How to cook recipes in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom & the best recipes

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has been one of the biggest games of the year, and is completely packed full of cooking recipes providing a great way to get the necessary boosts that will help you explore the land of Hyrule

So, read on below to learn all of the best recipes in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, along with a primer on how cooking works.

How to cook in the game

All you need to do to cook a recipe in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is to find a fire with a pot over it and place your desired items into it - easy enough, right?

• To select your items, just head to the items tab of the menu and press the 'hold' option on your desired items.
• Then, move close enough to the pot and press A to start cooking.

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You can select up to five ingredients to cook at any one time, and increasing the quantity of a specific item will enhance its effect. While some combinations will create a more generic result, the best recipes will ensure that all ingredients work together to create something unique and well worth eating.

What's more, you're also able to cook individual items if there is no pot present by placing them near a fire. While this won't create any recipes - and only works on one item at a time - it can be handy in a pinch when needing some additional health or minor boosts for your next objective.

Best early recipes for cooking

While you could combine any old ingredients to make a good meal, you're better off choosing one of the best recipes for cooking in TotK to ensure that you're getting the most out of your items - especially early on in your journey!

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Below, you'll find our recommendations for which recipes you should be cooking early in Link's adventure in Tears of the Kingdom, alongside what you'll need to make it and the benefits it provides.

You obviously can't always get your hands on every ingredient found in the list above, but you will want to keep them in mind every time you encounter a cooking pot in the wild.

Furthermore, while some of the meals will be rather situational, there are some that you will always want to have on your person and be used whenever possible: The Tough Mushroom Skewer is incredibly handy in any challenging fights, and the Hearty Radish is great to save you from certain death.

Best Tears of the Kingdom recipes for Hearts

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Getting extra hearts in Tears of the Kingdom is vital for some of the tougher enemies, areas, and boss fights. Luckily, there are plenty of recipes that let you boost your HP beyond its current maximum.

Here are the best Tears of the Kingdom recipes for Hearts:

Best Cold Resistance recipes

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Images via Nintendo

There are some areas in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom that will require you to brave the biting cold, so having a few recipes under your belt to boost your cold resistance is essential. Remember, the more Spicy Peppers that you add, the more time will be added to your cold resistance.

Best Heat Resistance recipes

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Images via Nintendo

Like Cold Resistance, Heat Resistance is just as essential in navigating Hyrule. Some climates and enemy passives (such as the Flame variant of the Gleeok, one of Tears of the Kingdom's toughest enemies) require you to shed a few layers and top up your Heat Resistance to avoid overheating:

Best recipes for Stealth

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Images via Nintendo

Sometimes, a silent approach is needed to get the first blow on an enemy, So cooking up some sneaky recipes will go a long way toward helping that:

Best recipes for Haste

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Images via Nintendo

Need to make a quick getaway? Then some Hasty food may just do the trick in giving you a much-needed speed boost in Tears of the Kingdom. In this case, the more Rushrooms you add to a dish, the longer the speed duration:

Best recipes for Stamina

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Images via Nintendo

Climbing a steep incline and suddenly realise you won't have the stamina to see you make it to the top? Well, it's time to make some stamina-restoring recipes to help you make the final push. The more Stamella Shrooms and Stambulbs you have, the more stamina you will restore:

Best recipes to cure Gloom

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Images via Nintendo

Following The Upheaval, Gloom has become a common occurrence and is also the root cause of one of the most dangerous status effects new to Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. When afflicted with Gloom, Link's maximum hearts will decrease, meaning you can only heal up to a certain point.

Gloom is particularly prevalent when fighting a King Gleeok, or when traversing The Depths. Thankfully, there are a few recipes that can help mend your broken hearts:

If you're looking for more Zelda content, make sure to check out our dedicated Zelda homepage for all of the latest news and guides like how to get the Cece Hat and how to find and defeat the Rare Stone Talus in the game.