Cooking in Cairn is one of those systems that feels quiet at first, almost optional, until you realize how much it quietly props up everything else you are doing. Stamina management, grit decay, recovery windows, even how long you can push forward without resting, all of it bends around food, drinks, and infusions. This guide gathers every currently known recipe, what goes into it, and what you actually get back for the effort.
Cairn Recipe & Cooking Effects Guide – Infusions, Food
Some recipes are learned naturally through notes found during exploration, others are simple enough that you will probably discover them by accident while experimenting. A few still have missing effect data, and those gaps are noted clearly.
Infusions
Infusions are easily the most reliable and flexible recipes in the game. Herbs are everywhere, water is rarely an issue, and the scaling from basic to ultimate infusions makes them valuable at every stage of a run.
Gentian Infusion
Made by combining water and gentian.
Grants +20 for a short duration.
Nettle Infusion
Water mixed with nettle.
Provides +20 and lasts for about one minute.
Juniper Infusion
Water and juniper berries.
Gives +20 with a longer two-minute duration.
Sweet Infusion
Created by adding sugar to any infusion. This will downgrade strong or ultimate infusions back into a basic sweet version, which makes it a poor choice unless sugar is all you have.
Provides +20 for two minutes.
Strong Infusion
Made by taking any base infusion and adding one more herb. Gentian, nettle, dandelion, thistle, wild garlic, plantain, and juniper all count.
Grants +20 for three minutes.
Ultimate Infusion
Created by adding yet another herb to a strong infusion. Uses the same herb pool as strong infusions.
Provides a major +50 bonus, followed by an additional +20, lasting five minutes.
Chocolate Drink
Water combined with chocolate.
Grants +10 and +20 for two minutes.
Raspberry Juice
Water and raspberry.
Effects currently undocumented.
Food
Most food recipes are learned through notes, which makes finding them feel more like exploration rewards than checklist unlocks. Food generally gives stronger, more focused buffs than infusions, but requires more specific ingredients.
Caramel
Water mixed with a honey stick.
Provides +20 for one minute.
Super Gentian Honey
Gentian infusion combined with a honey stick.
Grants +10 and a powerful +40 bonus lasting four minutes.
Mountain Stew
Water, a tea bag, sugar, and lentils with ham.
Effects currently undocumented.
Tourist-Trap Noodles
Yellow Yak booze combined with dried noodles.
Provides +5 and +20 for two minutes.
Troglodyte Trout
Milk and trout.
Effects currently undocumented.
Porridge
Milk combined with oats.
Effects currently undocumented.
Pasture Tomatoes
Milk, a tea bag, and tomato.
Grants +10 and +40.
Maple Fudge
Water, sugar, and maple syrup.
Effects currently undocumented.
Hunter’s Mushrooms
Recipe exists, but ingredient and effect data are currently undocumented.
Mountain Rice
Strong infusion combined with uncooked rice.
Provides +15 and +20 for two minutes.
Boiled Plants
Ultimate infusion combined with nettles.
Grants +30 and +10 for five minutes.
Coffee-Dipped Sugar Cube
Coffee combined with a sugar cube.
Provides +10 for one minute.
Chocolate Egg
Chocolate drink combined with an egg.
Grants +10 and a massive +60 for two minutes.
Cocktails
Alcohol-based recipes are risky but extremely useful. These drinks are one of the best ways to stabilize grit and slow down stat decay, especially during long climbs or extended bad weather stretches.
Grog
Booze combined with gentian, nettle, or juniper.
Applies a small -5 penalty, then grants +10 for four minutes.
Sangria
Booze and raspberry.
Applies -5 for four minutes.
Bloody Mary
Booze combined with tomato.
Applies -5 for four minutes.
Eggnog
Booze and egg.
Applies -5 for four minutes.
Spiked Coffee
Booze combined with a coffee packet.
Applies -10 and -5 penalties, then grants +10 for four minutes.
Chocolate Martini
Booze and chocolate.
Provides +5, applies -10, then grants +10 for four minutes.
Daiquiri
Booze combined with sugar.
Applies -15 and -5 penalties, then grants +10 for four minutes.
Other Recipes
Not everything you cook is meant for comfort or stamina.
Medicinal Extract
Booze combined with thistle.
Provides a strong +40 effect lasting three minutes.
Cooking in Cairn rewards experimentation more than optimization. Some of the strongest recipes are easy to make, while others demand ingredients you might not want to carry for long. Learning when to settle for a basic infusion and when to commit rare items to a powerful meal is part of what makes the survival loop feel grounded and human rather than purely mechanical.