How to cook in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

By Siddharth Patil
Modified Apr 13, 2024 12:01 GMT
How to cook in Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Try outa variety of delicacies with the cooking mechanic in Nintendo's latest life sim game (Images via Nintendo)

Animal Crossing: New Horizons continues to be the go-to life sim experience on the Nintendo Switch for players. The sheer variety of things to do and the game's wholesome nature make it irresistible to all gamers. Cooking is one of the various activities players can enjoy.

This activity was first introduced in a free update to the game, allowing players to craft various dishes using different recipes. For the players who haven't unlocked this feature in the game, here's how to cook in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

How to cook food in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Like in real life, players require three main components for cooking: recipes, ingredients, and kitchenware, like a stove or a furnace. They can obtain all the cooking recipes from locations like Nook's Cranny or from the Restaurant in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Random actions and events may also grant recipes like inspiration from fishing, talking to towners, or finding them in bottles that have washed ashore. Kitchenware can also be purchased or crafted. Ingredients can be grown by farming, such as potatoes, carrots, and pumpkins. Players may purchase these with Bells or buy seeds to harvest—the latter is a far more efficient option. Just be sure to water the crops daily and reap the benefits.

Also read: How do you get wheat in Animal Crossing: New Horizons?

Once all the items have been prepped, head to the cooking spot in Animal Crossing: New Horizons and combine the ingredients according to the recipe as one would while crafting. Different recipes and combinations give rise to unique dishes, from soup and bread to curry and cake. Food can be used as decoration, gifted to a friend or an NPC, or consumed. Eating food grants a temporary buff allowing breaking rocks easily and uprooting trees. Energy levels are represented in the screen's top left corner to a maximum of 10 fruits.

Also read: What is the point of cooking in Animal Crossing: New Horizons?

How to unlock cooking in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Cooking was introduced in the 2.0 update and can be unlocked via in-game progression. The ability can be learned by paying a visit to the Resident Services building. Here, the kiosk should offer the Be a Chef! DIY Recipes+ perk, which costs 2,000 Nook Miles. This upgrades DIY Recipes to DIY Recipes+.

Next, players will require some form of kitchenware. Those who haven't purchased one already can craft items, thanks to the updated DIY Recipes. The one available in-game will allow players to craft the Stonework Kitchen. Here is what is needed to create it in Animal Crossing: New Horizons:

  • 30 x Stone
  • 15 x Clay
  • 10 x Iron Nugget

In the event that players are unable to find the Be a Chef! DIY Recipes+ option in the kiosk, they need not worry. This obstacle just means that they will need to upgrade the Resident Services tent to the building version. Additionally, they will need to have a 3-star island rating and complete the DIY workshop.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is developed and published by Nintendo, and was released on March 20, 2020. This game is only available on the Nintendo Switch hybrid console.

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