Ingredient vs Recipe Mode

There are two ways to cook:

1. Ingredient Mode

2. Recipe Mode

In Ingredient Mode, what is in the fridge determines what is for dinner. In Recipe Mode, you decide what you are going to cook — then go out and shop accordingly.

My wife is an Ingredient Mode gal. I am more of a Recipe Mode guy. This used to be a source of conflict, but I’ve officially made peace with it. We are a little bit like an inverse Colette and Linguini from the movie Ratatouille.

In the kitchen, I’ve always been a color inside the lines guy. But the difference between these two modes doesn’t end with cooking. I’ve found a similar pattern in some other surprising areas of my life.

A few years ago, I took a fun public speaking course that involved a series of games. One of them required you to give a spontaneous 60-second speech — say, on the topic “What’s on your Bucket List?” — while incorporating random word prompts that appear mid-speech: “A bowl of ice cream,” “waiting in line,” “foam rollers” (see example below).

At first, it’s tricky. But once you get the hang of it, it’s super fun.

One of the coaches, Alienor, explained there are two ways to play the game:

1. Follow the random inserts and let them shape where your talk goes.

2. Decide what you want to say in advance, and weave the inserts along the way.

Sound familiar?

Yep, it's basically Ingredient Mode vs Recipe Mode.

That coaching session has stuck with me. I remember staring into the Zoom camera and saying, “That’s interesting, coach. I think what you’re describing is basically two different ways to live life.”

And that’s the twist: I’m actually not a Recipe Mode guy. Yes, when it comes to cooking, I prefer a plan. But in public speaking, work, friendships, and other domains, I find myself more comfortable in Ingredient Mode.