How do you improve Autumn salad quality?

[Summers]

My sim is around cooking level 8 with some perfect fruits and vegetables in my garden.
But every time he makes, he always makes nice quality with excellent vegetables.
Since he learned the cooking skill, he has made most of the time Autumn salad for meal but still can't improve its quality.
Would you share your idea with me please? I'd like to make the greater Autumn salad.

[Schipperke]

I've managed to get perfect Autumn salad, but it takes a lot of time.  Your Sim will need to make the recipe many times.  It also helps to have the best quality fridge and a food processor. 

[fortheloveofcake]

I know this option is available to sims with the Natural Cook Trait, but may be available to those who don't have this trait, but have a high enough cooking skill. When the plate of food is on the counter you can click it and get an option to "Kick it up a notch" which will bump the dish up one quality level.

[Pam]

"Kick It Up a Notch" is only available for Sims with the Natural Cook trait.

Autumn Salad is hard to make with good quality.  It's because when your Sim makes it for the first time, his/her cooking level is low and it has to gain quality from the low start.  When your Sim has a high level of cooking, the new dishes will come out a greater quality the first time and won't have as far to go to be perfect.  Using perfect lettuce will help your Autumn Salad.  Keep gardening and replanting the improved quality lettuce that you harvest.  And just keep making Autumn Salad.

[Hosfac]

When the plate of food is on the counter you can click it and get an option to "Kick it up a notch," which will bump the dish up one quality level.

Doing this to bump it up to perfect quality does not count for the "best quality made" for your skill journal. 

[fortheloveofcake]

Autumn Salad is hard to make with good quality.  It's because when your Sim makes it for the first time, his/her cooking level is low and it has to gain quality from the low start.  When your Sim has a high level of cooking, the new dishes will come out a greater quality the first time and won't have as far to go to be perfect. 

I wonder then, if you had your sim read the cooking skill books to gain a few levels before ever making autumn salad would raise the "base value" of the dish?

Doing this to bump it up to perfect quality does not count for the "best quality made" for your skill journal. 

I did not know that, but good info to have!

[Pam]

I wonder then, if you had your sim read the cooking skill books to gain a few levels before ever making autumn salad would raise the "base value" of the dish?

Probably so.  It's hard to get away with not making Autumn Salad, though, because it's easy and cheap.  And it won't catch your kitchen on fire. 

[Summers]

Thanks for all replies. I would let my sim cook autumn salad more and more and many more. LOL.. I feel like it's just like hot dog cooking. One time, my sim stayed for living in Fire Station and he actually was the firefighter at that time. He had very low cooking skill and there was only the cheapest grill in the yard. Only he could make was HOT DOG food LOL.. He didn't have money to buy a new recipe. He just cooked hot dog until he gets 7 skill point of cooking and he could make Excellent quality of hot dog. haha..

[kusurusu]

How to calculate the quality of your meals:
- required skill level (5 food points per level)
- how often you prepared this meal (1.5 * times prepared)
- the quality of each ingredient (Horrifying = -50, Putrid -25, Foul -15, Bad -5, Neutral 0, Nice 5, Very Nice 10, Great 15, Excellent 20, Outstanding 25, Perfect 30)
- your appliances (grill/stove) - this value can be found in GameplayData.package as "ApplianceBonusFoodPoints"
- 15 points if your sim is a perfectionist
- 15 points each for natural cook (20% chance if skill level 4-10)/born to cook (except for PB&J, sushi, veggi rolls and cheese plate)
Add these values together and multiply it by
- 0.5 for microwaves
- 3 if you have a -1K fridge
- 1.25 for Improved Cooking upgrade
- 0.75 for group servings
Finally, compare your value with these intervals:
- Neutral: (neg)10-14.9
- Nice: 15-29.9
- Very Nice: 30-44.9
- Great: 45-59.9
- Excellent: 60-74.9
- Outstanding: 75-99.9
- Perfect: 100+
and jump to the next quality level if your sim is a Menu Maven or a Plumbot with efficient chip (twice if both applies).

Appliance Bonus Food Points:
SimChar Dual-State Stove: 0
Cowpoke Stove: 5
Tri-Forge Stove: 20
Festus 44: 15
Streamlined Stove (Late Night): 20
Landgraab Industries MaxBTU Cooktop (Outdoor Living): 20
Faux Stove (Pets): 10
Antique Stove (Supernatural): 4
Venusian Stove by Corebital Designs (Into the Future): 20
Park n' Grille: 5
Carnivore XL: 5
Barbe-Cute: 10
Deluxe Agile Grill: 20
The Original Griller Entertainment Series Barbeque (Outdoor Living): 20
Summer Meat Master (Seasons): 10

[RandyH]

It's great to finally see a formula for how the food quality score is computed. This would be a great addition to the guide.

[Summers]

kusurusu,

Thanks for the info. I can't test that right now because I will be away for a while for summer holiday tomorrow. I will try to test it with my 2 sims. One already completed 3 cooking skill journals and the other one will be a freshily born sim from CAS. I will give them the same cheapest fridge with normal quality of lettuce and let them improve the qualities.