How to Get Your Recipes Accepted
Hello gawkers! We’re only as good as the recipes you contribute (thank you!), so we thought it would be helpful to shed some light on our submission process. If you’re a food blogger who has a hot new recipe you’re dying to share (because who likes gatekeeping?), you’re in the right place.
Step 1: Create a profile on our site
First, make sure you create a profile on our site. Our form is faster to fill out than it is to find your measuring cup - just a few prompts and you’re up and running. With your login, you can start submitting.
What we look for in a nutshell: We love food, so we’ll review any type of dish. What makes us different from other sites however, is quality. We’re a photo-first site, meaning we don’t just evaluate the recipe, but the final product. We know smartphones can do just about anything (except the dishes, unfortunately), but real pictures with good lighting, stylish staging and clear focus are what we’re after. We liken it to images you might see in an editorial magazine.
Step 2: Select your photos
At Foodgawker, we’re looking for high-quality photos that feel natural and are visually compelling. We evaluate everything from lighting to composition and styling, and whether the image clearly represents the recipe being submitted. A good rule of thumb is that a reader should be able to immediately understand what the dish is based on the photo, and feel confident it matches the recipe.
We want images that are well-lit, properly exposed, and true to color, without heavy filters, color casts, or over-processing. Photos should be sharp and in focus, with enough depth and clarity to clearly showcase the dish.
We look at composition as much as technical quality. Images should have a clear focal point, feel intentionally framed, and avoid being too tight, cluttered, or awkwardly cropped. The food should be the hero of the image, without distracting props, harsh shadows, blown highlights, or muddy backgrounds.
We also consider overall presentation and originality. Images should feel authentic and interesting, versus a stock image or something that’s overdone or AI-generated. Finally, we are looking for clean photos, so those with text overlays, collages, or graphics receive an automatic decline. And for the nitty gritty, photos must be high resolution and display well at thumbnail size.
Step 3: We review each incoming publisher
We do the homework. We review each incoming publisher in a lengthy process to ensure that submissions come from real people with real websites. We check out each food blogger’s site and social channels to get a feel for their full portfolio, their personality, and to make sure they’re still active.
Step 4: Keep it Real, No AI
We know the value of a shortcut in the kitchen. The right cooking hack can save loads of time, but we don’t take shortcuts on our submissions. We’re looking for recipes from real people doing the work. Any submission containing AI-generated images will be automatically declined and, depending on severity or repeat offenses, may result in a permanent ban from being accepted on Foodgawker. So stick around, and send us only your tried and true recipes.
Step 5: Submit
You submitted, now what? Well, you wait. We know, we know, waiting is no fun. But at Foodgawker, all of our submissions are reviewed manually by real people. We assess every single submission carefully to make sure it lives up to the Foodgawker standard, which typically takes between 1-2 business days.
Congrats! We love your recipe and are sure others will too. Once it’s live on the site, feel free to give it a shout out on your pages, and share with your family and friends.
That’s it. We keep things simple here at Foodgawker. We just want to curate the best recipes from inspired, everyday people whipping up fabulous things in their kitchen. What are you waiting for!? Send us your delicious recipes. We can’t wait to share (and devour) them.