How to Install Mealie (Recipe Manager) on Rocky Linux 9

Mealie (Recipe Manager) on Rocky Linux 9

Mealie is a modern, open-source self-hosted recipe manager and meal-planning platform built to organize recipes, plan meals, generate shopping lists, and collaborate with family or teams. It supports recipe imports from popular cooking websites, Markdown-based editing, nutrition calculations, and multi-user access, making it a strong alternative to cloud-based cooking and meal-planning apps.

Unlike SaaS platforms, Mealie keeps all your data on your own infrastructure. Recipes, images, meal plans, and user accounts never leave your server, which makes Mealie an excellent choice for privacy-conscious users, families, and self-hosting enthusiasts.

Running Mealie on Rocky Linux 9, a RHEL-compatible, enterprise-grade Linux distribution, delivers long-term stability, predictable updates, and strong security defaults. When combined with Docker, PostgreSQL, Nginx, and HTTPS (SSL), Rocky Linux 9 provides a production-ready, secure, and maintainable recipe management stack.

Architecture Overview

Layer	Component	Role
OS	Rocky Linux 9	Enterprise-grade, RHEL-compatible Linux base
Container Runtime	Docker / Docker Compose	Runs Mealie and supporting services
Application	Mealie (Python + FastAPI)	Recipe management, meal planning, REST API
Database	PostgreSQL	Stores recipes, users, meal plans, metadata
Reverse Proxy	Nginx	HTTPS termination, routing, compression
TLS	Let’s Encrypt / PKI	Secure encrypted access to the web interface

Mealie’s containerized architecture makes it easy to deploy, upgrade, migrate, and back up, even on small VPS instances or home-lab servers.

Why Use Mealie?

Self-hosted recipe manager – full ownership of your cooking data
Recipe importers – save recipes directly from supported websites
Meal planning & calendars – plan meals days or weeks ahead
Automatic shopping lists – generated from meal plans
Multi-user support – perfect for families or shared kitchens
Nutrition data & unit conversions – helpful for diet tracking
Clean, modern UI – responsive and mobile-friendly
Open-source & actively developed – transparent and extensible

Mealie is designed for users who want organization, automation, and privacy in their kitchen workflow.

Mealie vs Other Recipe Platforms

Feature / Capability	Mealie	Paprika	Yummly	Tandoor
Hosting	Self-hosted	App-based	Cloud only	Self-hosted
Meal planning	✅ Yes	✅ Yes	❌ Limited	✅ Yes
Shopping lists	✅ Yes	✅ Yes	❌ Limited	✅ Yes
Multi-user	✅ Yes	❌ No	❌ No	✅ Yes
Privacy	Full control	App-dependent	Cloud-based	Full control
Cost	Free, open-source	Paid app	Free / Paid	Free

Mealie offers an excellent balance between ease of use, collaboration, and self-hosting.

Security & Best Practices on Rocky Linux 9

Run Mealie behind Nginx with HTTPS enabled.
Keep Mealie and PostgreSQL restricted to internal Docker networks.
Store secrets (database passwords, JWT secrets) using environment variables.
Enable SELinux enforcing mode and apply proper Docker volume labels.
Configure firewalld to allow only ports 80 and 443.
Automate SSL certificate renewal using Certbot or another ACME client.
Regularly update Rocky Linux, Docker, and Mealie images.
Back up:
- PostgreSQL database
- Mealie configuration
- Uploaded images and assets
Create separate user accounts and restrict admin access.
Disable public registration if Mealie is used privately.

Typical Use Cases

Personal recipe collections – replace cloud cooking apps
Family meal planning – shared recipes and shopping lists
Home-lab lifestyle tools – private, self-hosted daily utilities
Diet & nutrition tracking – structured meals and portions
Content creators – manage and organize large recipe libraries
Small communities – collaborative cooking platforms

Deploying Mealie on Rocky Linux 9 with Docker and SSL gives you a secure, private, and feature-rich recipe management platform — combining modern meal-planning tools with full data ownership and enterprise-grade Linux reliability.

Step 1: Create a Server Instance on Shape.Host

Before installing Mealie, you need a VPS.

From the dashboard, click Create and select Instance.

Choose a data center location close to your users.

Shape.host instance form with the data center location selector highlighted.

Select a VPS plan with at least:

2 CPU cores

4 GB RAM

30 GB SSD storage

Shape.host instance form with the operating system image selector highlighted.

Choose Rocky Linux 9 (64-bit) as the operating system.

Create the instance and wait for provisioning to complete.

Shape.host instance form with the Create Instance button highlighted.

Copy the public IP address of your server.

Shape.host Resources dashboard with the server IP address highlighted.

Step 2: Connect to the Rocky Linux 9 Server

Linux / macOS

ssh root@YOUR_SERVER_IP

Windows

Use PowerShell, Windows Terminal, or PuTTY:

ssh root@YOUR_SERVER_IP

Once connected, you should be logged in as root.

Step 3: Install Docker and Docker Compose

3.1 Update the System

dnf update

Updates all system packages to their latest versions.

Terminal showing DNF/YUM package management commands and output.

3.2 Install Required Dependencies

dnf install ca-certificates curl gnupg2 dnf-utils

Installs tools required to manage repositories securely.

3.3 Add Docker Repository

dnf config-manager --add-repo https://download.docker.com/linux/centos/docker-ce.repo

Adds the official Docker repository compatible with Rocky Linux 9.

dnf makecache

Refreshes repository metadata.

Terminal showing dnf commands or output during Add Docker Repository.

3.4 Install Docker Engine and Docker Compose

dnf install docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io docker-buildx-plugin docker-compose-plugin

Installs Docker Engine and Docker Compose plugin.

systemctl enable docker

Enables Docker at boot.

systemctl start docker

Starts the Docker service.

docker --version

Verifies Docker installation.

docker compose version

Verifies Docker Compose availability.

Step 4: Configure Mealie with Docker Compose

4.1 Create Project Directory

mkdir -p /opt/mealie

cd /opt/mealie

Terminal showing systemd service management commands or output.

4.2 Create Docker Compose File

nano docker-compose.yml

Paste the following configuration:

services:
  db:
    image: postgres:16
    container_name: mealie-db
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      POSTGRES_DB: mealie
      POSTGRES_USER: mealie
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: strong_db_password
    volumes:
      - /opt/mealie/db:/var/lib/postgresql/data

  mealie:
    image: ghcr.io/mealie-recipes/mealie:latest
    container_name: mealie
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "127.0.0.1:9000:9000"
    environment:
      ALLOW_SIGNUP: "false"
      DB_ENGINE: postgres
      POSTGRES_DB: mealie
      POSTGRES_USER: mealie
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: strong_db_password
      POSTGRES_SERVER: db
      POSTGRES_PORT: 5432
      BASE_URL: https://mealie.example.com
    volumes:
      - /opt/mealie/data:/app/data
    depends_on:
      - db

This configuration:

Uses PostgreSQL 16 as the database backend
Restricts Mealie access to localhost
Prepares the application for reverse proxy and HTTPS

Terminal showing the GNU nano editor and configuration text.

4.3 Create Persistent Storage Directories

mkdir -p /opt/mealie/db

mkdir -p /opt/mealie/data

Terminal showing file and directory setup commands.

4.4 Start Mealie

docker compose pull

Downloads the latest Mealie and PostgreSQL images.

docker compose up -d

Starts the containers in detached mode.

docker compose ps

Confirms that the containers are running.

Terminal showing container image download progress.

Step 5: Configure Nginx Reverse Proxy

5.1 Install and Enable Nginx

dnf install nginx

systemctl enable nginx

systemctl start nginx

systemctl status nginx

5.2 Create Nginx Configuration for Mealie

nano /etc/nginx/conf.d/mealie.conf

Paste:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name mealie.example.com;

    client_max_body_size 100M;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:9000;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;

        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}

Terminal showing web server configuration text.

5.3 Test and Reload Nginx

nginx -t

systemctl reload nginx

Step 6: Enable SSL with Let’s Encrypt

6.1 Install Certbot

dnf install epel-release

dnf install certbot python3-certbot-nginx

6.2 Obtain SSL Certificate

certbot --nginx -d rockylinux-tutorials.shape.host

Terminal showing Certbot certificate commands and messages.

Replace with your real domain if needed:

yourdomain.com

Certbot will automatically:

Issue a free SSL certificate
Configure Nginx for HTTPS
Enable automatic certificate renewal

Step 7: Verify the Installation

Open your browser: https://mealie.example.com

Mealie sign-in form with an informational banner.

Mealie welcome screen with an option to create a recipe.

Check container status:

docker compose ps

Verify Nginx status:

systemctl status nginx

If Mealie loads correctly over HTTPS, the installation is complete.

You installed Mealie on Rocky Linux 9 using Docker Compose, connected it to a PostgreSQL database, exposed it via Nginx, and secured it with Let’s Encrypt SSL. This setup is stable, secure, and well-suited for personal or family recipe management.

For hosting self-hosted applications like Mealie with high performance, scalability, and full root access, Shape.Host Linux SSD VPS is a reliable solution for modern server workloads.