Link staring at Portable Pot in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.

Best food recipes you should cook in Tears of the Kingdom (TotK)

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Cooking is an important part of Tears of the Kingdom‘s gameplay, and without a good supply of meals, Link will quickly perish. Collecting ingredients to cook with isn’t too hard, and experimenting with different combinations can be quite fun. There are over 200 recipes, and at some point, you’ll want to stick to the most effective ones.

This guide will outline the best food recipes to cook in Tears of the Kingdom.

Tears of the Kingdom big hearty radish island location
Screenshot by Destructoid.

Best heart restoration recipes in Tears of the Kingdom

To maximize the number of hearts a meal restores, cook with ingredients that have the word “hearty” in them, including the Hearty Radish and Hearty Truffle. These are the best recipes and meals for heart restoration in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Simmered Tomatoes – Cook five Hylian Tomatoes to restore 10 hearts
  • Hearty Steamed Mushrooms – One of the best recipes in the game, this meal requires four Big Hearty Truffles and one Big Hearty Radish. The dish will replenish all of Link’s hearts and give him 22 bonus hearts.

Meals made from good cuts of meat will also replenish Link’s health. These are recipes and meals for heart restoration using great cuts of meat in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Meat Skewer – Throw five pieces of Raw Prime Meat into a pot to make a Meat Skewer that restores 10 hearts.
  • Salt-Grilled Prime Meat – This dish requires three different cuts of meat and Rock Salt. It restores 5 hearts.
Steamed Fish recipe in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
Screenshot by Destructoid.

Best stamina-restoring recipes in Tears of the Kingdom

Stamina is also very important. Without it, Link can’t climb, glide, swim, run, or perform charged attacks. Thankfully, there are plenty of dishes that replenish stamina. These are the best recipes for restoring stamina in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Steamed Fish – This dish requires two Stamella Shrooms, two Stambulbs, and a Staminoka Bass to make a dish that restores two and a quarter stamina wheels.
  • Carrot Cake – This meal needs Hylian Rice, Goat Butter, Tabantha Butter, and two Endura Carrots. It replenishes all of Link’s stamina wheels and gives him two-fifths of an extra one.
Spicy Mushroom Skewer in the recipe menu of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
Screenshot by Destructoid.

Best recipes for cold environments in Tears of the Kingdom

There are plenty of chilly places in Hyrule, and Link can endure the cold if he munches on the right meals. When making cold-resistant meals, stick to “hot” ingredients, like Spicy Peppers, Sunshrooms, and Warm Safflinas. These are the best recipes for surviving cold environments and keeping Link warm and cozy in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Spicy Mushroom Skewer – Throw five Sunshrooms into a pot to make a Spicy Mushroom Skewer that provides cold resistance for 12 minutes and 30 seconds.
  • Spicy Pepper Steak – With Raw Prime Meat and four Spicy Peppers, you can make a Spicy Pepper Steak that restores 5 hearts and offers 10 minutes and 30 seconds of cold resistance.
Link next to a cooking pot in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
Screenshot by Destructoid.

Best recipes for hot environments in Tears of the Kingdom

Thanks to Hyrule’s varied geography, Link will also find himself in scorching hot places. If you don’t have the armor to deal with it, then these are the best recipes and meals for helping Link survive hot environments in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Chilly Mushroom Skewer – This delicious dish is made by cooking five Chillshrooms. It provides heat resistance for 12 minutes and 30 seconds.
  • Mushroom Rice Balls – Cook Hylian Rice and Four Chillshrooms to make a meal that gives Link 11 minutes of heat resistance.
Link cooking in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
Screenshot by Destructoid.

Best recipes for boosting attack in Tears of the Kingdom

When going up against the stronger monsters, munching on the right meals will boost Link’s attack. These are the best recipes for boosting Link’s attack strength and fighting huge monsters in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Mighty Steamed Mushrooms – You need four Razorshrooms and a Mighty Thistle to make this meal. It gives Link a level-three attack boost for 9 minutes and 10 seconds.
  • Crab Stir-Fry – Four Razorclaw Crabs and Goron Spice will create a meal that provides a level-three attack boost for 4 minutes and 50 seconds.

When in cold areas, you’ll also want to boost your attack. These are the best recipes and meals for boosting Link’s attack strength in Tabatha Tundra and cold environments in general in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Biting Simmered Fruit – Toss five Ice Fruits into a pot to make a meal that boosts Link’s cold weather attack for 5 minutes.
  • Biting Salt-Grilled Prime Meat – Gather Raw Prime Meat and four Ice Fruits and cook them together. The resultant dish will boost Link’s cold weather attack for 4 minutes and 30 seconds.

Link’s heat can also be boosted in hot environments with the right meals. These are the best recipes for boosting Link’s attack strength in hot environments in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Scorching Simmered Fruit – This simple dish only requires five Fire Fruits, and it boosts Link’s attack for 5 minutes in hot weather.
  • Scorching Meat Skewer – For another simple dish, add Raw Prime Meat along with four Fire Fruits. It increases Link’s attack in hot weather for 4 minutes and 30 seconds.
Link exploring the Depths in Tears of the Kingdom
Screenshot by Destructoid

Best recipes for the Depths

When venturing into the Depths, there are many dangers that Link may encounter. With the right meals, Link can spend more time in the Depths and take on the biggest enemies. These are the best gloom-resistant meals to cook for Link in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Warding Dark Curry – Mix Goron Spice, Hylian Rice, and three Dark Clumps to make a meal that gives Link level-three Gloom Resistance for 10 minutes.
  • Warding Dark Cake – To make a tasty cake, gather Cane Suger, Tabantha Wheat, Goat Butter, and two Dark Clumps. After eating this meal, Link will have level-three Gloom resistance for 8 minutes and 40 seconds.

While fighting through the Depths, Gloom can damage Link’s heart containers, making them impossible to fill until he reaches the surface again. These are the best recipes to recover heart containers when damaged by Gloom in Tears of the Kingdom.

  • Sunny Fried Wild Greens – Cook four Sundelions and a Sun Pumpkin for a meal that recovers 15 heart vessels.
  • Sunny Herb SautĆ© – This meal requires Goron Spice and four Sundelions. It recovers 12 heart vessels.

With all these meals, Link will stay strong, his hearts will remain replenished, and he’ll never be short of stamina. If you cook meals you don’t want anymore, visit Malanya the Horse God who will boost the stats of a horse if he is paid in food.

The best recipes in Tears of the Kingdom

Link standing in front of Thyphlo Ruins Skyview Tower in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
Screenshot by Destructoid.

This game is massive, and you can easily spend 100 hours just exploring and completing side content if you fancy it. You’ll collect all sorts of materials and resources along your journey, but if you’re having a blast playing, you don’t necessarily want to spend hours looking for specific ingredients. With that in mind, these are the best and most reliable recipes in Tears of the Kingdom you should be able to cook at any time.

  • Spicy Pepper Steak – Use one slab of Raw Prime Meat and four Spicy Peppers to make a Spicy Pepper Steak that will restore 5 hearts and give Link 10 minutes and 30 seconds of cold resistance. That resistance is just a bonus on top of those hearts, which is why you really want to cook this up every time you stop.
  • Enduring Fried Wild Greens – Throw together two of any Herb, one Endura Carrot, and two Raw Prime Meat to make this delicious meal. It restores 12 hearts as well as a chunk of stamina. This one’s perfect to have in your inventory when tackling some big climbs. If you eat mid-climb, that’ll restore Link’s stamina.
  • Sunny Veggie Porridge – Combine one of any type of Herb with one Sundelion, a Fresh Milk, and a Hylian Rice to make this nutritiously beneficial meal. It will give Link five hearts and restore three heart containers damaged by Gloom, perfect for the Depths, but also just handy to have on the go.
  • Hearty Fish Skewer – Cook up one Hearty Radish and one Hearty Bass or Salmon for the best skewer ever. This restores every heart Link has for full recovery and can add bonuses, depending on the extra ingredients you throw in. With this one, you can arm yourself with a selection of meals that’ll aid Link in whatever task you’re currently tackling without the need to have several of every possible combination, just in case. Simply cook up ten of the skewers you need, say one for the Depths, and you’re good to go for hours.

Where to get ingredients in Tears of the Kingdom

Carrot cake in Tears of the Kingdom ingredients
Screenshot by Destructoid

To get ingredients for recipes in Tears of the Kingdom, you must keep an eye out and collect them where you see them around Hyrule. Some can be purchased from vendors, but the majority are out in the world waiting to be found. For example, tomatoes, grains, and carrots can all be harvested where they grow in the ground. Meat drops from certain creatures, and fish can be shot with an arrow and collected.

While I rush around Hyrule looking for Shrines to complete, I grab everything that’s not nailed down if I can. Most major locations have farms you can harvest from, and every body of water is packed with fish to kill and collect. By doing this as I explore, I’ve never wanted for any ingredients. Even golden apples, which are pretty rare, aren’t a problem because I just collect every apple I see.


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Author
Image of Jamie Moorcroft-Sharp
Jamie Moorcroft-Sharp
Jamie is a Staff Writer on Destructoid who has been playing video games for the better part of the last three decades. He adores indie titles with unique and interesting mechanics and stories, but is also a sucker for big name franchises, especially if they happen to lean into the horror genre.
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Smangaliso Simelane
Staff Writer - Smangaliso Simelane is a writer with a passion for all things related to video games. He has been writing about video games since 2020.