Cooktus - recepices your don't have to read by Maarten Janssen

Cooktus is a unique way to visualize recipes, making cooking simple, fast, and intuitive for visual thinkers, parents, and anyone who values efficiency in the kitchen—served as a set of cards

The creative idea was to solve the frustration of constantly rereading traditional recipes and stumbling over words such as "meanwhile" or "afterwards," or bumping into the 'preheated oven' in the last step. By visualizing the cooking process as distinct flows—each leading seamlessly to the final dish, we untangled those fuzzy steps. This approach inspired the cactus-shaped design and gave the project its name. Combined with simple illustrations, Cooktus makes the entire process "readable" at a glance. Ideal for anyone juggling tasks in a busy kitchen, where cooking can already be stressful enough.

To further enhance this simple experience, we chose to limit recipes to just 5 ingredients, available at every supermarket. By presenting it as a set of cards, we made it extra playful and convenient to pick a meal—or even plan an entire week of meals.

"Tonight I have a date. Do you have a good recipe?" Maarten, the cooking novice, asked Fabian, the cooking enthusiast of the design duo. Without hesitation, Fabian launched into a stream of instructions, but Maarten checked out before Fabian even got to the second step. The recipe sounded like an endless story, and Maarten’s confused but hungry expression said it all.

“Let’s draw it!” they shouted in unison. A recipe didn’t need to be tied to words. A visual representation—like an infographic, a metro map, or an IKEA manual—would be so much clearer. Their first design instantly resonated, unlike Maarten’s date.

From there, they dove deep into testing. At first, they tested with friends and family, but later with complete strangers in the kitchen. Testing became crucial for balancing simplicity and providing just enough information. It was through this process that they realized cooking is always made up of several parallel action flows. Representing these flows visually unlocked the clarity that traditional text recipes lacked.

Though both designers have a heart for digital, they realized after some online attempts, this concept had to be brought to life in an analog format. Together with a recipe developer and publisher, they created 30 recipes that are perfect for everyday cooking while also offering surprises.
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Text-based recipes aren’t broken, but they could be so much better—and perhaps they should be. Recipes are deeply embedded in our daily lives; everyone eats, and many people cook every day. It’s surprising that the only standard format for recipes is textual, which inherently excludes many people. For something as universal as cooking, we believe it’s essential to make recipes more inclusive and accessible.

Our goal is to bring the joy of cooking back to more people. During our research, we discovered that Cooktus is particularly effective for people with dyslexia and ADHD. However, we intentionally chose not to position it as a niche product for specific groups but instead as a universal tool. This decision allows Cooktus to benefit a wide range of users—parents, busy professionals, and visual thinkers alike—without stigmatizing any specific audience. Our aim is to establish a new standard that makes recipes clearer and more enjoyable for everyone.