[Top 12] Subnautica: Below Zero Best Food (And How To Get Them)

Updated:

10 Oct 2022

Surviving Planet 4546B is no small task. Every new biome presents new challenges, but somehow or the other you need to rise above the elements and uncover what Alterra is hiding. Which is why you need to sustain yourself with a healthy diet of the most nutritious foods in the game! This article covers the best food sources in ‘Below Zero’ that fill will your food, water, and body heat needs.

12. Cooked Bladderfish

A precious source of water early into the game.

The Bladderfish is a precious resource, especially early into the game. This slow, docile creature can be found swimming lazily in the Shallow Twisty bridges where players will find the life pod. They restore food, health, and even oxygen points.
What makes Cooked Bladderfish Great:

Easy to catch: Unlike Peepers, you can leisurely swim up to an unsuspecting Bladderfish and it’ll be in your inventory before you know it.
Restores oxygen: If you’re in a pinch underwater and there’s a Bladderfish nearby, catching it and eating it raw will restore 15 oxygen points.

Cooked Bladderfish stats:

Cooked Bladderfish gives you 18+ food and 4+ H20. It also restores 15+ oxygen.

How To Get Bladderfish:
Bladderfish are found in the following biomes- Arctic Spires, Crystal Caves, Deep Purple Vents, East Arctic, Glacial Basin, Glacial Bay, Glacial Connection, Lilypad Islands, Purple Vents, Shallow Twisty Bridges, Thermal Spires, Twisty Bridges, and West Arctic.

11. Cooked Hoop Fish
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Oh so glowy and oh so nutritiuos.

This small herbivore is also one of the first fishes that players will find upon entering the waters You won’t miss it because while it’s small it also has bioluminescent antennae that make it stand out. Unfortunate for the fish, but convenient for the player!
What makes Cooked Hoop Fish Great:

Easy to catch: This fish usually swims in shoals, and is fairly easy to swim up to and grab.

Cooked Hoop Fish stats:

Cooked Hoop Fish gives you 23+ food and 3+ H20.

How To Get Hoop Fish:
Hoop Fish can be found in Arctic Kelp Caves, Crystal Caves, Lilypad Islands, Shallow Twisty Bridges, Tree Spires, and Twisty Bridges.

10. Cooked Arctic Peeper

Well. of course some variant of the Peeper is gonna be on this list.

A relative of the Peeper fish from the original ‘Subnautica’ makes a comeback in ‘Below Zero’. The Arctic Peeper takes the top spot in the list of best edible fish in the game, restoring enormous amounts of food points for the player.
What makes Cooked Arctic Peeper Great:

Food points: The Arctic Peeper has the highest nutritional value of any edible fish in the game.
Easily available: The Arctic Peeper is found in 11 different biomes.

Cooked Arctic Peeper stats:

Cooked Arctic Peeper gives you 32+ food and 5+ H20.

How To Get Arctic Peeper:
You can find it in these biomes- Arctic Spires, East Arctic. Glacial Basin, Underwater Caves, Glacial Bay, Glacial Connection, Shallow Twisty Bridges, Sparse Arctic, Thermal Spires, Twisty Bridges, and West Arctic.

9. Cured Fish
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A little salt goes a long way.

There are few things more painful than traveling an absurd distance, only to starve to death because all your cooked fish is rotten. Maybe you’re forgetful, or just don’t wanna take any risks. A little bit of salt will help with that.
What makes Cured Fish Great:

Good for long distances: Cured fish will spoil much slower compared to cooked alternatives.

Cured Fish stats:

The cured varieties of fish will retain the same nutritional value as the cooked varieties. However, you will get -2 H2O when consuming them.

How To Get Cured Fish:

Subnautica Crafting | How To Cure Fish

8. Bulbo Tree Samples
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Slash for a serving of juicy, filling fruit.

Players usually pit the Bulbo Tree and Marblemelons against each other as to which one is the better food source. The two plants are definitely tied close together. While the food value for this Bulbo Tree Samples is far from amazing, other factors give it an edge.
What makes Bulbo Tree Samples Great:

Convenient harvesting and planting: While you have to slash continuously at the plant, the final slash will give you 2 seeds, one of which you can plant. It’s a lot easier than having to replant 16 individual melon seeds.
High water content: These fruits are one of the most hydrating foods in the game.

Bulbo Tree Samples stats:

Bulbo Tree Samples gives you 8+ food and 10+ H20.

How To Get Bulbo Tree Samples:

SUBNAUTICA How to Use Bulbo Tree

7. Shrub Nuts
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Swim into warmer waters, and there’s a good chance you’ll find the Horseshoe Shrub plant. Named for its Horshoe-like shape, the underside of the plant holds a versatile food source. If you have any growbeds out of the water, be sure to include the Horseshoe
What makes Shrub Nuts Great:

Fills multiple stats: Shrub nuts will provide not just food and water, but also health. Very few other foods in the game do this.

Shrub Nut stats:

Shrub Nuts gives you 15+ food and 5+ H20. It also restores 10+ health.

How To Get Shrub Nuts: They can only be found in Marguerit's Greenhouse.

6. Lantern Fruit
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Mainly for the aesthetic. Oh, and the body heat.

Many players make the Lantern fruit a staple for their seabase growbeds. The fruits look like real-life banana bulbs. If banana bulbs were glowy, that is. Once you gather a sample of this fruit from Outpost Zero, you’ve got yourself a pretty reliable source of food and fuel.
What makes Lantern Fruit Great:

Food points: Lantern fruits restore 5 more health points in ‘Below Zero’ than they did in the first game. They make a decent source of food,
No need to replant: Lantern fruits don’t need to be planted with a seed, so you can just pluck the fruits from the tree whenever they grow back. Saves you a whole lot of work!
Good fuel for Bioreactor: Aside from keeping you fed, these fruits will keep your Bioreactor up and running. It provides 210 energy over 252 seconds.

Lantern Fruit stats:

Lantern Fruit gives you 10+ food and 75+ body heat.

How To Get Lantern Fruit:

【Subnautica Below Zero】 How to get a Lantern fruit tree

5. Marblemelons
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What would we do without Marblemelons?

A good number of players swear by the humble Marblemelon. This strange plant looks like a cross between a watermelon and a pineapple. It’s one of the many weird and wonderful flora found in Marguerit's Greenhouse.
What makes Marblemelons Great:

Takes up less space: Planting Marblemelons in your growbeds won’t take up as much space as other plants since the fruits are fairly small.
High water content: Marblemelons have an almost balanced food/water value, so you won’t have to keep your eyes on either one.

Marblemelons stats:

Marblemelon gives you 12+ food and 14+ H20.

How To Get Marblemelons:

Where to find marblemelons in subnautica 2021 ( best method)

4. Fevered Peppers
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This one will get your blood rushing.

The Fevered Pepper plant is admittedly not the most appealing in appearance. But it’s on this list for a reason. On the harsh icy plains of Planet 4546B, this fruit may just save your life if you find yourself freezing to death.
What makes Fevered Peppers Great:

Restores body heat: The hot peppers restore a significant amount of body heat. Great for sticky, or icy, situations.
High water content: The Fevered Pepper draws a tie with Frost Anemone Hearts for the second-best food in terms of water content.

Fevered Peppers stats:

Fevered Peppers gives you +15 food, +20 H2O, and +50 body heat.

How To Get Fevered Peppers:

WHERE TO FIND FEVERED PEPPER IN SUBNAUTICA BELOW ZERO

3. Antennae Plant Fruit

Underrated despite its high nutritional value.

A swim around the Lilypad Islands will take you to a strange, lotus-like plant. This is the Antennae Plant, formerly known as the Maroon Plant, and in the middle of it lies the fruit with the highest nutritional value in the game.
What makes Antennae Plant Fruit Great:

High nutritional value: Few other plants in the game fill up your food bar as mucus Antennae Plant fruits do.

Antennae Plant Fruit stats:

Antennae Plant Fruit gives you 20+ food and 5+ H20. It also restores +9 health.

How To Get Antennae Plant Fruit:

They grow in the Lilypad Islands, Main Lilypad Islands, Lilypad Islands Caves, and Lilypads Crevice.

2. Nutrient Block

It's surprising how nutritious a brick can be.

A food literally called the ‘nutrient block’ needs to live up to its name. Fortunately, this dense brick-like block outdoes every other food source in the game, save for one. Still, it doesn’t exactly look like a gourmet meal.
What makes the Nutrient Block Great:

Very high nutritional value: The Nutrient Block was specially crafted to be packed with nutrients to keep you on your feet.

Nutrient Block stats:

Nutrient Blocks give you 75+ food.

How To Get Nutrient Blocks: They’re found in the multiple Supply Crates scattered around Alterra Tech Sites.

1. Spicy Fruit Salad

This salad absolutely destroys every other food in the game.

Fancy a salad? After a long read listing various types of edible flora and fauna, this home-cooked salad takes the top spot. Take one Preston's Plant leaf and one Fevered Pepper, pop them in a Fabricator, and you’ve just made the most ridiculously overpowered food in the game.
What makes Spicy Fruit Salad Great:

Unmatched stats: This humble salad will take care of all your food, water, and body heat needs.
Doesn’t spoil: You won’t have to worry about the salad going bad in your inventory.
Doesn't take up much space: One slot in your inventory is all you need to store the salad.

Spicy Fruit Salad stats: