Fallout 76 Complete Cooking Guide: Recipes, Rare Ingredients & Farming Routes
Appalachia Doesn’t Care If You’re Hungry
You can run around with a legendary weapon and a pocket full of caps, but if you ignore your hunger in Fallout 76, you’re leaving buffs, XP, and carry weight on the table.
If you want more Intelligence for faster leveling, you’ll need to cook for it.
If you want extra carry weight without burning chems and risking addiction, you’ll need to cook for it.
If you want to stretch your survivability in the Cranberry Bog without draining stimpaks, you’ll need to cook for it.
Let’s break down exactly how the cooking system works, where to farm rare ingredients, and which recipes you should prioritize.
How Cooking Works in Fallout 76
You cook at any Cooking Station. You’ll find them:
Train stations
Workshops
Player C.A.M.P.s
The Whitespring Resort
Random cabins and camps across the Wasteland
When you interact with the station, recipes fall into categories:
Meat
Soups
Drinks
Basic recipes unlock automatically. Advanced recipes require plans. You’ll loot them from containers, earn them through events, or buy them from vendors like the Gourmet vendor inside Whitespring Mall.
Food spoils. Perks like Good With Salt slow that timer. If you’re serious about food buffs, build around it.
The Six Regions and What You Should Farm in Each
Appalachia splits into six regions:
The Forest
Toxic Valley
Ash Heap
Savage Divide
The Mire
Cranberry Bog
Each region feeds a different type of build.
The Forest – Starter Farming Ground
If you’re early game, this is your pantry.
You’ll find:
Silt Beans
Tatos
Corn
Carrot Flowers
Brahmin
Radstags
If you want to make Vegetable Soup for early AP regen, farm flat farmland areas near Vault 76 and agricultural locations.
Early on, you’ll want to loot everything to make caps. So, you’ll need to increase your carry-weight early. Hunt Radstags for Radstag Steak.
Toxic Valley – Acid, Radtoads, and Risk
Here you’ll farm:
Radtoads (for Fried Radtoad Legs)
Toxic water areas
Stingwings
You don’t casually wander here without Rad protection. But if you want Agility boosts from Radtoad dishes, you’ll need to hunt here deliberately.
Ash Heap – Firecaps and Mole Miners
Ash Heap rewards you with:
Firecaps
Mole Rats
Scorched enemies
Firecap Soup gives early resist boosts. Not flashy, but helpful when you’re undergeared.
Savage Divide – The Mid-Game Buffet
This region feeds serious builds.
You’ll find:
Yao Guai
Deathclaws
Squirrels
Brain Fungus
If you want to craft Brain Bombs for the Intelligence boost, you’ll be harvesting Brain Fungus from caves and damp areas.
If you’re building melee, Yao Guai farming should be routine.
The Mire – High-Risk, High-Reward
You come here when you’re not playing around.
You’ll find:
Glowing Fungus
Mirelurks
Honey Beasts
If you want to boost melee damage through Glowing Meat Steak, this region supplies you. Expect tougher enemies. Plan your route.
Cranberry Bog – Endgame Ingredient Farming
You don’t stroll into Cranberry Bog unprepared.
But if you want:
Cranberries/Diseased Cranberries (for Cranberry Relish XP boost)
Scorchbeast meat
Mirelurk Queen meat
Cranberry Relish remains one of the most popular XP-boosting foods in the game. Pair it with an INT build and you’ll level faster than players ignoring cooking entirely.
Vendor, Antoine at Whitesprings Mall
Basic Recipes
| Recipe Name | Ingredients | Buffs / Effects | How to Acquire |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brahmin Steak | Brahmin Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP, +Carry Weight (temporary) | Known by default |
| Bloodbug Steak | Bloodbug Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP, +Energy Resist (temporary) | Known by default |
| Bloatfly Loaf | Bloatfly Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Dog Meat Steak | Mongrel Dog Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Iguana Bits | Iguana Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Mirelurk Meat | Mirelurk Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Mole Rat Chunks | Mole Rat Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Mutant Hound Chops | Mutant Hound Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP, +Max HP (temporary) | Known by default |
| Radroach Meat | Radroach Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Radstag Steak | Radstag Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP, +Carry Weight (temporary) | Known by default |
| Stingwing Filet | Stingwing Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP, +Agility (temporary) | Known by default |
| Wolf Ribs | Wolf Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Yao Guai Roast | Yao Guai Meat (2), Wood | Restores HP, +Melee Damage (temporary) | Known by default |
| Firecap Soup | Firecap (2), Boiled Water, Wood | Restores HP, +Energy Resist (minor) | Known by default |
| Glowing Fungus Soup | Glowing Fungus (2), Boiled Water, Wood | Restores HP, +Rad Resist (temporary) | Known by default |
| Silt Bean Soup | Silt Bean (2), Boiled Water, Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Tato Soup | Tato (2), Boiled Water, Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Vegetable Soup | Corn (2), Tato (2), Carrot (2), Boiled Water, Wood | Restores HP, +AP Regen (temporary) | Known by default |
| Blackberry Juice | Blackberries (2), Boiled Water, Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Carrot Flower Nectar | Carrot Flower (2), Boiled Water, Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Melon Juice | Melon (2), Boiled Water, Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
| Razorgrain Soup | Razorgrain (2), Boiled Water, Wood | Restores HP | Known by default |
Advanced Recipes
| Recipe Name | Ingredients | Buffs / Effects | How to Acquire |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brain Bombs | Brain Fungus (3), Sugar Bombs, Purified Water (2), Wood | +INT (major), HP restore | Plan drop, events, Whitespring vendor |
| Cranberry Relish | Cranberries (2), Sugar, Gourd (2), Wood | +XP gain (temporary), HP restore | Plan drop, vendor |
| Cranberry Meatball Grinder | Cranberries (3), Purified Water (2), Scorchbeast Meat (3), Spices (2), Wood (1) | HP restore, +XP gain (temporary) | Whitespring Mall vendor (Le Grand Gourmet) |
| Tasty Squirrel Stew | Squirrel Bits (2), Tato, Boiled Water, Wood | +XP gain (temporary), HP restore | Plan drop |
| Deathclaw Steak | Deathclaw Meat (2), Wood | +Strength (temporary), HP restore | Plan drop |
| Deathclaw Wellington | Deathclaw Meat, Pepper, Salt, Mutfruit, Wood | Strong HP restore, +Strength | Plan drop, vendor |
| Mirelurk Queen Steak | Mirelurk Queen Meat (2), Wood | +Endurance (temporary), HP restore | Plan drop |
| Yao Guai Ribs | Yao Guai Meat, Spice, Wood | +Damage Resist, HP restore | Plan drop |
| Yao Guai Roast | Boiled Water (2), Mutfruit (2), Pepper (2), Wood (1), Yao Guai Meat (2) | +Melee Damage (temporary), HP restore | Whitespring Mall vendor (Le Grand Gourmet) |
| Radstag Stew | Radstag Meat (2), Wood | +Carry Weight (temporary), HP restore | Plan drop |
| Pepperoni Roll | Brahmin Milk, Razorgrain Flour, Pepper, Spices, Wood | +Carry Weight, HP restore | Molly at The Crater |
| Pumpkin Pie | Pumpkin (2), Sugar, Boiled Water, Wood | +Perception (temporary), HP restore | Pumpkin House on kitchen countertop |
| Sweet Roll | Sugar, Spice, Flour, Wood | HP restore, minor buff | Whitespring Mall vendor (Le Grand Gourmet), Plan drop |
| S’mores | Sugar, Brahmin Milk, Chocolate, Wood | +AP Regen (temporary), HP restore | Pioneer Scouts Campfire Tales Event reward, vendor |
| Glowing Meat Steak | Glowing Meat (2), Wood | +Melee Damage (temporary), HP restore | Plan drop |
| Honey Beast Meat Steak | Honey Beast Meat (2), Wood | +Damage Resist (temporary), HP restore | Plan drop |
| Tasty Radscorpion Egg Omelette | Radscorpion Egg (2), Tato (2), Pepper (2), Wood (1) | HP +45, Rads +1, Hunger +15% | Known by default (learned by looting Radscorpion Egg) |
| Fried Radtoad Legs | Radtoad Leg (2), Wood | +Agility (temporary), HP restore | Plan drop |
| Scorchbeast Steak | Scorchbeast Meat (2), Wood | +Max HP (temporary), HP restore | Plan drop |
| Scorchbeast Mixed Meat Stew | Scorchbeast Meat, Mutfruit, Boiled Water, Wood | HP restore, multi-stat boost | Plan drop |
| Seared Venison with Berries | Pepper (2), Purified Water (2), Radstag Meat (3), Starlight Berries (3), Wood (1) | HP restore, +Strength (temporary) | Random drop, event loot, or Vendors: Grandma Junko, Yasmin Chowdhury (Camp Ally), and Antoine at The Whitespring Mall |
| Owl Nuggets | Owl Meat | HP restore | Known by default (learned by looting Owl Meat) |
| Cranberry Jam | Diseased Cranberries (2), Sugar (2), Purified Water (2), Carrot Flowers (2) | HP +45, +10 DMG Resist, +1 Rads | Random kitchens/cooking areas (Mire / Cranberry Bog), or purchased from Yasmin Chowdhury (camp ally) |
| Dilbert's Mud Cookie | Mirelurk Egg (1), Razorgrain (2), Wood (1), Blackwater Brew (1) | HP +25, AP +180, Rads +5, Hunger +10% | Delbert's Mud Cookie Recipe – kitchen counter in blue two-story house, Aaronholt Homestead |
Rare Ingredient Farming Routes
Let’s talk specifics.
Cranberries
Farm near:
Sunrise Field
Cranberry Glade
Flooded trainyard zones in Cranberry Bog
Harvest them in batches, server hop if necessary.
Brain Fungus
Look inside:
Caves
Damp basements
Abandoned mines
You’ll need multiple pieces for Brain Bombs, so don’t grab just one and leave.
Squirrel Bits
Squirrels spawn inconsistently. When you see them, hunt them immediately. You’ll need them for Tasty Squirrel Stew, another XP-focused dish.
Deathclaw Meat
Hunt fixed Deathclaw spawn locations. Don’t rely on random encounters.
You don’t casually farm Deathclaws. You prep your armor, clear the area, then claim the meat.
Best Buff Foods to Prioritize
If you’re optimizing builds:
XP Build
Cranberry Relish
Tasty Squirrel Stew
Brain Bombs
Stack INT and XP multipliers.
Carry Weight Build
Radstag Steak
Pepperoni Roll
Perfect for farming runs.
Melee Build
Yao Guai Roast
Glowing Meat Steak
You’ll feel the damage difference immediately.
General Survival
Vegetable Soup
Firecap Soup
Mutant Hound Chops
Simple, reliable, repeatable.
Where to Find Advanced Recipe Plans
You’ll learn advanced recipes from:
Event rewards
Containers
Random world drops
Whitespring Mall vendor (Le Grand Gourmet)
Pioneer Scouts questline
If you’re actively trying to collect all cooking recipes, check vendors frequently. Their inventory rotates.
If I’ve missed a recipe in our database, please let me know and I’ll update it as soon as possible.
