Who writes the site
ScaleRecipe is built and edited by Muhammad Salman Saleem — a software developer who wanted a recipe tool that respected fractions, salts, and the difference between a US and a metric cup. The site has one editorial voice and one byline; there is no anonymous “content team.” You can find background on the developer at the linked portfolio and on LinkedIn.
What we publish
ScaleRecipe's content falls into four categories, each with different sourcing and editorial expectations:
- Recipe content — sourced from TheMealDB, an open community-maintained recipe database. We don't edit recipe text; we attribute every recipe to TheMealDB and link out to the original source where available. We are not the authors of the recipes themselves.
- Tools and converters — built and maintained by us. The math is ours, the unit definitions are sourced from NIST and standard culinary references; ingredient densities are drawn primarily from King Arthur Baking and the USDA FoodData Central. These references are noted on the relevant pages.
- The Journal— original essays we write about specific cooking questions: why eggs vary by weight, how oven thermometers drift, why doubling a cake doesn't double the bake. Each essay reflects one person's view, with sources cited inline where they apply.
- Reference and FAQ — practical kitchen knowledge written by us, edited for clarity, and updated when something changes (e.g. when a unit definition is revised, when food-safety guidance updates).
How we fact-check
For tools and reference content:
- Unit conversions are verified against multiple authoritative sources (NIST, ISO).
- Ingredient densities are cross-referenced between at least two sources.
- Cooking-time guidance and pan-size geometry are derived from first principles where the math is well-defined.
- When sources disagree (e.g. cup definitions in US vs. metric vs. Japan), we note the disagreement openly rather than pick a winner silently.
For Journal essays, claims are linked to their sources (USDA, peer-reviewed papers, cookbook references, manufacturer documentation) where the claim is non-obvious.
For recipe content, we rely on TheMealDB's contributors and don't add an editorial layer of testing. See our Disclaimer for the implications.
Corrections policy
If we publish something wrong, we want to know. Send a note via the contact pagedescribing what's wrong and where you saw it. Substantive corrections — wrong figures, broken math, factual errors — are applied as soon as we can verify them, and the page's “last updated” date is revised. For Journal essays, significant corrections are noted at the bottom of the piece.
Typos and small wording fixes don't carry a correction note; we just fix them.
Independence and conflicts of interest
ScaleRecipe accepts advertising via Google AdSense, which serves ads programmatically. We don't take editorial direction from advertisers, we don't accept sponsored content, and we don't participate in affiliate programs that would financially incentivise specific product recommendations. If that ever changes, this page will say so first.
The site has no commercial relationship with TheMealDB, the spice/equipment brands we mention, or the food-safety bodies we cite. Brand mentions reflect what we use or what's authoritative — not paid placement.
Style and voice
We try to write the way a thoughtful cook would explain something to another cook — specific, opinionated where there's a clear better answer, honest about uncertainty where there isn't. The grammar is British-leaning but not strict; US culinary terminology is preferred when it's the more universal one (e.g. “tablespoon” not “dessertspoon”).
Accessibility and inclusion
ScaleRecipe is designed to work without JavaScript on most pages, with proper semantic HTML, keyboard navigation, focus rings, and an explicit dim-mode for low-light reading. Recipe pages support 25 languages with right-to-left layout for Arabic, Urdu, Persian, and Hebrew. Where we fall short of WCAG 2.2 AA we'd like to know — write in via the contact page.
Privacy and data handling
See our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policyfor the full detail. The short version: we don't require an account, we don't run analytics, we don't sell data, and the site is built so the recipe text never reaches our servers (it stays in your browser).
Contact
Mistakes, suggestions, missing ingredient densities, recipe-flagging — all welcome via the contact page. We respond to anyone who writes in person; there's no support team, just the people who built the site.