How can we help?
Most questions are answered below. If yours isn't, email us. A real person reads every message.
Importing recipes
Which links work?
Links to a single post on:
- YouTube: videos, Shorts and youtu.be share links.
- TikTok: videos, photo posts and share links (vm.tiktok.com and the like).
- Instagram: posts and Reels.
- Facebook: videos, Reels, posts and fb.watch or share links.
Profiles, channels, feeds and hashtags aren't links to one recipe, so Kawali can't import them. Open the video itself and copy or share its link.
Why are some amounts blank?
Because the video didn't say. If the cook says "konting patis lang", Kawali writes down patis and marks the amount not specified rather than guessing. Kawali never invents a quantity, a cooking time or a serving count, and it lists anything it's unsure of on the review screen before you save.
Tap an ingredient to fill in the amount the way you make it. You can edit any recipe later from its page, too.
What does "About 5" next to servings mean?
When a video doesn't say how many it feeds, Kawali may estimate it from the weight of the main ingredient, for example 2 lb of chicken thighs. The estimate is shown as "~5" and stays an estimate until you tap Use 5 or enter your own number.
Kawali says it's "watching the video for the steps". What does that mean?
Some videos show the cooking without saying the steps anywhere Kawali can read them. For those, Kawali watches the video itself to work them out, which takes longer than a normal import.
You don't have to wait. Save the recipe: it shows an hourglass on your recipe list until the steps arrive, and they're added to the recipe on their own. If you allow notifications, Kawali tells you when they're ready, or if the video gave no steps.
Kawali couldn't find enough recipe information.
Some posts simply don't contain a recipe: just the dish's name and some music. When that happens you can:
- Tap Create Manually to write the recipe yourself. The video stays attached as the source.
- If the creator posted the recipe somewhere else, such as a website or a pinned comment, copy it and use Paste Text.
- If the problem was the connection, tap Try Again. Your link isn't lost.
How do I import a recipe from a photo or a cookbook?
On the Import screen, tap Import Photo to pick up to four pictures (for a recipe that runs over more than one page), or Snap Photo to use the camera. Kawali reads the words on your iPhone; the photo itself never leaves it.
For the best reading:
- Get the whole ingredient list and the steps in the picture, in good light.
- Keep the page flat and the camera square to it.
- For a page with two columns, crop or photograph one column at a time. Kawali reads across the page, so side-by-side columns can get mixed.
Handwriting is harder to read than print, so check the result on the review screen. The text Kawali read stays with the recipe under Source, so you can compare.
Can I import a recipe I copied from a website or a message?
Yes. Copy the recipe, then tap Paste Text on the Import screen. iOS asks once whether Kawali may paste from the app you copied it in. If what you copied is a link, Kawali imports it as a link. To start from nothing, tap Make Your Own.
Does Kawali need an internet connection?
Only to import. Reading a link, or the text from a photo, happens on Kawali's server. Your saved recipes and your grocery list are on your iPhone and work offline, which is handy at the store.
Recipes and groceries
How do I change a recipe?
Open the recipe, tap the ••• button at the top and choose Edit Recipe. You can change the title, servings, times, dish family and region, fix or add ingredients, add, remove and reorder steps, and write notes like family tips or substitutions. Adjust Photo lets you choose which part of the picture shows.
How do I find a recipe again?
Use Search to look through your recipes by name or ingredient. On the recipe list you can sort by Recently Added, A to Z or Favorites, and Pin to Top keeps your go-to dishes first. Inside a long recipe, Find in recipe jumps to a word.
How does adding to Groceries work?
On a recipe, tap Add to Groceries and choose what you need. Optional ingredients start unchecked, and anything already on your list from that recipe is skipped. Items are sorted by aisle, and the same ingredient from different recipes is added up when the units match; each item shows which recipes it's for.
Tick items off as you shop and tap Clear Completed when you're done. To take a whole recipe's items off the list, remove the recipe at the top of the Groceries screen; the recipe itself stays saved.
Can the grocery list show English names?
Yes. Kawali keeps Filipino names like talong and sitaw, but tap the translate button beside Print Grocery List to show English names too, for a store that labels things "eggplant" and "long beans".
Can I print my grocery list or share a recipe?
Tap Print Grocery List on the Groceries screen to print it with AirPrint. To send a recipe to someone, open it and tap the share button.
If I delete a recipe, what happens to my grocery list?
The recipe is removed from your collection, and grocery items you added from it stay on your list until you check them off or remove them.
Privacy and devices
Does Kawali upload my photos?
No. The words in a photo are read on your iPhone, and only that text is sent to Kawali's server to be laid out as a recipe. For links, only the link is sent. The Privacy Policy explains exactly what is sent and why.
Do my recipes sync between my iPhone and iPad?
Not at the moment. Recipes and groceries are stored on each device. They're included in your iCloud or computer backup, so they come back when you restore a device from a backup.
How do I delete my data?
Delete a recipe from its page (••• › Delete Recipe), or delete the app to remove everything Kawali has stored on your device. We don't keep a copy of your recipes, so there's nothing else to delete.
Which devices does Kawali work on?
iPhone and iPad with iOS 26.2 or later. The app is in English and understands recipes told in English, Tagalog and Taglish.