No Man's Sky: A Complete Guide To Cooking

No Man's Sky has seen an almost alarming amount of new content, features, and entire gameplay systems added to it post-launch, with each new system carving out its own bit of the gameplay loop. It's made for what truly feels like a universe full of options, and you can engage with most systems at your leisure.

One of the systems added to NMS after launch is cooking. And, reflecting a universe full of unique plants and animals, there are a mind-boggling amount of recipes to cook. The process for all of this can be a little bit involved, so here are the basics.

Blueprints You'll Want For Cooking

There is one blueprint available in the Anomaly that you're going to need for cooking, and there are some other blueprints that you might want for cooking, depending on what exactly you want to cook.

All the blueprints in this section are located at the Construction Research Station in the Anomaly, except for the last, which is located at the Synthesis Laboratory, on the other side of the same room.

Nutrient Processor

There is only one blueprint that you'll truly need for cooking, though managing with just this would be less than ideal.

Blueprint Section Salvaged Data Nutrient Processor Technology Modules x10 Blueprint	Section	Salvaged Data
Nutrient Processor	Technology Modules	x10

Blueprints To Consider For Cooking

There are quite a few more blueprints that aren't technically necessary for cooking, but they're going to give you a lot more options, and make the whole process a lot easier. All of these except for the last take Salvaged Data to purchase.

Blueprint	Section	Salvaged Data
Livestock Unit	Technology Modules	x10
Automated Feeder	Technology Modules	x10
Hydroponic Tray	Agricultural Modules	x3
Large Hydroponic Tray	Agricultural Modules	x3
Fungal Cluster	Agricultural Modules	x3
Frostwort	Agricultural Modules	x3
Gamma Weed	Agricultural Modules	x3
Echinocactus	Agricultural Modules	x3
Star Bramble	Agricultural Modules	x3
Solar Vine	Agricultural Modules	x3
Mordite Root	Agricultural Modules	x3
Poly Fiber	Synthesis Laboratory	x250 (Nanite Clusters)

Building A Base For Cooking

Depending on the kind of output you'd like, you don't actually need a ton of space to start cooking; you'll just need a little time, and the resources to build a small internal area. The bare necessities of this operation are very low, and the bulk of the resource expense is going to come in trying to make it look nice.

Build An Interior Room

It doesn't really matter how you build this room, as long as it's got walls and a roof. Plants grown in the Hydroponic Trays all generally need to be inside to grow, unless they're in their own specific, ideal environment. It's impossible to grow multiple plants of different types in the same place because of this, so planting them inside is typically the way to go.

The Hydroponic Trays are going to need power to function, so ensure you've got some kind of easy power grid operating for these. Solar Panels and Batteries are perfect for this.

How To Grow Plants

To plant in the Hydroponic Trays, you'll need to enter the build menu, just like you would to place a wall. From there, head to the Advanced Technology section, which is the same section the Hydroponic Trays are in.

You'll need one associated resource alongside the plant you're looking to grow, and each plant is going to have varying grow times before they're ready, which are displayed in their description before you place them.

How To Harvest Plants

Once the grow period for each plant is over, you'll be able to harvest it. This is going to net you a good amount of that particular resource, and restart the grow clock for you to rinse and repeat.

With a small farm, this isn't going to net you an incredible amount of ingredients. But with a big farm, this is a great way to automatically gain a lot of them.

You don't necessarily have to grow ingredients for cooking, either. You can grow things like Albumen Pearls simply for selling, alongside other valuable items.

Building Fauna Technology

Obtaining the resources to start automatically harvesting ingredients from fauna is going to be a bit more of an involved experience. Some of the items needed to make a Livestock Unit and an Automated Feeder need to be crafted, and the resources needed to do so aren't going to be exceptionally common.

Both the Livestock Unit and Automated Feeder will need to be powered, just like the Hydroponic Trays.

How To Build A Livestock Unit

The recipe for a Livestock Unit includes Poly Fiber, which is a blueprint you're going to need to get in the Synthesis Laboratory in the Anomaly. Crafting Poly Fiber is going to mean getting Cactus Flesh and Star Bulbs.

This is why this section is listed underneath the plants section; it's helpful to already have a supply of these two resources replenishable and on-hand in order to build at least one of these.

For Cactus Flesh, you'll want to grow Echinocactus, and for Star Bulbs, you'll want to grow Star Bramble.

This Livestock Unit, when built, will automatically collect whatever resource the nearby fauna produces when fed. This will net you a constant supply of at least one resource, on planets that have ample fauna. Ideally, you'll have more than one type of animal nearby, and be collecting more than one kind of resource.

How To Build An Automated Feeder

The Automated Feeder is going to be a bit easier to build than the Livestock Unit; the most difficult-to-obtain resource here is going to be Chlorine, which can be found fairly easily in an ocean, or created by refining Salt.

An Automated Feeder is going to need a constant supply of Creature Pellets with which to feed the nearby fauna. But, with those Creature Pellets, it's going to attract nearby wildlife that, once fed, will deposit their resources into the Livestock Unit.

Another way to obtain fauna for cooking is through fishing.

How To Use The Nutrient Processor

Once you've gathered the ingredients you'd like to cook with, it's time to use the Nutrient Processor. Inside this machine, you can place up to three different ingredients, with the outcome of your ingredients displayed on the right side of the screen.

There are an incredible amount of recipes, but you don't need to memorize them all. Many recipes have the same effects, and differ only in the ingredients it takes to make them.

Most Helpful Recipes

While most food has very minor effects that aren't going to make a huge difference, they aren't necessarily useless. Here are some of the more useful effects, and some of the dishes that provide them.

Recipe Ingredients Effect Slime Pop Viscous Custard Frost Crystal Sweetened Mucous Recharges 25% Hazard Protection Sweet And Salt Puff Syrupy Batter Salty Custard Restores 50% Health Wriggling Tack Sugar Dough Nightmare Sausage Restores 40% Life Support Recipe	Ingredients	Effect
Slime Pop	Viscous Custard Frost Crystal Sweetened Mucous	Recharges 25% Hazard Protection
Sweet And Salt Puff	Syrupy Batter Salty Custard	Restores 50% Health
Wriggling Tack	Sugar Dough Nightmare Sausage	Restores 40% Life Support

Many of the recipes in NMS require ingredients that are not raw on their own, and require cooking one or two items that are, themselves, ingredients in the dish you actually intend to make. This can make cooking certain dishes into a multi-step process.

Oftentimes, the dishes with these requirements have a higher monetary value. This is not necessarily true across the board, and if you're going into this process looking to make money, it's worth doing a little research beforehand to see exactly what dishes you'd like to make.

You can also just combine ingredients to see what you get, if you aren't too worried about the outcome.

Why Cook?

Largely, the juice of cooking in NMS is not worth the squeeze. That's not true for every dish, but if you're looking at things from a purely logistical standpoint, there are far more efficient methods to make money, and to help keep yourself alive.

But, there is a joy to cooking in NMS. While it does not necessarily provide entirely worthwhile benefits, it is a game where the enjoyment comes out of what you put into it. Oftentimes, kind strangers in the Anomaly distribute delicious dishes to strangers they come across, and that kindness alone is worth the effort.

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