Ingredients

Ingredients holds the staples that go into cooking, plus a broad mix of other foods. It covers Pasta, Rice, Yeast, cereal, oils, fats, sauces, spices, cheese and baked goods. It also holds freshly caught fish, small game, grain sheaves and sealed jars of preserved food. Some of these must go into a recipe before they can be eaten. Others, from a Donut to Peanut Butter, can be eaten straight from the pack. The Chef is the best occupation for ingredients. It starts with the most Cooking skill. The Burger Flipper also starts with some Cooking skill.

All Food and Drinks Categories

Best Ingredients

The top pick for each role, by the game's own figures.

For	Name	Image	Stats	Spawn ID
Most calories	Lard		4095 calories	/additem Base.Lard
Most filling	Pasta		-60 hunger	/additem Base.Pasta
Best thirst quencher	Bouillon Cube		5 thirst	/additem Base.BouillonCube
Longest fresh	Dry Ramen Noodles		365 days fresh	/additem Base.Ramen

Kitchen Staples

Pasta and Rice are the base of many meals. Pasta lowers hunger by 60 and holds 3,360 calories. Put Pasta in Cooking Pot fills a Cooking Pot with Pasta and water. Put Rice in Cooking Pot does the same with Rice. A Cooking Pot with Pasta then takes up to 5 more ingredients. Put Pasta in Saucepan and Put Rice in Saucepan work with a Saucepan. Rice says "Must be used in a recipe to be eaten."

Mixes save time. Prepare Pancakes turns Pancake Mix and water into Pancakes. Make Gravy turns Gravy Mix and water into Gravy. Make bottle of milk mixes Milk Powder with water in a Feeding Bottle. Yeast goes into bread, pizza and cake batter.

Breakfast foods keep well. Cereal holds 2,360 calories. Pour Bowl of Cereal adds Cow's Milk or Sheep's Milk to make a Bowl of Cereal. Dry Ramen Noodles stay fresh for 365 days and rot after 730. Mac and Cheese stays fresh for 180 days. Open Mac and Cheese splits it into Macaroni and Cheese Powder.

Fats, Oils and Sauces

Fats pack huge calories into a light item. Lard holds 4,095 calories, Margarine holds 3,255 and Mayonnaise holds 3,000. Olive Oil holds 2,480. Peanut Butter holds 2,660 and lowers unhappiness by 15. Lard raises unhappiness by 30, so it works best inside a dish.

Fats and sauces flavour evolved recipes. Lard goes into a Stir Fry, Pasta, Soup and Stew. Olive Oil also tops a Pizza. Peanut Butter goes into Soup, a Stir Fry, a Sandwich or Toast. Ketchup seasons a Sandwich, a Burger, a Hot Dog, Rice, Pasta, a Taco or a Burrito. Honey sweetens a Cake, Pancakes, Toast, Oatmeal or a Hot Drink.

Sauces carry calories too. Ketchup holds 1,480 calories, and Balsamic Vinegar holds 1,250. Maple Syrup holds 1,100 and lowers unhappiness by 20. Honey holds 660. Mayonnaise stays fresh for 10 days and rots after 13. Nacho Cheese, Ranch and Salsa stay fresh for 60 days.

Spices and Seasoning

Spices go into a dish as seasoning. Seasoning lowers the dish's boredom and unhappiness. Salt and Pepper fit most savoury dishes, from Pizza and Soup to a Taco and a Burrito. Seasoning Salt, Garlic (Powdered) and Onion (Powdered) work the same way.

Spices are poor food on their own. Salt and Pepper each raise thirst by 20. Soy Sauce raises thirst by 40. Use them in a dish rather than eat them.

Vinegar preserves food. Make Jar of Preserved Food uses vinegar and Salt to seal vegetables in a Jar. The Jug of Vinegar holds a large supply.

Baked Goods and Treats

Bakery food lifts the mood. A Donut, a Chocolate Donut, a Frosted Donut and a Jelly Donut each hold 180 calories and lower unhappiness by 15. A Croissant lowers unhappiness by 15 too. A Danish holds 263 calories. These pastries stay fresh for 3 days and rot after 5.

Pies and cakes come in slices. An Apple Pie Slice, a Cherry Pie Slice or any other pie slice lowers hunger by 30 and holds 404 calories. Pie slices stay fresh for 5 days and rot after 8. Cake slices hold 70 to 90 calories each.

Packaged treats keep well. The Box of Chocolates lowers hunger by 40, holds 1,700 calories and lowers unhappiness by 20. The Milk Chocolate Bar holds 850 calories. Chips - Plain and the other chip flavours each hold 720 calories. Scout Cookies hold 1,200 calories.

Frozen food needs a freezer. Ice Cream holds 1,680 calories and lowers unhappiness by 10. It stays fresh for only 1 day, and Ice Cream (Melted) loses the mood bonus. A TV Dinner holds 670 calories and cooks in 10 minutes. It carries the warning "Dangerous uncooked."

Fish and Game

Caught fish land in this group. The Largemouth Bass, the Walleye, the Bluegill, the Channel Catfish and the other fish each lower hunger by 15. Each holds 159 calories and 35 protein. A whole fish stays fresh for 4 days and rots after 8. Raw fish is dangerous uncooked and raises unhappiness by 20 until it is cooked. Slice Fillet cuts a fish into 2 Fish Fillet.

Small game lands here too. A Dead Rabbit holds 1,730 calories and 330 protein. A Dead Squirrel holds 480 calories, and a Dead Rat holds 324. Butcher Small Animal turns them into meat with a sharp knife. Venison lowers hunger by 80 and cooks in 50 minutes.

Eggs and dairy round out the group. A Turkey Egg and Wild Eggs stay fresh for 14 days and rot after 21. Cheese stays fresh for 14 days and rots after 20. Yogurt stays fresh for 10 days.

Grain and Preserves

Grain starts in the field. A Wheat Sheaf, a Barley Sheaf or a Rye Sheaf dries on the Large Plant Drying Rack. Thresh Grain then turns the dried sheaf into seeds. Grind Flour at a Stone Quern turns Wheat Seeds, Rye Seeds or Barley Seeds into Flour. Mill Flour at a Stone Mill does the same job faster. Dry Grass turns Grass Cutting into Hay.

Sealed jars keep a harvest. Each sealed jar, such as the Jar of Carrots, stays fresh for 30 days and rots after 60. Its tooltip says "Cook to preserve for longer." Make Jar of Preserved Food needs a knife, a Jar, a Jar Lid, vegetables, vinegar, Salt and water. It gives 10 Cooking XP. The Chef, the Farmer and the Keen Cook trait know the recipe.

Locations

Store rooms hold crates of staples. Flour, Yeast, Pasta, Rice, Cereal and Olive Oil each have their own crates. The Gigamart baking aisle holds Yeast and oils. The Gigamart breakfast aisle holds Cereal and Peanut Butter. Spice shelves hold Salt and Pepper.

Restaurants keep their own stock. Italian kitchens hold Pasta, and sushi kitchens hold Rice. Pizza kitchens hold Cheese. Burger kitchens and condiment crates hold Ketchup and Mustard. Bakeries hold donuts, pies and cakes. Freezers hold Ice Cream and the TV Dinner.

Notes

• Dry Ramen Noodles stay fresh for 365 days, longer than almost any other food.
• Fats such as Lard and Margarine help a character who needs to gain weight.

All Ingredients