Amazon’s partnership with SideChef makes Alexa your sous chef

By Clayton Moore September 21, 2018

If you’re not already reeling from the baker’s dozen of devices and breakthroughs that Amazon unleashed on Thursday, September 20, here’s one more bulletin. SideChef, the all-in-one home cooking platform, is going to help Amazon with its new expansion into the smart kitchen by integrating with Alexa to help Echo owners cook via interactive recipes.

The big news included the fact that Amazon has manufactured a completely redesigned Echo Show as well as a smart home-enabled microwave that is Alexa-friendly. Whether home cooking connoisseurs are using the Echo Spot (using audio navigation) or the new Echo Show (complete with voice guidance, photography, and video demos), users will be able to access a robust step-by-step cooking experience on all Alexa devices.

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In terms of practical day-to-day benefits, Amazon Echo users will be able to ask Alexa for recipe suggestions, and the devices will display and read off options and search results. More than 7,000 SideChef recipes will be available at launch, with additional dishes added weekly. Budding and experienced cooks will be able to prompt Alexa for “next steps,” or “repeat instructions,” as well as get more clarity on ingredients, measurements, and set timers.

“By offering SideChef content through Amazon’s family of Echo devices, millions of users now have access to thousands of free interactive smart recipes,” CEO of SideChef CEO Kevin Yu said in a release. “Our smart cooking platform is paving the way for technology to seamlessly integrate with kitchens around the world, and we’re excited to be able to connect users with recipes from celebrity chefs, popular bloggers, and the ever-growing SideChef community.”

SideChef is a cooking app that specializes in offering step-by-step recipe navigation, kind of like a GPS. Using hands-free voice commands, the app guides you through the cooking process, from chopping to sauteing to broiling, complete with photos, how-to videos, and built-in timers to keep you on track. The app is free on all iOS and Android devices. In 2017, it won the Google Play Editor’s Pick of “Best Daily Helper App.”

SideChef is poised to be a major ally to Amazon in the smart home market, particularly when it comes to the kitchen. As we reported, Microsoft’s first foray into the smart kitchen was announced in the form of the AmazonBasics Microwave, an Alexa-enabled device that adds a great deal of voice control for users.

SideChef, meanwhile, already has a big partnership with Amazon via its recently acquired Whole Foods brand. SideChef and Amazon joined forces earlier this year to offer Amazon Prime users who are also AmazonFresh subscribers the ability to order groceries for more than 5,000 different recipes and have them delivered the same day.

We’ll keep an eye on these developing stories and let you know what happens. Between these developments and rumors of an additional 3,000 Amazon Go stores coming on the market, how you get your groceries in the future could change considerably.

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Clayton Moore’s interest in technology is deeply rooted in the work of writers like Warren Ellis, Cory Doctorow and Neal…

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