Summary

• Creative cuisine shines in Delicious in Dungeon, showcasing unique recipes using ingredients from the dungeon depths.
• Food plays a key role in character development, with meals like Scorpion Hot Pot and Mandrake Omelets standing out.
• The series blends fantasy with real-world cooking techniques, adding depth to the storytelling through inventive dishes.

While Delicious in Dungeon has a great cast of characters and a compelling yet simple storyline, its most engaging aspect by far is its creative use of cuisine. The party has cooked up over two dozen different monster foods using a wide variety of ingredients, nearly all of which have come directly from the depths of the dungeon. From fruits and proteins obtained through hard-won battles to simple plants scrapped from the stone walls, every recipe is a unique adventure.

However, not all meals are created equal. The spectacular season 1 of Delicious in Dungeon has also made use of its recipes beyond merely showcasing its writers’ creativity with monster ingredients. The series not only takes dishes found in the real world and puts clever and fantastical spins on each recipe, it also sometimes uses food a tool for character development. Whether a dish is significant to someone’s personal story or its concept is just plain genius, there are several meals that outshine the rest.

10 Scorpion & Walking Mushroom Hot Pot

The Meal That Makes The Party's Rescue Mission Possible - Episode 1

With a limited number of days to save Falin from the Red Dragon’s stomach and even more limited resources, the issue of sustaining themselves during a weeklong dungeon delve initially looks dire for the party. Determined to save his sister, Laios insists that they can obtain food from the dungeon itself. All seems lost after his attempt to eat a boiled scorpion monster results in a badly upset stomach, but luckily a certain dwarf comes along to prove that surviving on ‘monster food’ is not only possible but delicious.

Using the scorpion monster, a Walking Mushroom, dried Slime innards, roots, algae, and some seasonings, Senshi cooks an incredibly colorful and tasty hot pot meal for the hungry party. Though apprehensive at first, Marcille and Chilchuck concede to Laios’ plan when they find the dish to be flavorful and safe to eat. Had Senshi not come along and showed them the merits of monster food, the trio’s hopes of saving Falin may have boiled away.

9 Mandrake & Basilisk Omelets

Accidentally Teaching an Old Dog New Tricks - Episode 2

This meal is an interesting one for both its ingredients and how each omelet tastes different. Most fantasy fans have come across Mandrakes, the root plants that emit deadly wails when picked, especially those familiar with the Harry Potter series. When it comes to harvesting them, Senshi and Marcille find they have very different approaches. Marcille’s book insists on using a dog and a long rope to avoid their screams, while Senshi simply cuts their heads off before picking them.

What makes this dish special is how the party’s collective survival knowledge contributes to an unexpected discovery. Using Laios’ monster trivia, Marcille locates and ropes a Big Bat, which proves to be a dangerous alternative to a dog. Out of curiosity, Senshi makes separate omelets to compare his and Marcille’s Mandrakes. Chilchuck and Laios find that Marcille’s Mandrake actually tastes better, ironically since it had the chance to scream, ridding it of bitter-tasting toxins.

8 Mandrake Kakiage and Big Bat Tempura

Learning How to Deep Fry in a Dungeon - Episode 2

Fire and blade traps are common finds in a dungeon, but few would think to use them for cooking. After stumbling upon a room rigged with such traps and figuring out how to set them off, Senshi gets the idea to use the traps to make kakiage and tempura. As the party’s trap expert, Chilchuck is furious with Senshi’s reckless trap triggering, and though horrified by the ludicrous concept, he reluctantly agrees.

The meal is cleverly prepared using a blade trap to chop up a Big Bat for meat and one fire trap to heat olive oil collected from another fire trap. Chilchuck struggles with the deep-frying but manages to cook enough for lunch. When Senshi praises Chilchuck’s trap skills, Chilchuck reflects and realizes that despite the earlier chaos, they did manage to combine their talents to make a meal together. The endeavor serves as a nice bonding and learning experience for the two, and Chilchuck even offers to teach Senshi some of what he knows when they have some time.

7 The Living Armor Feast

Four Dishes That Hit Different - Episode 3

This is a meal that not only features a creative concept but also proves the series can avoid being repetitive. Upon learning that Living Armor suits are not controlled by magic but by colonies of mollusk-like creatures that live between the layers of the metal, Laios is absolutely elated by the discovery, and the prospect of being the first to eat them. Senshi treats the creatures like shellfish, and prepares them in various way to see what methods work best.

Laios excitedly digs in, and instantly falls in love with the grilled option. Senshi think it’s acceptable, but could use some condiments. The stir-fry and soup turn out to be lackluster while the steamed helmet mollusks tragically taste like mold. All of the dishes prior to this one have pretty much been a hit with the party despite some of the ’ reservations about eating monster food. It’s refreshing to see that the four Living Amor dishes by contrast end up being hit or miss, even with Laios, the monster food enthusiast.

6 Fresh Vegetable Lunch and Stewed Cabbage & Turnip Salad

Golems Can Be Used For Gardening - Episode 4

This meal is exciting not for its ingredients or cooking method but for how the vegetables used in this lunch are sourced. In episode #4, Laios, Marcille, and Chilchuck discover that Senshi has been using Golems as a "walking veggie patch" in Chilchuck's words. Senshi explains that the Golems' bodies are ideal for crops, since they are filled with nutrients, which he keeps in check through crop rotation, and naturally maintain a consistent temperature and level of humidity. The Golems also eliminate pests, protect the vegetables from thieves, and keep their bodies well-hydrated.

The idea of using these well-known, earth-based fantasy creatures as vegetable gardens within the dungeon is incredibly clever.

While Marcille and Chilchuck find Senshi’s farming practice shocking, not to mention illegal by their world's laws, Senshi explains that the vegetable roots are actually beneficial to the Golems since the roots help hold their soil together, thus strengthening the Golems’ bodies. The idea of using these well-known, earth-based fantasy creatures as vegetable gardens within the dungeon is incredibly clever. The concept melds fictional elements with real-world farming requirements and natural erosion prevention to create a unique and interesting suspension of belief.

5 Exorcism Sorbet

The Blessing of an Unexpected and Refreshing Dessert - Episode 5

For all Senshi’s monster food know-how, even he was unprepared when his hodgepodge holy water turned into a frosty dessert. During their journey, the party runs into a horde of icy ghosts intent on possessing them or worse. Senshi throws together an improvised batch of multi-cultural holy water using various sweet ingredients, pours the concoction into a jar tied to the end of a rope, and then he and Laios take turns swinging it at the ghosts to ward to them off.

This event cleverly utilizes well-known elements of ghost lore as viable means for making sorbet of all things in the dungeon

Cold spots and chilly specters are common aspects of hauntings, so it's little surprise when the jar ends up covered in frost. However, having ed through the icy spirits, the jar’s contents also become icy, unexpectedly offering the party a cool, sweet treat. This event cleverly utilizes well-known elements of ghost lore as viable means for making sorbet of all things in the dungeon.

4 Tentacles and Kelpie Meat Stew Simmered in Undine

Marcille's First Solo-Cooked Meal - Episode 9

While Marcille comes to enjoy many of the monster meals the party has eaten, it's no secret she's often still reluctant to take that first bite. This makes her determination to capture and drink boiled Undine to restore her mana after a close call with the creature all the more significant. With Laios, Senshi, and Namari's help, the Undine is trapped within Senshi’s pan and set over a fire.

When Senshi advises her to consume the Undine with foods that aid in absorption, she embraces the suggestion and takes it upon herself to prepare the majority of the meal. She cooks various vegetables, Ivy Tentacles, and Kelpie meat in the Undine’s water, creating a rich stew that helps her quickly absorb the Undine’s mana. It's also worth noting that Marcille readily offers to share the stew with not only her party but also Namari’s party despite her mixed feelings about monster food.

3 Dragon Tail Soup, Onion Pizza Bread, and Roast Red Dragon

Making a Meal From The Dragon That Ate One of Their Own - Episode 12

After reviving Falin using forbidden magic and flesh from the Red Dragon, Senshi decides to make a feast from some of the remaining meat. Despite his excitement, even Laios second-guesses the appropriateness of consuming the beast that ate his sister. Too hungry and curious to care, Falin takes a big bite of the onion pizza topped with dragon meat and absolutely loves it. The irony of Falin experiencing both sides of the concept of “eat or be eaten,” with the same beast no less, is truly delicious.

There is also the added gratification of just how creative Senshi gets when cooking the meal. Not only does he use the dragon’s meat for soup, roast, and future rations, he also utilizes its scales for searing and to craft a makeshift pizza peel. He then uses the burning carcass like a brick oven to bake the pizza. It's truly a full-fledged case of waste not, want not in the best way possible.

2 Griffon Soup and Hippogriff Soup

Senshi's Dark Tale of Two Soups - Episode 23

Episode #23 revealed a dark detail about Senshi’s backstory that makes these soups especially significant to his character. In his youth, a dungeon expedition turned nightmare left him and two adult dwarves at the mercy of a prowling presumed Griffin, and with little food. Tensions were high, and the group was about to starve. After the adults stepped away from camp, Senshi heard screaming before only one, Gillin, returned, claiming the Griffin had attacked them and killed the other. Gillin then made soup from the alleged Griffin meat for Senshi, and disappeared, leaving Senshi haunted by the uncertainty of the meat’s origin.

When the present party takes down a Griffin, Laios suggests they make soup so Senshi can finally learn the truth. To Senshi’s despair, it tastes completely different, but Laios deduces the beast from the dwarf’s past was actually a Hippogriff. After obtaining Hippogriff meat, they make another batch of soup, and Senshi cries tears of relief when the flavor matches his memory. Though painful, recreating the soup lifted a heavy burden from his shoulders and brought the party closer together.

1 Boiled Hippogriff Dumplings

A Dish From Around The World - Episode 23

The Hippogriff Dumplings are one dish that would be completely unremarkable if not for one aspect that makes them truly special: the hands that prepare them. During the race swap fiasco in episode #23, Laios, Marcille, Chilchuck, Senshi, and Izutsumi find themselves horribly out of their elements, and hungry. With the ingredients available, Laios leads the party in making dumplings.

Wrapping the dumplings proves calming, offering a much-needed moment of peace amid the ordeal. Izutsumi, Chilchuck, and Marcille comment that the dumplings are familiar yet different from the kinds they are each used to eating, with Laios pointing out that they are delicious no matter the variation. The scene offers the audience a very sweet moment, as a group of adventurers from different backgrounds, now struggling to make due in their race-swapped bodies, come together to make a dungeon version of a dish shared across their cultures.