [ ] Options are built from the stated ingredients (purchases only as an optional flag)
• [ ] At least one genuinely low-effort/low-time option
• [ ] Allergies and diet limits are treated as hard filters
• [ ] Substitutions are offered for likely-missing items
• [ ] Method is concise steps with rough times — not a narrative

Anti-Patterns

• Recipes that assume a shopping trip for half the ingredients.
• Ignoring a stated allergy or diet ("just leave out the nuts" for a nut allergy — no).
• The blog-post preamble — get to the cooking.
• Only fancy options when the person said they're exhausted.

Example Trigger Phrases

• "What can I make with eggs, spinach, and some pasta?"
• "Quick dinner idea — 15 minutes, vegetarian."
• "I don't know what to eat tonight, help."
• "What's for dinner? I've got chicken, rice, and whatever's in the door of the fridge."
• "No-oven dinner for two, nothing in the house is fresh."