pan-out

Pan Out

You want to make a proper bolognese — the kind that actually tastes like it came from a kitchen that knows what it's doing. You don't want to memorize technique details or wing it from a blog recipe. You want to understand the science, hear what to do next without looking at a screen, swap ingredients for what's actually in your fridge, and learn from each cook.

📖 Documentation — setup guide, walkthroughs, and reference

Pan Out makes that practical. It's a set of AI skills for Claude Code that handle the full cooking pipeline:

1. Research -- deep-dive into a dish's science, techniques, and safety, then build a step-by-step protocol
2. Cook -- talk you through each phase at the stove with timers, temperature checks, and ingredient swaps
3. Debrief -- after you eat, capture what worked and what didn't so next time starts better

The system is built around protocols -- structured recipe files that hold everything needed to cook a dish: ingredients, phases, timing, temperatures, sensory cues, and the science behind each step.

Installation

Full setup walkthrough: panout.org/install

As a Plugin (recommended)

In any Claude Code session:

/plugin marketplace add alexeyv/pan-out
/plugin install pan-out@pan-out-marketplace

Then create your personal reference files:

cp references/cook-profile.example.md references/cook-profile.md
cp references/calibration.example.md references/calibration.md

Edit references/cook-profile.md with your equipment, preferences, and kitchen environment. If you have temperature instruments, run a boiling-water calibration and fill in references/calibration.md. See the kitchen setup guide for details.

From Source

1. Clone this repo
2. Run Claude Code with the plugin flag:

   claude --plugin-dir ./pan-out
   

3. Copy and customize your personal reference files:

   cp references/cook-profile.example.md references/cook-profile.md
   cp references/calibration.example.md references/calibration.md
   

4. Edit references/cook-profile.md with your equipment, preferences, and kitchen environment
5. If you have temperature instruments, run a boiling-water calibration and fill in references/calibration.md

Prerequisites

• Claude Code v1.0.33 or later
• An instant-read probe thermometer — for checking liquid temps, meat doneness, and food safety. Practically a must.
• An infrared (IR) thermometer — point-and-shoot surface temp readings for searing and high-heat work. Really nice to have.
• A dictation app like Wispr Flow — strongly recommended. Typing mid-cook is slow and distracting; dictation lets you wipe your hands, hold a button, say what you need, and let go — much faster than typing.

Works on macOS, Linux, and Windows, including voice output. Dictation and voice are both optional, but they make the cooking experience much smoother.

Usage

• Run /panout-help to get oriented
• Say "recipe [dish]" to research a dish and create a protocol
• Say "let's cook [dish]" to cook a dish step by step
• Say "debrief" after cooking to capture lessons

Project Structure

pan-out/
├── skills/                 # The skills that do the work
│   ├── cook/               #   Real-time guided cooking
│   ├── recipe/             #   Research and protocol creation
│   ├── debrief/            #   Post-cook review and learning
│   └── help/               #   Orientation and skill routing
├── protocols/              # Cooking protocols
│   ├── {dish}.md           #   Executable protocol
│   └── {dish}-science.md   #   Companion science deep-dive
├── references/             # Shared knowledge base
│   ├── protocol-format.md  #   Protocol format specification
│   ├── food-safety.md      #   Safe cooking temperatures
│   ├── cook-profile.md     #   Your equipment & preferences (personal, gitignored)
│   └── calibration.md      #   Your thermometer offsets (personal, gitignored)
├── sessions/               # Cook session state files (gitignored)
├── memory/                 # Accumulated lessons and notes (gitignored)
├── bin/                    # Utility scripts
│   └── progress-timer.sh   #   Background timer with spoken updates
└── test/                   # Test harnesses

Protocols

Protocols are structured recipe files that hold the full plan for cooking a dish. The recipe skill creates them from research; you don't write them by hand. Every protocol has a companion science file ({dish}-science.md) that captures the chemistry, temperature rationale, failure modes, and food safety references behind the protocol's design.

How It Works

Hands-on vs. hands-off