Food is your clock in Don’t Starve, and the 52 food items in the data show a wide range of perks. A good meal restores hunger and sometimes health or sanity; a bad one is wasted inventory. The table lists food with real perks.
The food items reference
| Food | Type | Perk | Stack |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Ballphin Free” Tuna | — | Can be opened for Fish Steak. | Does not stack |
| Blossomed Wreath | — | — | |
| Bug B’Gone | — | In case you don’t enjoy the company of bugs. | Does not stack |
| Fish Morsel | — | 40 | |
| Down Feather | — | ( ×10) | 10 |
| Doydoy Feather | — | (20px | 10 |
| Fashion Melon | — | Lowers sanity over time. Increases wetness over time. Delays overheati | Does not stack |
| Eyebrella | — | Delays overheating in Summer. Protects from rain and lightning. | Does not stack |
| Dumbrella | — | Delays overheating in Dry Season. Protects from Rain and Lightning. Pr | Does not stack |
| Jet Feather | — | Feathers are Items obtained by killing Birds. There are three feather | 40 |
| Dogfish | — | — | |
| Dragon Fruit | — | 40 | |
| Feathered Wreath | — | — | |
| Down Feather/DST | — | 20 | |
| Eyebrella/DST | — | Delays overheating in Summer. Protects from rain and lightning. | Does not stack |
| Fashion Melon/DST | — | Lowers sanity over time. Increases wetness over time. Delays overheati | Does not stack |
| Dragon Fruit/DST | — | 40 | |
| Fishbone | — | Spawns | Does not stack |
| Food | — | — | |
| Floral Shirt | — | :×3 ×3 ×5 : ×3 ×3 ×5 /tab = Dress /tier = 2 /perk = Delays overheating | Does not stack |
| Floral Shirt/DST | — | Delays overheating in Summer/Dry Season. Raises sanity over time. | Does not stack |
| Food/DST | — | — | |
| Guides/Vegetarian Food | — | — | |
| Hibearnation Vest | — | Hunger rate is slowed by 25% when worn. | Does not stack |
| Hibearnation Vest/DST | — | Hunger rate is slowed by 25% when worn. | Does not stack |
| Life Giving Amulet | — | A Ghost that haunts this amulet will be revived. | Does not stack |
| Lucky Hat | — | Periodically creates a new X Marks the Spot | Does not stack |
| Jellyfish | — | Does not stack | |
| Living Artifact | — | Lets just mix em and see what happens. | Does not stack |
| Mosquito Sack | — | Healing properties | 20 |
| Meated Nettles | — | x2 x1 x1 /foodType = Meat /spoil = 8 Days /stack = 40 /hpRestored = 20 | 40 |
| Mosquito Sack/DST | — | Healing properties | 20 |
| Pugalisk Wand | — | Wield the gaze of the Pugalisk! | — |
| Obsidian Axe | — | /damageAsWes = 20.4 - 40.8 /damageAsWigfrid = 34 - 68 /damageAsWolfgan | Does not stack |
| Quacken Drill | — | Can be used to create Tar Slicks. | Does not stack |
| Snakeskin Hat | — | ×1 ×1 ×1 /tab = Dress /tier = 2 /perk=Protects from Rain and Lightning | Does not stack |
| Sea Sack | — | +8 Inventory slots. Slows stored food spoilage. | Does not stack |
| Snakeskin Jacket | — | ×2 ×2 ×2 /stack = Does not stack /tab = Dress /tier = 1 /durability = | Does not stack |
| Spoiled Fish | — | 40 | |
| Spider Gland | — | (25%):) ( | 20 |
| Spider Gland/DST | — | (25%) | 20 |
| Stone Fruit | — | — | |
| Swordfish | — | — | |
| Sprouting Stone Fruit | — | 40 | |
| Summer Frest | — | Delays overheating in Summer. Raises sanity over time. Slightly protec | Does not stack |
| Summer Frest/DST | — | Delays overheating in Summer. Raises sanity over time. Slightly protec | Does not stack |
| Weather Pain | — | Creates a tornado to damage enemies and destroy objects. | Does not stack |
| Volcano Staff | — | Creates a Fire Rain. | Does not stack |
Showing 48 of 52 food items; the analysis below covers the full set.
What a meal is worth
A food perk line is its value — some restore hunger, some heal, some boost sanity. The type column groups food by source (meat, veggie, fish), and the perk column tells you the effect. Eat for the stat you are lowest on.
Avoiding waste
Perishable food rots, so eat it before it spoils or preserve it. The numbers section breaks food down by type so you can plan a sustainable diet instead of hoarding until it rots.
The numbers at a glance
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Total food items tracked | 52 |
| Unknown | 52 |
| With a written description | 36 |
| Average description length (words) | 8 |
Quick counts:
- The dataset tracks 52 food items.
- The largest group is Unknown at 52.
What the data tells us
Across the 52 food items in the source data, 36 (69%) carry a written description or perk you can read. With 52 entries on record, the table above is the fastest way to compare them without guessing. Scanning the perk and description text, the most repeated themes are light (8), sanity (7), hunger (3), damage (3), heal (2), food (2). Use those words to filter the 52 entries down to the ones that solve your problem. The largest group is Unknown at 52 entries, so it is the first place to look when you need a food items. By the numbers, the standouts are Swordfish with the highest health (200), Dogfish with the highest walkSpeed (5), Living Artifact with the highest damage (68). They set the ceiling and floor for the whole food items set.
Entries worth a closer look
Jet Feather — Feathers are Items obtained by killing Birds. There are three feather types; Jet Feather, Crimson Feather, and Azure Feather. They can be obtained by killing bi Floral Shirt — :×3 ×3 ×5 : ×3 ×3 ×5 |tab = Dress |tier = 2 |perk = Delays overheating in Summer/Dry Season. Raises sanity over time. |objectSanity= +3.33/min |overheatingResis Obsidian Axe — |damageAsWes = 20.4 - 40.8 |damageAsWigfrid = 34 - 68 |damageAsWolfgang = 13.6 - 108.8 |perk= Reduces the amount of chops required to chop a tree. Gains charges (damage 27.2) Snakeskin Hat — ×1 ×1 ×1 |tab = Dress |tier = 2 |perk=Protects from Rain and Lightning. Protects from Jellyfish electrocution. |droppedBy = |stack = Does not stack |durability Snakeskin Jacket — ×2 ×2 ×2 |stack = Does not stack |tab = Dress |tier = 1 |durability = 8 Days |waterResistance = 90% resistance |freezingResistance = 60 |perk=Protects from Rain Meated Nettles — x2 x1 x1 |foodType = Meat |spoil = 8 Days |stack = 40 |hpRestored = 20 |hungerRestored = 37.5 |sanityRestored = 5 |cooktime = 20 seconds |priority = 1 |crafting Dumbrella — Delays overheating in Dry Season. Protects from Rain and Lightning. Protects from Jellyfish electrocution. Fashion Melon — Lowers sanity over time. Increases wetness over time. Delays overheating in Summer or Dry Season. (health 6)
As the in-game data describes it: “In case you don’t enjoy the company of bugs.”