Cairn Cooking Guide: Best Recipes Tier List
Cairn best recipes determine how far you can climb before hunger, cold, or low stamina shut you down. Cooking turns basic ingredients into powerful meals that restore more resources and give vital buffs like Grip, Grit, and warmth. This tier list ranks the best Cairn recipes based on overall usefulness, reliability, and how often they save a climb.
Best Cairn Recipes Ranked Explained
The best Cairn recipes combine strong restoration with buffs that matter during long or dangerous climbs. Meals that restore both hunger and thirst, provide warmth, or boost Grip and stamina are always the most valuable. Lower tier recipes still help early on but fall off once resources become scarce higher on the mountain.
S Tier Cairn Recipes Top Tier Meals
These recipes give the strongest overall value and are worth prioritizing every time.
Ultimate Infusion
Provides strong thirst restoration, warmth, and long lasting stamina support. This is the most efficient use of herbs once water becomes limited.Chocolate Milk
Restores both hunger and thirst at the same time, saving inventory space and recovery time. Extremely useful during long vertical sections.Hearty Meat Stew
Large hunger restoration with warmth and Grit support. Excellent before cold zones or extended climbs without bivouacs.
A Tier Cairn Recipes Strong And Reliable
These meals are powerful but slightly more situational than S tier options.
Energy Noodles
Good hunger recovery with stamina regeneration. Easy to make early and remains useful throughout most of the climb.Herbal Infusion
Solid thirst recovery with light buffs. Very reliable when herbs are available and containers are full.Warm Broth
Moderate hunger restoration with warmth. Useful when temperature becomes a problem but resources are tight.
B Tier Cairn Recipes Situational Picks
These recipes work well early or in specific situations but are not ideal long term.
Cooked Mushrooms
Better than raw mushrooms but offers no major buffs. Fine early on when options are limited.Simple Meat Meal
Decent hunger recovery without extra effects. Works in a pinch but gets outclassed later.Sweet Drink Mix
Small hunger and thirst recovery. Helpful early but weak compared to chocolate based recipes.
C Tier Cairn Recipes Low Impact Meals
These recipes provide minimal benefit and should only be used when better options are unavailable.
Basic Infused Water
Slight thirst recovery with no meaningful buffs. Acceptable early but not worth herbs later.Dry Food Combos
Restore hunger only and provide no warmth or stat bonuses. Easy to replace once cooking improves.
How To Use Cairn Recipes Effectively
Always cook everything at every bivouac. Raw ingredients give far less value and waste inventory space that could hold better meals.
Fill containers completely before making infusions. Using herbs on partially filled containers wastes potential and limits how long the buffs last.
Save S tier meals for hard sections. Use them before long vertical climbs, cold areas, or dangerous routes where Grip and stamina matter most.
Final Blurb
Cairn best recipes can decide whether a climb succeeds or ends early. High tier meals provide warmth, stamina, and recovery that raw food cannot match. Cook often, manage water carefully, and lean on top tier recipes when the mountain starts fighting back.
FAQ
What are the best recipes in Cairn
Ultimate Infusion, Chocolate Milk, and Hearty Meat Stew are the strongest overall recipes.
Are cooked meals better than raw food in Cairn
Yes. Cooked meals restore more resources and often provide Grip, stamina, or warmth buffs.
Should you cook everything at a bivouac
Yes. Bivouacs become rare later and cooked food is always more efficient.
Do recipes matter late game
Yes. Buffs become more important as resources thin out at higher altitude.
Can you waste ingredients when cooking
Yes. Infusing herbs into partially filled containers wastes potential, so always fill them first.

