New to Stardew Valley? In any other exploration/survival game, cooking is an essential. But with Stardew Valley, you only start to cook a couple of hours into the game unless you rush towards it.
There are two ways to cook, or access the “cooking interface” in Stardew Valley.
Cooking Method 1


The first is through the kitchen. The kitchen is unlocked after you purchase the first house upgrade from Robin in the Carpenter’s Shop.
The upgrade costs 10,000g and requires 450 pieces of wood. It takes about three days for Robin to complete the upgrade after purchase.
After the kitchen’s been built, you can now interact with the stove to cook. Simply pick the recipe you want, and if you have the correct ingredients, the dish will be cooked instantaneously.
Cooking Method 2


The second method is through the Cookout Kit. It is an item that creates a cooking fire, which allows you to cook outside of your farm.
You can get the Cookout Kit by completing the Wild Medicine Bundle in the Community Center Crafts Room. It’s a Remixed Bundle though, so it might not be present in your current save. Fortunately, you also learn how to craft Cookout Kits when you reach Foraging Level 9.
Recipes And How To Obtain Them


Knowing how to cook isn’t enough to make you a cook. You must first obtain recipes to actually know what to cook. Here are several methods for obtaining recipes.
- You can purchase recipes from various shops in Stardew Valley. Gus from the Stardrop Saloon sells a bunch of recipes early on in the game (Open from 12:00PM-12:00AM).
- Befriending the villagers of Stardew Valley could lead to them giving you a new recipe. Each recipe obtained this way has different requirements. Some villagers will give you a recipe once your relationship with them reaches three hearts, others might do it sooner or later.
- Another way to learn recipes is through The Queen of Sauce show on TV.
- Leveling up your skills will also grant you new recipes.