UX/UI Case Study

Why EzCuk ?

Over the years, food waste has become a growing issue—especially among young professionals who juggle work, commuting, and personal responsibilities on a daily basis. Many buy groceries without planning, forget what they already have at home, and end up throwing away perfectly edible food. Seeing this problem repeatedly around me inspired the creation of EzCuk—a mobile application designed to help users manage their food inventory effortlessly, cook smarter with what they already own, and reduce waste without adding extra mental load. As technology continues to shape our everyday lives, it makes perfect sense to leverage it to simplify and optimize meal planning. EzCuk aims to turn a frequently stressful task into a seamless, intelligent, and sustainable routine.

EzCuk Logo

TIMELINE

4 weeks

MY ROLE

Research, Problem Framing, User Interviews, Competitor Analysis, Persona Development, Affinity Mapping, User Journey Mapping, Information Architecture, Ideation, Wireframing, Prototyping, UI Design, Design System, Usability Testing & Iterations

TOOLS

Figma, FigJam, Notion, Google Forms, Photoshop / Illustrator (for visuals)

Design Process

I followed a learn UX design thinking process to ensure that my decisions were supported through user research and feedback.

UX Design Process

Empathise

  • Desk Research
  • User Interviews
  • Surveys
  • Competitive Analysis

Define

  • User Personas
  • Empathy Map
  • How Might We
  • Problem Statement
  • Pain points to Gain Points

Ideate

  • Brainstorming
  • Information Architecture
  • User Flows

Prototype

  • Wireframes
  • High-Fidelity Mockups
  • Interactive Prototype

Test

  • Usability Testing
  • Feedback Analysis
  • Iterations

Empathies Stage

Desk Research

To gain a broad understanding of the challenges related to food waste and grocery management among young adults, I began the project with desk research. This phase helped me explore existing data, behavioral patterns, and market trends that influence how people shop, store, and consume food today. The goal was to validate the relevance of the problem space and identify opportunities for innovation before conducting user interviews.

Desk Research

1. Young Adults & Food Waste

Several behavioral studies indicate that young adults (18–34) are among the groups most affected by food waste. Surveys conducted by WRAP (2023–2024) show that this demographic often wastes more food due to factors such as overbuying, last-minute changes in plans, and limited experience with meal preparation. These insights align with the needs of EzCuk’s target audience.

2. Time Constraints & Meal Habits

Research consistently points to lack of time as one of the main barriers preventing young adults from planning meals and cooking at home. Studies published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior (Pelletier et al., 2012) show that perceived time pressure leads to irregular grocery habits, reliance on convenience foods, and reduced cooking frequency—all of which contribute to inefficient food usage and waste.

Research Sources

  • United Nations Environment Programme (2024). Food Waste Index Report.
  • Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) (2011). Global Food Losses and Food Waste.
  • WRAP (2023–2025). Household Food Waste & Food Management Surveys.
  • Pelletier, J. E., et al. (2012). Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.
  • Ducrot, P., et al. (2017). International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.

Key Takeaways

  • Young adults face high levels of food waste due to time pressure, impulse shopping, and poor visibility of their food inventory.
  • Meal planning and inventory management have proven benefits but remain difficult to maintain without support.
  • There is a need for solutions that simplify grocery management and promote smarter cooking practices.

Competitive Analysis

There are many apps today that help users with groceries, recipes or food tracking. However, most of them focus on only one part of the experience: shopping lists, recipes, nutrition or food rescue. As a result, young adults still struggle to connect what they already have at home with what they can cook and what they actually need to buy. Most existing solutions also rely heavily on manual input, which increases cognitive load and makes it hard to maintain good habits over time.

Competitive Analysis

User Interview & Surveys

To better understand how young adults manage their groceries, cooking habits, and food waste, I conducted a series of user interviews along with an online survey. Food management is a very personal topic, and people often feel uncomfortable admitting how much food they throw away or how unorganized their habits can be. To create a safe space and encourage honesty, I selected individuals who fit the user profile and prepared open-ended questions that allowed them to fully express their experiences. I spoke with participants in their preferred languages to help them feel more at ease and open up naturally. With their permission, the interviews were recorded so I could revisit the details and analyze their responses more accurately afterward. My goal during this phase was to understand how young adults currently handle grocery shopping, what leads to food waste in their homes, how they decide what to cook, and what they wish could be improved. This helped reveal both behavioral patterns and unmet needs that shaped the direction of EzCuk.

Quantitative

The quantitative research consisted of an online survey with 14 questions, completed by 52 respondents aged 18–35. Below are the key findings:

Survey Results

Qualitative

To design a meaningful solution for grocery and food-waste management, I first needed to understand how young adults currently handle their groceries, how they decide what to cook, and what makes them waste food unintentionally. I began my interviews with broad questions such as “How do you usually shop for groceries?”, “How do you decide what to cook?”, and “What usually makes you throw food away?”. I then explored deeper topics: visibility of fridge/pantry items, time management, cooking habits, and emotional attitudes toward wasting food. These conversations helped me uncover the real pain points users experience on a daily basis.

What are users experiencing currently?

  • Users often forget what they have at home, especially in the fridge.
  • Lack of time and unpredictable schedules make meal planning difficult.
  • Many buy groceries “on impulse”, leading to duplicate items and unused products.
  • Vegetables, fresh produce and leftovers are wasted most often because they expire unnoticed.
  • Users rely on mood-based cooking rather than inventory, which results in extra purchases.
  • Low visibility and poor organization lead to frustration and guilt when food goes to waste.

What would they need in a grocery management app?

  • A way to clearly see what they already have at home.
  • Smart alerts before food expires so they can use ingredients in time.
  • Recipe suggestions based on the ingredients they currently own.
  • A feature that reduces the effort required to track inventory.

Next step 🔍

These insights guided the next phase of the project: identifying how EzCuk can provide a simple, engaging, and low-effort experience that helps users reduce waste, manage their groceries more efficiently, and make cooking decisions with confidence. Understanding users' needs, frustrations and expectations allowed me to shape a solution that connects inventory, recipes, expiration reminders and shopping planning into one cohesive experience.

Define Stage

User Persona

User Persona

Empathy Map

Empathy Map

User Journey Map

User Journey Map

Problem Statement ?

" Young adults enjoy cooking and discovering new recipes, but their current grocery habits are spontaneous and unstructured. They often shop without a plan, forget what they already have at home, and struggle to track expiration dates. As a result, they make frequent small grocery trips, buy duplicate items, waste leftover ingredients, and end up throwing away food several times a week — leading to guilt, frustration, and unnecessary spending".

How Might We

How might we help young adults cook with confidence, buy only what they need, and reduce food waste — without adding complexity to their daily life?

How Might We

Pain Points to Gain Points

Pain Points to Gain Points

Ideate Stage

Card Sorting

To organize the features effectively, I conducted a card sorting exercise with potential users.

Card-sorting

Information Architecture

To organize the features and content of EzCuk effectively, I developed an information architecture that prioritized ease of navigation and user flow. This structure ensured that users could quickly access key functionalities such as inventory tracking, recipe suggestions, expiration alerts, and shopping lists.

Information Architecture

User Flows

I created user flows to map out the steps users would take to complete key tasks within the app. This helped identify any potential pain points and ensured a smooth and intuitive experience.

User Flows

Design Stage

Typography

Typography

Color

Color

Wireframes

I began the design phase by creating low-fidelity wireframes to outline the basic layout and functionality of EzCuk. This allowed me to focus on usability and user flow before adding visual details.

Wireframes

High-Fidelity Mockups

After refining the wireframes based on feedback, I developed high-fidelity mockups that incorporated visual design elements such as color schemes, typography, and imagery. This helped bring the app to life and provided a clearer vision of the final product.

High-Fidelity Mockups

Create a New List

On the Create New List screen, users can name their list, add items with quantities, assign each item to Fridge, Freezer, or Pantry, and optionally set expiration reminders. After adding their items, the Weekly Groceries screen displays the completed list in a clean, categorized layout. This process helps users plan their shopping more efficiently, avoid missing items, and stay organized before importing everything into My Kitchen trip.

High-Fidelity Mockups
High-Fidelity Mockups

Import List → Kitchen Updated

After completing the shopping trip, the user imports the list directly into My Kitchen. EzCuk automatically categorizes each item into Fridge, Freezer, or Pantry, and allows the user to adjust quantities or add expiration dates. This step keeps the digital kitchen fully synchronized with real groceries, enabling accurate inventory tracking and smart recipe suggestions later.

My Kitchen → Recipes

In My Kitchen, users can instantly see what needs to be used soon. With one tap on “Generate recipes from expiring items,” EzCuk creates personalized recipe suggestions based on their leftovers. Users can then browse these options in Recipes from Leftovers, select a dish, review its ingredients, and start cooking immediately. This process helps users reduce waste while simplifying everyday meal decisions.

High-Fidelity Mockups
High-Fidelity Mockups

Recipe Details

Users from browsing their saved and suggested recipes to preparing for their next meal. After selecting a dish, the Recipe Details screen highlights available and missing ingredients, allowing users to add the missing items directly to their shopping list. This helps users plan efficiently, reduces unnecessary purchases, and makes cooking easier and more intentional.

Interactive Prototype

To test the usability of EzCuk, I created an interactive prototype using Figma. This allowed users to navigate through the app and experience its features in a realistic way.

© 2025 BY PHUONG NGUYEN

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