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What are Recipes?

A Recipe is a reusable, multi-step procedure that your AI agent runs for you. You describe the steps once — research, write, and produce deliverables — then run the same Recipe any time with new inputs. Recipes live under Automate in the sidebar. Open Automate → Recipes.

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Why use Recipes?

Some work repeats with the same shape but different details — the same content brief for a new keyword, the same page audit for a new URL. Workflows automate fixed block-by-block pipelines. Recipes give your agent a written procedure it can follow with judgment, calling tools as needed at each step. Use a Recipe when you want to:
  • Run the same multi-step process repeatedly with new inputs.
  • Combine research, analysis, and writing into one repeatable run.
  • Produce reviewable deliverables such as briefs, reports, or files.

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How a Recipe is built

Every Recipe is made of a few parts: A Recipe has two states: a Draft you edit, and a Published version you run. Publishing creates an immutable version (Published v1, v2, and so on) so existing runs stay consistent when you keep editing.

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Create a Recipe

  1. Go to Automate → Recipes in the sidebar.
  2. Click New Recipe.
  3. In the Create New Recipe dialog, choose one:
    • Blank Recipe — start from scratch.
    • A template — browse by category or search, then copy a published template into your workspace.
  4. The Recipe opens in the editor on the Recipe tab.
You can also click Import on the Recipes list to add a Recipe from a .slate-recipe.json file. During import, Slate asks you to map any referenced resources (such as workflows or sheets) to equivalents in your workspace.

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Edit a Recipe

In the editor’s Recipe tab, build out the procedure:
  1. Name and describe the Recipe at the top.
  2. Add sections — one per step. Give each a title and instructions. Type / in the instructions to insert references to inputs, artifacts, and tools.
  3. Add inputs the Recipe needs. Each input has a label, a type, and a required flag. Supported types include text, long text, number, date, URL, select, boolean, and JSON.
  4. Add artifacts the Recipe produces. Artifacts can be markdown, JSON, or files such as PDF, DOCX, CSV, and XLSX.
  5. Set the capability mode to control which tools the agent may use:
    • Auto — the agent adds tools as needed.
    • Only what I select — limited to the tools you choose.
    • No tools — context only, no external tools.
Add a review gate to any section that produces a deliverable you want to check before the run continues. The run pauses there until you approve.

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Publish a Recipe

When the Draft is ready, click Publish. Slate validates the Recipe and saves an immutable version. The status badge updates from Draft to Published, with a version number you can run and reference later.

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Run a Recipe

  1. Click Run (from the Recipes list or inside the editor).
  2. In the Run recipe dialog, choose the version to run:
    • A Published version (recommended for consistent results).
    • The Current draft, to test changes before publishing.
  3. Fill in the inputs. Required inputs are marked with an asterisk. If the Recipe needs no inputs, you will see “No inputs required.”
  4. Click Run.
While the Recipe runs, the run workspace shows:
  • A status indicator and progress through the sections.
  • The inputs you passed in.
  • Each section as a step, with its live status.
  • Artifacts as they are produced. You can view and edit markdown artifacts inline, save your changes, and download outputs.
  • A live activity panel showing the agent’s work as it happens.

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Approve a review gate

When a run reaches a section with a review gate, it pauses and shows a Review required panel with the section and the artifacts to check. You can:
  • Edit an artifact before deciding.
  • Add an optional comment.
  • Click Approve & continue to resume the run, or Reject to stop it.

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Track runs

Every run is saved to history.
  • The Runs tab inside a Recipe shows that Recipe’s run history with status and timing.
  • The Recent Runs tab on the Recipes list shows recent runs across all your Recipes.
Open any run to revisit its sections, inputs, and artifacts.

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Share a Recipe

Use Export on a Recipe to download it as a .slate-recipe.json file. Share that file, then use Import in another workspace to bring the Recipe in. This is how you reuse a Recipe across workspaces.

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What’s next

  • Cowork — work with the Slate agent on open-ended, one-off tasks.
  • Workflows — automate fixed, block-by-block pipelines.
  • Sheets — run automation in bulk across rows.
  • Brand Kit — give your agent brand context to use in Recipes.