code/chef — Your AI Development Team
Talk to your code. Ship faster.
code/chef is like having an experienced development team right in VS Code. Just chat naturally about what you want to build—new features, code reviews, documentation, deployment setups—and the AI handles the heavy lifting while you focus on the creative work.
✨ What Can code/chef Do?
🚀 Build Features
@chef Add user login with email and password reset
Get complete, working code for new features—no need to know all the technical details.
🔍 Review Your Code
@chef Check this code for issues
Get instant feedback on security problems, performance issues, or just general improvements.
🏗️ Set Up Your Project
@chef Set up Docker for my app with a database
Get all the configuration files you need without learning Docker syntax.
⚡ Automate Deployments
@chef Create a workflow to test and deploy my app
Automate your testing and deployment without wrestling with YAML files.
📚 Generate Documentation
@chef Write documentation for my API
Get professional docs written for you—README files, API guides, whatever you need.
🎯 Why code/chef?
| Without code/chef |
With code/chef |
| Switch between many tools |
Everything in one chat |
| Search for solutions |
Just describe what you want |
| Wait hours for code reviews |
Get instant feedback |
| Write docs manually |
Generated automatically |
| Complex setup processes |
Plain English requests |
| Solo development struggles |
AI team always available |
🧠 Always Uses the Right AI
code/chef automatically picks the best AI for each task—you don't need to worry about which model to use. Different tasks get different specialists, just like a real team.
🚀 Get Started in 2 Minutes
Step 1: Install the Extension
⚠️ Access Required: This extension requires GitHub authentication to prevent unauthorized LLM usage. Contact your administrator for access.
Option 1: npx (Recommended)
Install with one command using your GitHub Personal Access Token with read:packages scope:
Bash/Linux/macOS:
# First time only: Setup authentication
echo "@appsmithery:registry=https://npm.pkg.github.com" >> ~/.npmrc
echo "//npm.pkg.github.com/:_authToken=YOUR_GITHUB_TOKEN" >> ~/.npmrc
# Install extension
npx @appsmithery/vscode-codechef
Windows PowerShell:
# First time only: Setup authentication
Add-Content -Path "$env:USERPROFILE\.npmrc" -Value "@appsmithery:registry=https://npm.pkg.github.com"
Add-Content -Path "$env:USERPROFILE\.npmrc" -Value "//npm.pkg.github.com/:_authToken=YOUR_GITHUB_TOKEN"
# Install extension
npx @appsmithery/vscode-codechef
Option 2: Manual from Administrator
Bash/Linux/macOS:
curl -L https://github.com/Appsmithery/code-chef/releases/latest/download/vscode-codechef-1.0.0.vsix -o codechef.vsix && code --install-extension codechef.vsix
PowerShell/Windows:
curl -L https://github.com/Appsmithery/code-chef/releases/latest/download/vscode-codechef-1.0.0.vsix -o codechef.vsix; code --install-extension codechef.vsix
Or manually:
- Go to Releases
- Download the latest
vscode-codechef-*.vsix file
- In VS Code:
Ctrl+Shift+P → Extensions: Install from VSIX...
- Select the downloaded file and reload VS Code
Troubleshooting
"code command not found"
- Open VS Code
- Press
Ctrl+Shift+P (or Cmd+Shift+P on Mac)
- Type "Shell Command: Install 'code' command in PATH"
- Retry installation
"Authentication required" (npx)
This is intentional. Contact your administrator for:
- GitHub Personal Access Token with
read:packages scope
- Access to the GitHub Packages repository
"VSIX not found in package" (npx)
The npm package downloads the VSIX from GitHub releases automatically. If this fails:
- Check your internet connection
- Manually download from Releases (Option 3)
"Extension activation failed"
- Check VS Code version: Must be >= 1.85.0
- Update VS Code: Help → Check for Updates
- Restart VS Code after installation
Step 2: Set Up Your API Key
- Press
Ctrl+Shift+P (or Cmd+Shift+P on Mac)
- Type "code/chef: Configure" and press Enter
- Enter your API key (ask your team admin, or contact us to get one)
Step 3: Start Building
Open GitHub Copilot Chat and type:
@chef Build a user login page
That's it! Watch as code/chef creates the files, writes the code, and explains what it did.
💬 Real Conversations
"I need to add a feature"
You: @chef I need users to be able to reset their passwords
Chef: I'll set up password reset for you. This will include:
- Email verification
- Secure reset tokens
- New password form
- All the security best practices
Creating the files now...
"Is my code okay?"
You: @chef Can you check my login code?
Chef: I found a few things:
🔴 Important: Passwords aren't being encrypted (line 45)
🟡 Heads up: Login page needs rate limiting to prevent attacks
🟢 Nice to have: Add "remember me" functionality
Want me to fix these?
"I'm stuck on deployment"
You: @chef How do I deploy this to production?
Chef: I'll create a deployment setup for you with:
- Automated testing before deploy
- Staging environment
- Easy rollback if something breaks
- Step-by-step deployment guide
Setting this up now...
🔧 Quick Commands
In Chat
Just talk naturally! Here are some examples:
@chef <describe what you want> — The main way to use code/chef@chef /status — See what code/chef is working on@chef /tools — See what integrations are available
From the Command Menu
Press Ctrl+Shift+P (or Cmd+Shift+P on Mac) and search:
| Command |
What it does |
code/chef: Submit Task |
Send a task without using chat |
code/chef: Health Check |
Make sure everything's working |
code/chef: Configure |
Change your settings |
code/chef: Clear Cache |
Start fresh if something's stuck |
🎓 Advanced: Teach code/chef Your Style
Want code/chef to write code exactly how your team likes it? You can train custom models on your codebase. This is completely optional—code/chef works great out of the box.
How It Works
Train: Press Ctrl+Shift+P → "codechef.modelops.train"
- Takes about an hour
- Learns from your existing code
- Costs a few dollars
Test: Press Ctrl+Shift+P → "codechef.modelops.evaluate"
- See if the new model is better
- Get a clear recommendation
Deploy: Press Ctrl+Shift+P → "codechef.modelops.deploy"
- Switch to your custom model
- Can always switch back
Most users don't need this. The default models are excellent. Custom training is for teams that want code/chef to match their specific coding style perfectly.
⚙️ Settings
You probably won't need to change these, but here they are:
| Setting |
What it does |
codechef.apiKey |
Your API key (required) |
codechef.orchestratorUrl |
Server location (leave as default) |
codechef.showWorkflowPreview |
Show what code/chef will do before doing it |
codechef.useStreaming |
Show responses as they're being written |
Access settings: Ctrl+Shift+P → "code/chef: Configure"
code/chef integrates with the tools you already use:
- GitHub — Creates pull requests, manages issues
- Linear — Updates project tasks
- Docker — Manages containers
- Databases — PostgreSQL, Redis, and more
No extra setup needed—code/chef figures out what you're using and works with it.
❓ Something Not Working?
code/chef isn't responding
- Make sure you typed
@chef at the start of your message
- Try:
Ctrl+Shift+P → "code/chef: Health Check"
- Still stuck? Try:
Ctrl+Shift+P → "code/chef: Clear Cache" and reload VS Code
Connection issues
- Check your API key:
Ctrl+Shift+P → "code/chef: Configure"
- Make sure you're connected to the internet
- Try the health check:
Ctrl+Shift+P → "code/chef: Health Check"
Still having trouble?
Open an issue on GitHub and we'll help you out!
📞 Get Help or Get Started
📄 License
MIT License — Free for personal and commercial use. See LICENSE for details.
Made with ❤️ for developers who want to focus on building, not fighting with tools.
