Summary
Despite the magical powers and ability to build intricate contraptions,cooking meals is one of the most crucial mechanicsinThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, even though this may not appear to be the case on the surface.
Whether you’re roasting anAppleby the fireor whipping up a fancy gourmet dish, cooked meals are often the final defense between Link and the cold embrace of a Game Over screen. Of course, some meals restore more hearts than others, so you’ll need to carefully curate your ingredients to get the absolute most healing properties out of your dishes.
Updated on July 22, 2025 by Jack Filsinger:The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom truly has endless possibilities, and that means endless recipes to discover. We’ve updated this list with additional recipes and food that will give you excellent heart recovery. So fire up those cooking pots and dive into these delicious recipes for additional hearts in TOTK.
Hearts Replenished
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ (7)
Looking for a sweet treat that’s also going to give you some nice healing benefits?Honeyed Applesare the way to go! All you’ll need for this recipe is an Apple and some Courser Bee Honey, making it a simple yet effective way to gain back some health in a pinch.
This recipe will net you seven hearts, so it’s a good meal to keep on-hand going into the heat of battle. Plus, Link deserves some dessert every once in a while — he’s more than earned it!
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ (10)
This five-ingredient recipe is a hardy meal that is a reliable source of health when Link is feeling down. Just combine a few pieces of raw meat and two Hylian Rice, and you’ll have some deliciousMeaty Rice Ballsin no time.
This meal restores ten hearts, which is more than enough to sustain the adventurer on the go — especially in the mid-game, where it’s likely to fill your health to full as you continue to grind for shrines. The ingredients are pretty easy to gather, too, making for a reliable snack when you’re in a pinch.
The higher the quality of the meats you use in the dish, the more the recipe will restore your hearts.
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ (13)
Some of the more common ingredients you’ll find around the world include theHyrule Herb, which is known to boost the healing properties of your recipes depending on how you include them. Well, if you just toss a few of them together for a meal, you’ll have yourself someFried Wild Greens.
As per usual, the healing properties of this recipe will depend entirely on which ingredients you use and how many of them, but if you spring for five Hyrule Herbs, you’re able to get up to 13 hearts of healing in one go.
Using four or five herb items results inCopious Fried Wild Greens, a different recipe entirely.
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ (18)
(Can vary based on ingredients used).
Roasted Hearty Salmonis straightforward recipe that’s great for a huge health restoration. The only downside is that it requires a specific drop in the form of Hearty Salmon. Typically, you’ll find this item dropped by larger enemies like Blue Hinoxes or sometimes sold at vendors.
However, once you do have Hearty Salmon, all you need to do is roast it over a fire and voilà, you’ll be restoring your HP in no time flat. If you do come across a vendor selling these fish, make sure you clean them out.
Sometimes, all it takes to restore a lot of HP is getting lucky with drops. If you go hunting for wild birds around the Eldin region of Hyrule, you might get lucky and get some Whole Bird drops. Specifically, look for Ostriches or White Pigeons.
Taking these to cooking fires and quickly roasting them will makeRoasted Whole Birds, which can restore a base number of 18 hearts. Add more ingredients, and that number can skyrocket. You’ll have to spend some time hunting birds, so this isn’t always the fastest method available.
If you’re willing to take the time to hunt game for sport, this is another great recipe option that you can farm easily. Head to either the Hebra Mountains or the Tabantha Tundra and look for wild game roaming around. If you hunt these creatures, they may drop Raw Gourmet Meat.
It’s no secret that Raw Gourmet Meat is a valuable item drop. If you take this item to a flame, you can restore a base of up to 18 HP, which can then grow larger depending on the amount of ingredients used, or by adding items like aHearty Truffleto the base recipe.
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ (20)
Break out your hunting bow, because this meal requires a lot of raw meat — five pieces, to be specific. The heart output on theCopious Meat Skewerswill definitely vary depending on what kind of meat you cook up (i.e. regular versus prime), but this recipe can max out at 20 hearts if you load up on the quality ingredients.
It might not be all too fancy, but this meal will definitely sustain Link througheven the toughest fightsthat Hyrule has to offer.
Hopefully Link is a fan of seafood, becauseCopious Seafood Skewersinclude literally nothing but. This recipe can range from ten to 20 hearts depending on the five fishy ingredients you choose, which isn’t anything to scoff at. And withall the waters you’ll need to navigateas part of the game, we’re sure your inventory is relatively seafood-stocked.
Using fish that grant a buff (likeChillfin Trout,Voltfin Trout, orSizzlefin Trout, for example) will offer you their buff by default, so unless you’re aiming for those, it’s best to stick to fish with more general buffs, if any at all.
Full restore plus bonus hearts (varies depending on ingredients).
Steamed Meatis another quite simple option that can be maximized for amazing results. While the basic recipe only calls for meat and any type of plant, adding things like aHearty Truffleor aHyrule Herbcan help improve this recipe, restoring you past full health.
Experiment with adding different types of meat and plants. The more gourmet the meat, and the more Hearty Truffles you add, the better. The real boon of this recipe is that it’s easy to remember, and you likely won’t have to go digging for it in your recipe book.
Full restore, plus bonus hearts (varies depending on ingredients used).
Although the HeartyFish and Mushroom Skeweris one of the more complicated and specific meals, it can provide some of the absolute best payout when it comes to its healing properties. The base recipe for Fish and Mushroom Skewers can be made by cooking any fish with any mushroom.
To get the maximum healing, though, you’ll need to part with some of your extremely valuable mushrooms and fish - namely, the Hearty varieties. A combination of these ingredients will not only take Link’s hearts back to full but will also grant some temporary bonus hearts on top, the first of several recipes on our list to do so.
