Don’t Starve Together: The Ultimate Crock Pot Recipe Guide
Yes, Don’t Starve Together features the Crock Pot, allowing players to create various recipes that provide superior nourishment, health, and sanity bonuses compared to raw or cooked ingredients, significantly enhancing survivability and gameplay.
Introduction: A Culinary Revolution in the Constant
The Crock Pot is arguably one of the most important structures in Don’t Starve Together (DST). It elevates food preparation from basic roasting over a fire to sophisticated culinary endeavors. Mastering the Crock Pot not only extends your characters’ lives but also provides strategic advantages by optimizing resource usage and maximizing the benefits of each meal. Learning the ins and outs of this cooking vessel is a key component of any successful DST playthrough.
The Benefits of Crock Pot Cooking
Using the Crock Pot offers several advantages:
- Improved Stats: Recipes made in the Crock Pot generally provide better stats than raw or cooked ingredients. This includes increased hunger restoration, health recovery, and sanity gains.
- Ingredient Efficiency: The Crock Pot allows you to stretch your resources further. Using less desirable ingredients in combination with better ones can create a dish with significant benefits.
- Spoilage Management: Crock Pot dishes spoil slower than individual ingredients, giving you more time to consume them before they go bad.
- Variety: The Crock Pot unlocks a diverse range of recipes, preventing the monotony of constantly eating the same basic foods.
- Strategic Advantages: Some recipes offer unique bonuses that can aid in combat, exploration, or resource gathering.
Understanding Crock Pot Mechanics
The Crock Pot requires specific ingredient combinations to produce different recipes. The game uses a recipe point system where each ingredient contributes a certain value to different food groups (meat, fruit, vegetables, eggs, filler). The Crock Pot then compares the total point value to known recipes and produces the result.
Here’s a breakdown of the key aspects:
- Recipe Priorities: When multiple recipes are possible based on the ingredients, the game prioritizes the highest-tier recipe.
- Banned Ingredients: Some ingredients are banned from certain recipes. For example, Twigs are generally banned from most recipes, as they’re considered filler and would ruin the meal.
- Recipe Points: Each ingredient contributes a certain number of points towards different food categories. For example, a monster meat is worth 1 meat point, while a morsel is worth 0.5 meat points.
- Recipe Complexity: Some recipes are straightforward (e.g., Meatballs), while others require precise ingredient ratios (e.g., Dragonpie).
Popular and Essential Recipes
Here are some popular and essential Crock Pot recipes in DST:
| Recipe | Ingredients | Stats (Hunger/Health/Sanity) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meatballs | 1 Meat + 3 Filler (Berries, Ice, etc.) | 62.5/3/5 | A basic and reliable source of hunger. |
| Pierogi | 1 Meat + 1 Egg + 1 Vegetable + 1 Filler | 75/40/5 | Excellent for restoring health. Use Moleworm for meat. |
| Bacon and Eggs | 2 Eggs + 1 Meat + 1 Filler | 75/20/5 | A great option for consistent meat and egg production from Tallbirds or Birds. |
| Dragonpie | 1 Dragonfruit + 3 Filler (Twig Banned) | 75/40/5 | One of the best health-restoring foods, especially if you have a steady supply of Dragonfruit. |
| Honey Ham | 1 Honey + 2 Meat + 1 Filler | 75/30/5 | A good combination of healing and hunger, especially if you have a reliable honey farm. |
| Trail Mix | 1 Roasted Birchnut + 1 Dried Fruit + 1 Berry + 1 Filler | 37.5/30/5 | One of the best sources of health in winter. Berries can be substituted with any vegetables. Dried fruit is obtained by drying fruit on racks. |
| Waffles | 1 Butter + 1 Egg + 1 Fruit + 1 Filler | 37.5/60/5 | Extremely good health restoration at the small cost of some hunger. |
Common Crock Pot Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
- Using Too Much Monster Meat: Using more than two Monster Meats will result in Monster Lasagna, which damages health and sanity.
- Adding Twigs to Everything: Twigs are considered filler but are generally banned from most recipes. They can easily ruin a dish.
- Not Understanding Recipe Priorities: Be aware that certain ingredient combinations can result in unexpected recipes. Consult a recipe guide to avoid surprises.
- Ignoring Filler Ingredients: Filler ingredients like berries, ice, and vegetables are crucial for balancing recipes. Don’t underestimate their importance.
Optimizing Your Crock Pot Strategy
- Plan Your Farm: Strategically plant crops based on your desired Crock Pot recipes.
- Utilize Drying Racks: Drying meat and other ingredients extends their shelf life, allowing you to stockpile resources for cooking.
- Establish a Honey Farm: Honey is a valuable ingredient in many recipes and can be easily produced with bee boxes.
- Experiment with Different Combinations: Don’t be afraid to experiment with different ingredient combinations to discover new and useful recipes.
- Coordinate with Your Team: Communicate with your teammates to delegate tasks and share resources, ensuring a steady supply of ingredients for the Crock Pot.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the best overall Crock Pot recipe?
The “best” recipe depends on your needs. For general hunger and health, Dragonpie is excellent if you can consistently farm Dragonfruit. Pierogi is a close second because of the ease of obtaining carrots and Moleworms. For healing, Waffles are invaluable, especially if you manage to obtain butter.
How do I get Eggs easily in DST?
The easiest ways to get eggs are:
- Bird Traps: Setting up bird traps near a Bird Cage baited with seeds will catch birds that drop eggs.
- Tallbird Nests: Raiding Tallbird nests can yield multiple eggs, but be prepared for a fight.
- Pengull Eggs: Picking up Pengull eggs after they nest in Winter.
- Glommer’s Goop: Combining Glommer’s Goop with a Feather grants an egg, but it is considered very inefficent.
What are the best filler ingredients to use?
Berries and Ice are generally the best filler ingredients due to their abundance and low value. Other good options include Seeds, Carrots, and Mushrooms. Twigs, as mentioned before, should generally be avoided in most recipes.
How can I tell if a recipe will work before I start cooking?
Unfortunately, the game doesn’t provide a preview. You’ll need to either memorize recipes or consult a recipe guide. Using a Don’t Starve Together recipe calculator, which you can find online, can be extremely helpful.
What is the best way to deal with Monster Meat?
Monster Meat can be safely consumed by cooking it on a Drying Rack, producing Monster Jerky or using it in recipes where the other ingredients negate its negative effects. Meatballs are an excellent option, as they require only one meat point, allowing you to use 1 monster meat with 3 berries or other filler.
How do I get Dragonfruit?
Dragonfruit can be obtained by:
- Finding Dragonfruit Plants: Rare plants can be found in the Oasis biome during the Summer season.
- Trading with the Pig King: The Pig King may occasionally offer Dragonfruit in exchange for trinkets.
- From Klaus’ Deer: After defeating Klaus, his deer may spawn Dragonfruit.
Is it worth building multiple Crock Pots?
Yes, especially in multiplayer. Having multiple Crock Pots allows you to cook more efficiently, especially when dealing with large quantities of ingredients. Two to four are ideal for most group sizes.
What is the best way to manage food spoilage?
Use Ice Boxes to slow down spoilage. Drying Racks convert meat into jerky, which spoils much slower. Cooking food in the Crock Pot also increases its shelf life. Avoid cooking ingredients you can not use right away.
Can I use rotten food in the Crock Pot?
No, rotten food (spoiled ingredients) cannot be used in the Crock Pot. It will result in an unappetizing and useless dish.
What are the best sanity-restoring recipes?
The Crock Pot is not ideal for Sanity restoration. If desperate, Taffy can be crafted to restore 15 sanity. However, drying is much better, as a few Green Caps dried on a drying rack completely restore Sanity with no negative consequences. Also, if you manage to craft a Surf ‘n’ Turf then consuming that dish will restore 33 Sanity.
What are some unusual or less-known Crock Pot recipes?
- Ice Cream: Made with 1 Goat Milk + 1 Ice + 1 Honey + 1 Filler is expensive but restores 50 sanity and provides a cooling effect in summer.
- Butter Muffin: Made with 1 Butterfly Wings + 1 Vegetable + 2 Filler restores a little Hunger and Health but more importantly, it will boost your characters stats.
- Powdercake: Made with 1 Corn + 1 Honey + 1 Twig + 1 Filler it restores 75 Hunger and can be used to tame beefalo.
How do I get Butter in DST?
Butter is obtained by killing Butterflies near flowers. They have a 5% chance to drop Butter. This makes it difficult to obtain. Killing Butterflies to obtain butter can only be obtained after the Butterflies’ fourth time being stunned.