Summary
Delicious in Dungeon (Dungeon Meshi) is a delightfully whimsical tale of wholesome goofballs. The tale follows a Dungeons & Dragons-style adventuring party, led by the lovably aloof Laios, as they traverse a dangerous dungeon. It’s a standard setup, but there’s one colossal twist: they eateverything,including the monsters!
Since itsNetflixdebut in January 2024, Delicious in Dungeon has quickly captivated audiences’ hearts and stomachs with its story. Moreover, the animators at Studio Trigger (also known for Kill La Kill) have lovingly renderedevery mealin gorgeous, mouth-watering detail, making this food-centric tale an irresistible delight.
10A Classic Scorpion Hot Pot
A hot pot is a traditional type of simmering broth stuffed with delicious goodies, and the party’s first meal is no different. Served in Senshi’s iconic wok-like shield, the meal stays true to its roots, as a sizzling fire keeps the broth piping hot. Unfortunately, you can’t eat this hot pot — unless you somehow find a giant scorpion and walking mushroom meat.
Its other ingredients are no less whimsical. The greenery comes from dungeon graveyard algae, and the broth is fortified with dried slime cubes. However, you’re able to get a tentative taste of the dish by substituting its primary proteins with regular, real-world mushrooms and lobster tails.
9A Feast Of Plundered Comfort Food
In the series’ fourth episode, Laios’ crew has a run-in with hostile orcs, who eagerly plunder an inn’s resources. As you’d expect from a show named for its food, the tensions dissipate thanks to Senshi’s skillful cooking. The resulting dish is humorously characterized as “Freshly Stolen.”
This dish epitomizes comfort food — the sort of filling meal you’d expect from grandparents. Perhaps more importantly, it’s one of the few dishes you can make at home! You only need cabbage, carrots, chicken, onions, and spices. Senshi uses cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper. And don’t forget the bread!
8A Mimic Meat Breakfast
After stumbling upon a decimated party of adventurers, Laios resourcefully recycles some discarded barley. He eagerly returns the scattered grains to Senshi, who uses them to make a savory porridge topped with boiled mimic meat and garnished with waterweed.
With no mimics or mermen to pull from, fans have gotten creative with alternative recipes. A rich, savory fish — such as salmon or crab — can stand in for the mimic meat, while seaweed can approximate mermen hair. Practicality aside, these substitutions would undoubtedly be well-received by Chilchuck and Marcille!
7An Adventurous Bite Of A Monstrous Parasite
After battling a Kraken, Laios’ party makes the bold decision to sample parasite meat. (While Laios makes the unwise decision to try somerawparasite meat.) Itsoundsdisgusting, but the end result closely resembles savory festival food. Senshi’s glossy soy-based glaze only adds to the inexplicable appeal of a grilled parasitic worm.
Traditional kabayaki is grilled and skewered unagi eel meat. However, you can also make kabayaki with pike and loach. Most chefs prefer longer, scaleless fish for this dish.
In Delicious in Dungeon, the parasite is grilled kabayaki style. Traditional kabayaki meals are made from deboned and butterflied eel meat. After grilling, the meat is covered in a sweet soy marinade akin to Senshi’s recipe. The result is a mouth-watering umami experience with a slight saltiness.
6A Savory Stew To Prepare For Battle
After a heated battle with an Undine — a spiritually charged, semi-sentient bubble (yes, really) — a savory stew helps revitalize a mana-depleted Marcille. Stir-fried meat from a Kelpie and tentacles of poison ivy boil in the mana-rich Undine water. This delicious, hearty meal gives Marcille enough energy to make the final push to the dungeon’s third floor.
Without access to real Kelpies, you can substitute stewing beef. Bok choy, collard greens, green onions, or any leafy green veggie are good stand-ins for paralyzing plants. Unfortunately, you’ll have to use plain water as the Undine.
5An On-The-Go Snack For Hungry Adventurers
One of the simplest dishes of Delicious in Dungeon is little more than a paralyzing plant tentacle soaked in vinegar. Despite the tentacle’s bright green exterior, its interior resembles a banana. As the more adventurous members of the group, Senshi and Laios are the first to take a bite of this dangerous snack.
The result is said to taste slightly sweet and have a slightly “tingly” aftertaste. It also has the unpleasant side effect of potential paralysis and swelling. Fortunately for fans, an actual banana soaked in vinegar works well as a stand-in for a tentacle, and it isn’t nearly as dangerous.
4A Surprisingly Dangerous Quiche
One of the show’s earliest dishes, the man-eating plant tart, looks a bit like a quiche. It’s also a potentially deadly meal, as the fruits come from mean-eating plants. Senshi also adds a bit of savory dried slime and leftover scorpion broth to give the dish a richer taste. Ultimately, this fruit tart is declared a sweet and fluffy success for the whole party.
In Delicious in Dungeon, the shell of this tart is inedible. However, if you choose to make one, you can safely eat the whole thing! Apples, oranges, and grapes will help you closely approximate the appearance of this mouth-watering dessert. You may also want to consider using eggs and flour instead of much harder-to-acquire dried dungeon slime.
3A Heart-Warming Stone-Baked Meal
This cockatrice-based mixture is a savory, saucy meal that may (or may not) have helped cure petrification. Its recipe calls for anti-petrification herbs, mandrake leaves, and the eggs and meat of a cockatrice. The ingredients are shoved into a hollowed-out edible brick and baked, although Laios is immensely disappointed by the brick’s flavor.
This meal is actually known as ankake. Traditional ankake is a mix of herbs and proteins drenched in a sizable serving of thick, savory sauce. However, if you wish to taste this meal, you’ll need to use chicken instead of cockatrice meat.
2An ‘Oily’ Historic Feast
The massive ‘Court Cuisine’ meal is another rare example of non-monster-based food. It’s a scrumptious array of bread, cheese, fruits, meats, and seafood served alongside wine. Much to Laios’ excitement, it’s also an all-you-can-eat buffet contained within a painting.
Unfortunately for the starving adventurer, this hearty full-course dinner is an illusion. Upon exiting the magical painting, Laios is left empty-handed and hungry. However, fans can easily prepare and enjoy their own version of this royal feast.
1A Motivational Breaded Frog Cutlet
Humorously referenced as the “Let’s Cutlet the Red Dragon into Pieces” meal, this battered and fried giant frog thigh looks equal parts inspirational and delicious! Laios’ party eats the breaded dish just before fighting the vicious red dragon, so it’s only reasonable for it to be the most gorgeous meal yet.
For a real-life taste of the party’s pre-battle feast, you’ll need a tonkatsu recipe. Traditional tonkatsu is made by deep-frying battered pork, but you’ll get a more accurate replica by using chicken. However, serving the results near a sister-eating dragon is not recommended.
