Cooking

	Cooking (Profession)
	Ingredients • Proficiencies • Quests • Recipes • Trainers • Equipment

From Beer-Basted Boar Ribs to Giant Clam Scorcho, there is no recipe too obscure or odd to avoid notice from the Chefs of Azeroth. Food is used in the game to heal players out of combat, so they can get back to fighting as quickly as possible.

As you're traveling around the world, you'll notice that you often receive pieces of meat, which, instead of being sold to merchants, could be used to create food. If you're a player that relies on food, such as a non-healing player or a player that solos, food should become very important to you.

You can buy food from merchants, but the food gained through cooking is nearly free and it is actually much more effective. Cooking is also a great "flavor" secondary skill because you can entertain players with the funny and interesting dishes you can create. Hand someone some Gooey Spider Cake, Giant Clam Scorcho, or a Curiously Tasty Omelet and you'll see what we mean.

Additionally, certain cooked foods have a 15-minute or 30-minute 'well fed' buff effect in addition to the immediate health boost all foods have. (Know you're going in to battle and have a few minutes? Eat that [Herb Baked Egg] first and gain 2 Spirit and 2 Stamina for 15 minutes.) +2 stamina equates to 20 hit points and +2 spirit makes you get health and mana back quicker. 'Well fed' recipes are noted below. In the Burning Crusade, cooking is improved for other classes as there are buffs such as increased agility, spell damage, healing, etc. Hunters and Warlocks can also make treats for their pets/minions.

Requirements

Most recipes require spices or ingredients which can be obtained from trade goods vendors. [Mild Spices] are 10 for 5, [Hot Spices] are 40 each, and [Soothing Spices] are 1silver60 each.

Recipes also require a Cooking Fire, such as a Campfire, a Stove, a Brazier or a Fireplace, but not a Forge.

Suggested Classes

All classes benefit from cooking: melee, ranged, spell damage and healers alike. With the addition of the new recipes available in the Outland, there is something for everyone!

Summary of Skill levels

What do the colors mean?

The color of the recipe in your cooking window (menu) indicates whether you will gain a skill point in Cooking when you create the item. The color codes are as follows:

Red = Cannot create yet; you need a higher skill level in Cooking before you can create this recipe.
Orange = Will always receive a Cooking skill point when you create that item.
Yellow = Likely to receive a Cooking skill point.
Green = Unlikely to receive a Cooking skill point.
Gray = No skill increase.

Basically you want to create Yellow-named or Orange-named recipes when possible, to ensure you get an increase in your skill level. Some people recommend making only yellow items until they turn green since the ingredients probably will be easier to find.

Advancement

Cooking trainers can be found in capital cities as well as some minor cities.

Expert

Reaching Expert level requires the purchase of an [Expert Cookbook]. Horde players can buy the Expert Cookbook from Wulan in Shadowprey Village in Desolace, while Alliance players can find it from Shandrina in Silverwind Refuge in Ashenvale. Purchase price is 1, less if you have the faction discount.

Artisan

Reaching Artisan level requires completion of series of quests starting from the Cooking trainer in Orgrimmar (Zamja for the Horde) or Ironforge (Daryl Riknussun for the Alliance). You cannot get the quest until your cooking skill is 225 and you are level 35. The final quest, [45] Clamlette Surprise, comes from Dirge Quikcleave at the Gadgetzan inn in Tanaris and requires that you are level 36. You might want to gather some [Giant Egg]s (12), [Zesty Clam Meat] (10) and [Alterac Swiss] (20) in anticipation of this quest.
- Where to get Giant Eggs: Rocs (level 41+) and Fire Rocs (level 43) in Tanaris are the most convenient source, but Owlbeasts (level 42+) in Hinterlands have a much better drop rate and are easier to find. Supposedly all large birds (level 41+) have a chance to drop Giant Eggs.
- Where to get Zesty Clam Meat: Various shoreline mobs (level 30+), such as Crabs, Murlocs, Naga and Turtles, will drop [Big-mouth Clam] that often have this inside them.
- Where to get [Alterac Swiss]: You can buy it from various vendors in both Horde and Alliance cities and towns. The most obvious place for Alliance is the cheese shop in Stormwind; Gol'Bolar Quarry: Kazan Mogosh, the Food & Drink Merchant; Wildhammer Keep: Truk Wildbeard the bartender. For Horde, the innkeepers in Thunder Bluff, Desolace and Hammerfall sell Alterac Swiss. If you want to save some money just pick it up from the supply crates in Stratholme. It is also now sold by the provisions vendor in the Caverns of Time in Tanaris.
- After completing the quest in Tanaris, make sure and head over to Cenarion Hold. Visit the Innkeeper and she will give you a quest called [57] Desert Recipe. You will need to have your cooking at a minimum of 285 before you can pick up the quest. For this quest you will first have to visit the Twilight Hammer camp to the West and retrieve a book. After returning the book she will teach you how to make [Smoked Desert Dumplings] and will ask you to make 10 for her.

Master

The Burning Crusade expansion pack offers master level cooking. Cooking has also gotten a nice boost in the expansion compared to before, with a wide variety of stat bonus foods.

Horde : Book bought from Baxter <Chef> in the inn at Thrallmar.
Alliance : Book bought from Gaston <Chef> in the kitchen of the Honor Hold inn

Note: Either faction can also pick up the book from an NPC in the inn at the the Cenarion Refuge.

Quick guide (Horde)

Start by going to a cooking trainer and learn cooking.
Begin by cooking 19 [Roasted Boar Meat] with [Chunk of Boar Meat] found on boars in Durotar, or by cooking 19 [Charred Wolf Meat] with [Stringy Wolf Meat] found on wolves in Mulgore or Tirisfal Glades.
Continue with [Scorpid Surprise], which you can learn from a recipe found on Grimtak (unlimited), an orc butcher in Razor Hill. Kill scorpids in Durotar until you've gotten 40 Scorpid Stingers. Cook the dish using all stingers. You will now be at cooking level 60.
Further on, learn Journeyman Cooking from a trainer and continue to Tranquillien, Ghostlands. Buy the recipe for [Crunchy Spider Surprise] from Master Chef Mouldier (unlimited) and start killing Spindleweb spiders in the zone. After collecting 40 of Crunchy Spider Legs, cook the dish using them all. You're now at level 100.
Fly to the Crossroads, the Barrens, and buy the recipe for [Crispy Lizard Tail] from Tari'qa (unlimited). Fly to Camp Taurajo and kill lots of storm lizards, the best drops are from Stormheads and Thunderheads. Gather 40 Thunder Lizard Tails and along with 40 [Hot Spices], make 40 Crispy Lizard Tails. You should now be at level 140.
Fly to Shadowprey Village in western Desolace and buy the Expert Cooking book from Wulan in order to learn Expert Cooking.
Fly back to the Crossroads and buy the recipe for [Hot Lion Chops] off the butcher, Zargh (unlimited). Find your way over to Tarren Mill and start killing Mountain Lions of all kinds in Hillsbrad Foothills and Alterac Mountains. Get 35 [Lion Meat] and cook the chops with 35 Hot Spices. The cooking level should be 175.
Fly to Camp Mojache in Feralas and buy the recipe for [Hot Wolf Ribs] from Sheendra Tallgrass (unlimited). Kill wolves in the zone in order to get [Red Wolf Meat]. Collect 40 and together with 40 Hot Spices, cook the ribs. You're now at cooking level 215.
Learn how to make [Spider Sausage] from a trainer and get 20 pieces of [White Spider Meat]. Cook it and you'll be at level 225.
Begin the cooking quest in Orgrimmar. Get eggs from owlbeasts in the Hinterlands, [Zesty Clam Meat] from clams found on sea creatures (or check the auction house) and Alterac Swiss from Innkeeper Adegwa at Hammerfall.