Deep Dish Dungeon Cooking Guide: Recipes, Food and Spoilage

Cooking is the system players ask about most in Deep Dish Dungeon, and the game's name is a hint. In Deep Dish Dungeon, food is progress: meals bolster your strength and stats, and recipes unlock over time with different effects. This guide covers what is officially confirmed about cooking: how it fits the game, the named recipes and appliances, spoilage, and the most common mistakes.

Why Cooking Matters: Never Explore Hungry

Cooking is the main way your character grows stronger. According to Dev Blog #5, heading out on an empty stomach is "certain death". A hungry character is as weak as at the start of the game: they can barely use weapons and cannot survive medium-height falls.

That makes cooking a strategy layer before each expedition. Ask the group three questions:

1. Where are we going next, and which door or corridor have we not explored yet?
2. What will that trip need: more stamina, more health, a potion, or a specific tool?
3. Which meals can we make from what we brought back to camp?

Some dishes also grant magical abilities, according to the developers, so a good meal can open up options as well as raise numbers.

Confirmed Recipes and Dishes

The full recipe list is not public, and the developers expect players to discover it together. Dev Blog #5 says a big part of the game is to "go meta", talk on forums, help build wikis and figure out recipes with friends. These dishes are named in official sources:

Simple foods matter too. Dev Blog #5 mentions eating a plain apple or meat from a critter you hunted when nothing better is available. Herbs add modifiers to existing dishes, so experimenting with combinations is part of the fun.

Cooking Appliances

You need tools and appliances to cook. You find some while exploring and craft others at camp from materials you bring back. These are confirmed:

• Campfire. The heart of every camp, and the developers say you can camp almost anywhere. Vegetables left over the fire can burn into charcoal.
• Cooking Pot. Used for soups and stews and for the Scorpion Tail recipe. Since demo v0254, adding a whole stack of ingredients works correctly.
• Rotisserie. Roasts food, which burns if left unattended too long (demo v1013).
• Cooking Table. A crafting station for prepared recipes, including the carcass recipes. One appears near the end of the demo.
• Oven. The developers' Steam Deck announcement jokes about a "top-notch oven for post-expedition treats".

Food Spoilage and Food Baskets

Since demo update v1013, food spoils over time. The official rules are:

Practical tip: craft a Food Basket early and store perishable ingredients in it rather than in a regular chest. Cook raw meat soon after you bring it back, and keep long-lasting herbs and dry goods as your emergency stock.

Harvesting Bats and Scorpions

Since demo update v1013, bats and scorpions do not drop food directly. You harvest their carcasses after defeating them and take the carcass to the Cooking Table. Dev Blog #9 calls carcass harvesting "the cornerstone" of the full cooking feature in the final game. Expect more creatures and ingredients to work this way after launch.

Common Cooking Mistakes

1. Leaving the rotisserie unattended. Food burns if it stays on too long.
2. Hoarding raw food in chests. It spoils, and spoiled food loses its magical properties.
3. Leaving vegetables on the campfire. They can turn into charcoal.
4. Heading out hungry. You will be too weak to fight or survive falls.
5. Never experimenting. Herbs modify dishes, and trial and error is how many recipes are found.

FAQ

How do you cook in Deep Dish Dungeon?

Bring ingredients back to camp and use an appliance such as the campfire, cooking pot, rotisserie or cooking table. Meals boost your stats, and some grant magical abilities.

How long does food last in Deep Dish Dungeon?

In demo v1013, food spoils one item at a time, usually after about 20 minutes. A Food Basket keeps food fresh for at least an hour. Herbs and some dry ingredients do not spoil.

What recipes are in Deep Dish Dungeon?

Officially named dishes include Shepherd's Pie, meat and mushroom Stew, Ramen, Meat Soup, Rock Soup and Scorpion Tail. The full list will be documented after launch.

How do I use the cooking pot?

Add ingredients to the pot at camp; whole stacks can be added at once since demo update v0254. The pot makes soups and stews and the Scorpion Tail recipe.