Cooking quests aren’t usually the first thing players rush toward after arriving in the Old Camp, but they are surprisingly useful during the early stages of Gothic Remake. Besides offering some easy experience, they also introduce players to ingredient gathering, exploration, and one of the few reliable sources of free food you’ll find early on.
If you’re spending time around the Old Camp, you’ll eventually come across two recipe-related quests tied to Snaf, the camp’s cook. Since both quests send you looking for ingredients in similar areas, it’s worth tackling them together instead of making multiple trips across the map.
This guide covers everything you need to know about completing both Snaf’s Recipe and The Forgotten Recipe.
Snaf
Snaf is the Old Camp’s cook and can usually be found working near the large cooking pot close to the castle entrance.
He’s one of those characters many players walk past repeatedly without realizing he offers useful quests. Speaking with him unlocks Snaf’s Recipe, while another recipe quest becomes available after discovering a note inside your free hut.
Neither quest is particularly difficult, but knowing where to find the ingredients saves a lot of wandering.
Snaf’s Recipe
This is usually the first cooking quest most players encounter.
Snaf wants ingredients for a batch of Meatbug Ragout and asks you to bring him:
- 3 Bugmeat
- 5 Hellcaps
The ingredient list isn’t very long, but some players struggle because they don’t yet know where these resources spawn.
Bugmeat
Bugmeat comes from Meatbugs, one of the weakest creatures in Gothic Remake.
These strange insects can be found around the Old Camp and nearby wilderness areas. If you’ve spent time exploring near the camp walls or the abandoned mine area from the opening section of the game, there’s a good chance you’ve already collected some.
Before heading out specifically to farm Bugmeat, check your inventory first.
If you still need more, search the outskirts of the camp and nearby paths where Meatbugs commonly appear.
Hellcaps
Hellcaps are much easier to miss.
Unlike ordinary plants, these mushrooms often grow inside caves and hidden corners of the map. Players who only follow roads and major paths may never notice them.
One of the easiest ways to find enough Hellcaps is by exploring caves near the Old Camp. Several early-game caves contain multiple mushrooms, allowing you to gather everything required for the quest during a single trip.
While exploring, keep an eye out for other useful herbs and ingredients. You’ll likely need some of them later.
Rewards
After delivering the ingredients, Snaf prepares his famous stew and rewards you for the effort.
The most useful reward isn’t actually the experience. It’s the fact that Snaf becomes a reliable source of food afterward.
During the early game, free food is surprisingly valuable, especially when healing items and ore are still limited.
The Forgotten Recipe
The second cooking quest begins in a slightly different way.
After receiving your free hut inside the Old Camp, search the chest inside. Among the contents you’ll discover a note referencing a forgotten recipe.
Bring the note to Snaf and he’ll become interested immediately.
To recreate the dish, you’ll need to gather:
- 2 Scavenger Breast
- 2 Onions
- 2 Carrots
- 2 Potatoes
- 2 Solanaceae
- 2 Water
Compared to Snaf’s Recipe, this quest requires more ingredients but most of them are actually easier to obtain.
Scavenger Breast
Scavengers are among the most common enemies in the early game.
You’ll encounter them constantly while travelling between settlements, exploring fields, or completing side quests around the Old Camp.
Hunt enough of them to obtain the required meat and this part of the quest is finished.
Most players naturally gather these materials through normal gameplay without needing to farm specifically.
Solanaceae
If any ingredient slows players down, it’s usually Solanaceae.
This herb tends to appear inside caves and less obvious locations rather than directly beside roads.
Fortunately, players searching for Hellcaps often stumble across Solanaceae at the same time. That’s why combining both recipe quests is so efficient.
Whenever you enter a cave, take a few extra seconds to gather every herb you see. You’ll save yourself a return trip later.
Vegetables
The remaining ingredients are much simpler.
Onions, carrots, and potatoes don’t require dangerous exploration or difficult combat encounters. Instead of searching every corner of the Colony, you can simply purchase them from merchants within the Old Camp.
For most players, spending a small amount of ore is far more efficient than trying to locate every ingredient manually.
Water
Water is also available from merchants and is usually one of the cheapest ingredients required.
Since you’ll already be shopping for vegetables, pick up the water at the same time to finish the shopping list in a single visit.
Ingredient Route
If you’re planning to complete both quests efficiently, it’s worth following a simple route.
Start by speaking with Snaf and collecting both recipe objectives.
After that:
- Hunt Meatbugs around the Old Camp.
- Kill nearby Scavengers while exploring.
- Visit nearby caves and gather every Hellcap and Solanaceae you find.
- Return to the Old Camp and purchase the remaining ingredients from merchants.
- Deliver everything to Snaf.
Following this approach allows you to finish both quests with minimal backtracking.
Why These Quests Matter
At first glance, recipe quests may not seem particularly exciting compared to joining factions, exploring dangerous regions, or hunting powerful monsters.
However, they’re actually excellent beginner quests.
The ingredients encourage exploration without sending players into extremely dangerous areas. The rewards provide useful experience during the early game. Most importantly, they introduce players to resource gathering, which becomes increasingly valuable as the adventure progresses.
They’re also some of the easiest quests to complete while waiting for larger story objectives to open up.
Many players focus entirely on combat and faction progression when they first reach the Old Camp, but Snaf’s quests are worth completing sooner rather than later.
Since both recipes share similar gathering locations and can be completed alongside other early-game activities, they provide easy experience with very little risk. You’ll earn useful rewards, unlock additional cooking options, and gain access to a steady source of food that can make surviving the opening hours of Gothic Remake much easier.
If you’re looking for productive side content before venturing deeper into the Colony, these two recipe quests are a great place to start.