How to Save Recipes from TikTok
There are four ways to keep a recipe you found on TikTok. They differ in one thing that matters at the stove: whether you end up with a video you have to scrub through, or a written list of ingredients and steps.
By the Only Recipes Team. Updated .
The four ways, side by side
| Method | What you keep | Lost if the video is deleted? |
|---|---|---|
| TikTok Favorites | The video | Yes |
| Screenshots | Whatever was on screen | No |
| Typing it out | A written recipe | No |
| A recipe app | A written recipe plus a link to the video | No |
1. Add it to your TikTok Favorites
Tap the bookmark icon on the right side of the video. It goes into the Favorites tab on your profile, and you can sort favorites into named collections such as "Dinners" or "Baking".
This is the fastest option and it is fine for a recipe you will make this week. It has two problems for anything longer. You still have to rewatch the video to cook from it, pausing for each quantity. And a favorite is only a pointer: if the creator deletes the video or makes it private, it is gone.
2. Take screenshots
Pause on the frames that show the ingredient list and take a screenshot of each. Many creators put the quantities on screen for a second or two, so it helps to scrub back. Read the caption too, since some creators write the full recipe there.
Screenshots survive the video being deleted, but they end up mixed in with everything else in your camera roll, they are not searchable, and they miss anything that was only said out loud.
3. Type it out
Watch the video once with a notes app open and write down the ingredients and steps. It is slow, but you get a recipe that is written in your own words and fully searchable. If you go this way, paste the result into the recipe formatter to turn rough notes into a clean ingredient list and numbered steps.
4. Save it to a recipe app
A recipe app that understands TikTok links does the typing for you. In Only Recipes it works like this:
- In TikTok, tap Share (the arrow on the right side of the video), then Copy link.
- Paste the link into the TikTok importer on the web, or into the Only Recipes app. On iPhone and Android you can also pick Only Recipes straight from the share sheet instead of copying the link.
- Only Recipes reads the caption and a transcript of what is said in the video, then writes out the ingredients and steps.
- Check the result, then save it. The recipe keeps the creator's name and a link back to the video.
TikTok imports need Only Recipes Premium. The free plan still covers recipe websites and Pinterest pins, and keeps up to 15 recipes.
Tips that save a failed import
- Look for the creator's own recipe page. Many food creators link a full written recipe in their bio. That page usually has exact quantities, and it imports for free with the ad-free recipe tool.
- Check the video is public. Private and friends-only videos cannot be read by any app, only by you in TikTok.
- Expect gaps in music-only videos. If nobody speaks and the caption is short, there is nothing to transcribe. Screenshots of the on-screen text are the better option there.
- Check steps that were never said. When a video lists ingredients but skips the method, the importer writes reasonable steps from the ingredients. Read them before you cook.