Voice commands in Cook Mode
Voice control is what makes Cook Mode actually useful while cooking — your hands are wet, floury, or holding a knife, and you don’t want to touch the screen. Forktastic listens for short commands and responds visually plus with a small audio confirmation chime.
Voice control is a Pro feature and requires microphone permission.
Enable voice control
If you allowed microphone permission when starting Cook Mode the first time, voice is already on. Look for the microphone icon in the top-right corner of Cook Mode:
- Blue, animated = listening, voice active
- Gray = idle, voice off
- Red strikethrough = microphone permission denied
Tap the icon to toggle listening on/off mid-recipe.
If permission is denied, tap the red icon → Enable microphone. Forktastic links you to the OS-level permission settings.
Wake words
Forktastic listens for a wake word before processing commands, so casual conversation doesn’t accidentally trigger navigation. The default wake word is “Hey Forktastic”.
Hey Forktastic, next step.Hey Forktastic, set a timer for 10 minutes.Hey Forktastic, repeat.You can change the wake word to “Forktastic” (no “Hey”) in Options → Voice control if you prefer the shorter form.
Command list
Navigation
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| Next | Advance to the next step |
| Next step | Same as “Next” |
| Previous | Go back one step |
| Repeat | Re-read the current step out loud (if text-to-speech is on) |
| Go to step 5 | Jump to a specific step number |
| Beginning | Return to step 1 |
| End | Jump to the last step |
| All steps | Switch to full-recipe view |
Timers
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| Set a timer for 10 minutes | Starts a 10-minute timer |
| Timer for 1 hour 30 minutes | Compound durations work |
| How much time left? | Reads remaining time on active timer |
| Cancel timer | Stops the active timer |
You can have multiple timers running simultaneously; Forktastic names them by step (“Step 3 timer”, “Step 5 timer”) to keep them straight.
Ingredients
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| Check off [ingredient] | Marks an ingredient as checked (e.g., “Check off the butter”) |
| Read ingredients | Reads the full ingredient list out loud |
| What’s the next ingredient? | Reads the next unchecked ingredient |
Conversion and adjustment
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| Convert to metric | Switches the recipe display to metric (or back to imperial) |
| Double the recipe | Scales servings × 2 |
| Half the recipe | Scales servings × 0.5 |
Cook Mode control
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| Exit Cook Mode | Closes Cook Mode and returns to the recipe view |
| Pause voice | Stops listening for commands until you tap the microphone again |
| Resume voice | Re-enables listening |
| What’s the recipe? | Reads the title and serving count |
Text-to-speech (TTS)
Independent from voice command input, Forktastic can also read recipe instructions out loud (voice output). Toggle in Options → Voice control → Read steps aloud.
When enabled, every time you advance to a new step (via voice, tap, or swipe), Forktastic reads the step text. Useful for fully hands-and-eyes-free cooking.
TTS uses your device’s system voice (iOS: Siri voices; Android: TTS engine). Pick your preferred voice in OS Settings → Accessibility → Spoken Content.
Languages
Voice commands work in:
- English (default)
- Spanish
- Portuguese
- French
- German
- Arabic (right-to-left commands supported)
Forktastic picks the recognition language based on your account’s language setting. Commands above are listed in English; equivalents are localized in each language.
Tips for accuracy
- Speak naturally. No need to slow down or over-enunciate; the recognizer is trained on conversational speech.
- Loud background? Move closer to the device, or use a wired/Bluetooth mic.
- Wake word still mishearing? Try the shorter “Forktastic” wake word; it’s usually more reliable.
- Wrong language detected? Check Options → Language — voice follows the app language setting.
When voice isn’t responding
See Voice commands aren’t working — most issues are permission-related or wake-word misconfiguration.