A useful recipe interview collects more than an ingredient list. It records where the dish came from, how the cook judges each stage, what may be shared, and what still needs checking. Print this page or work through it on screen.
Tell the contributor what you are making before you record or photograph anything. Ask whether they are comfortable with the recipe, their words, and any images appearing in an online book, a shared link, or a PDF.
1. Provenance and names
- What do you call this dish, and does anyone else call it something different?
- Who taught it to you, or where did you first encounter it?
- When did you start making this version?
- Is there a written card, clipping, cookbook, or message we should note as the source?
- Whose name, if anyone, may appear beside the recipe?
2. Ingredients and measurements
- Can we measure each handful, pinch, cup, or spoon as you cook today?
- Which ingredient descriptions matter, such as size, ripeness, temperature, or preparation?
- What quantity does this make in the pan or dish you normally use?
- Which substitutions have you actually tried, and which ones are only guesses?
Keep the spoken phrase next to the measured observation. A line such as 'add slowly until the dough feels soft' can sit beside the quantity you recorded during this session instead of being polished away.
3. Method and sensory checks
- What happens first, including any preparation done before cooking starts?
- Which pan, bowl, or tool changes the result?
- What should the cook see, smell, hear, or feel at each uncertain stage?
- Where do people usually rush, stop too early, or make a wrong turn?
- How do you know it is finished and ready to serve?
4. Context and story
- When is this dish usually made?
- Who normally cooks or serves it?
- Is there a memory or saying that belongs in a margin note?
- Is any part of that memory private or better left out?
5. Consent before publishing
- May I transcribe and edit this recipe for clarity?
- May the recipe appear in the online book?
- May it appear in the exported PDF and any copies I arrange to print?
- May I include your name, handwriting, voice transcription, or photograph?
- Would you like to review the finished page before I share or export it?
6. End with a follow-up list
Read the draft back while the contributor is still available. Mark missing quantities, unclear timings, source questions, spelling, and permission choices. Agree how and when you will ask the remaining questions instead of filling gaps from memory.
Create the first clean draft in the family recipe book, then send that page to the contributor for the review they requested. Keep your interview notes until the transcription and permissions are settled.
By forever.recipes