Don’t Starve: Recommended High Cost-Performance Food Recipes

Meatballs

Cooking Requirement: Meat Value >= 0.25, no inedible parts, can use monster meat but only one
Shelf Life: 10 days
Cooking Time: 15s

A lifesaver for restoring hunger. When I’m about to starve and in a rush, the first dish that comes to mind is meatballs. It’s the best dish in the early game when resources are scarce and the ingredients are easy to come by. The only downside is its short shelf life and tendency to spoil quickly.

Honey Ham

Cooking Requirement: Honey >= 1 + Meat Value >= 1.75, no inedible parts, can use monster meat but only one (monster value >= 2 creates Monster Lasagna)
Shelf Life: 15 days
Cooking Time: 40s

An excellent dish for restoring health and hunger. Honey may be scarce early on, but once you have a Bee Box, you’ll have a stable source of honey.

Bacon and Eggs

Cooking Requirement: Egg Value >= 2 + Meat Value >= 1.25, no inedible parts, can use monster meat but only one
Shelf Life: 20 days
Cooking Time: 20s

With a long shelf life and great attributes for health and hunger restoration, this dish can provide a stable source of bird eggs through a Birdcage.

Polish Pierogi

Cooking Requirement: Egg Value >= 1 + Meat Value >= 0.25 + Vegetable Value >= 0.5, no inedible parts, can use monster meat but only one
Shelf Life: 20 days
Cooking Time: 20s

Great for health restoration. It has a long shelf life and is easy to make with ingredients like meat, fruit, vegetable, and egg.

Seafood Gumbo

Cooking Requirement: Meat Value >= 2.5 + Fish Value >= 1.5, no ice
Shelf Life: 10 days
Cooking Time: 20s

Short shelf life

Lobster Bisque

Cooking Requirement: Lobster >= 1 + Ice >= 1
Shelf Life: 10 days
Cooking Time: 10s

Requires fishing for lobsters and has a short shelf life.

Fruit Medley

Cooking Requirement: Leafy Meat >= 2 + Honey >= 2
Shelf Life: 6 days
Cooking Time: 40s

Short shelf life, used for emergency situations when sanity is low.

Beefy Greens

Cooking Requirement: Leafy Meat >= 1 + Vegetable Value >= 3
Shelf Life: 6 days
Cooking Time: 40s

Good attributes but short shelf life due to leafy meat being hard to obtain.

Turkey Dinner

Cooking Requirement: Drumstick >= 2 + Meat Value >= 1.25 + Fruit/Vegetable Value >= 0.5
Shelf Life: 6 days
Cooking Time: 60s

Good attributes but short shelf life and long cooking time, making it a secondary option for occasional variety.

Dragonpie

Cooking Requirement: Dragon Fruit >= 1, no meat value
Shelf Life: 15 days

Excellent for health and hunger restoration, easily obtained ingredients, and a long shelf life.

Trail Mix

Cooking Requirement: Roasted Birchnut >= 1 + Berry/Juicy Berry >= 1 + Fruit Value >= 1, no vegetable/meat/egg/dairy value
Shelf Life: 15 days
Cooking Time: 10s

Used for health restoration, with easily obtainable ingredients.

Fresh Salsa

Cooking Requirement: Tomato >= 1 + Onion >= 1, no meat/egg/inedible parts
Shelf Life: 15 days
Cooking Time: 10s

Excellent for restoring sanity, with a long shelf life. Onions and tomatoes can be easily obtained through farming.

Creamy Potato Puree

Cooking Requirement: Potato >= 2 + Garlic >= 1, no meat/egg/inedible parts
Shelf Life: 15 days
Cooking Time: 20s

Excellent for restoring sanity, with a long shelf life. Potatoes and garlic can be easily obtained through farming.

Banana Pop

Cooking Requirement: (Roasted) Banana >= 2, no meat/egg/monster value
Shelf Life: 15 days
Cooking Time: 10s

Excellent for restoring sanity, with a long shelf life. Bananas can be collected while spelunking or transplanted at the Lunar Island Dock.

PS:

Some recipes requiring special ingredients like royal jelly or butter are not included.
Plan your planting schedule according to the chosen recipes to save space in the refrigerator.