Before you read on, you MUST READ these guides:
WoW Cataclysm Cooking Leveling Guide 1-525
If you are taking up Cooking to make extra gold I highly recommend that you look at this guide because it will revolutionize the way you play and provide you with the knowledge you need to make more gold than you'll ever really need.
This Cooking Leveling Guide is updated for patch 4.3 and Cataclysm.
Cooking is a great secondary profession to have for a character that can greatly enhance a character's ability to get specific stats higher for leveling, grouping, or raiding.
You'll need either meat from mobs or fish from fishing for most recipes in order to level up. If you have the money feel free to buy what you need from the auction house. If you are looking to leveling cooking and fishing at the same time check out this guide WoW Fishing and Cooking Guide.
You will need to be able to make a cooking fire (found in your spellbook under the general tab) so you do not have to run back to a camp or city to do your combines.
Now find a cooking trainer/supplier to get started. Train as needed so you can keep progressing.
Cooking 1-70
Level
Item
Mats
Cooking 70-130
Cooking 130-225
130-185
Raptor Egg
Cooking 225-300
250-285
Bear Flank
Sold in Felwood at these vendors. This is for Alliance only, see the next step for Horde.
250-285
Zesty Clam Meat
You'll need to accept Clamette Surprise from Dirge Quikcleave in Gadgetzan to get the recipe for Clamette Magnifique.
285-300
Sandworm Meat
To get this recipe, complete the second part of this quest chain: Desert Recipe it starts from Calandrath in Cenarion Hold, Silithus.
Cooking 300-350
300-330
Ravager Flesh
Purchased in the Outlands from these Vendors
Alternative: Buzzard Bites from Smooth as Butter (or sometimes available on the Auction House)
Alternative: Buzzard Bites from Smooth as Butter (or sometimes available on the Auction House)
330-350
Clefthoof Meat or Talbuk Venison
Both are found in Nagrand from Uriku for Alliance and Nula the Butcher for Horde.
Cooking 350-450
You'll need to buy one recipe for this section that will require you to do Dalaran Cooking Dailies. You can pick whatever recipe you want to use but for the sake of simply leveling I'd suggest getting Spiced Mammoth Treats, Critter Bites, or Hearty Rhino.
350-400
You'll have to make these while they are green but it's simpler to do it this way than the other options available.
For this next step you will need to do Dalaran Cooking Dailies to gain Dalaran Cooking Awards in order to buy a recipe with Dalaran Cooking Awards.
Check out Dalaran Daily Cooking Guide for a walkthrough of the quests.
400-425
Any Dalaran Cooking Awards Recipe Learned at 400
Cooking 450-525
Unfortunately the only way to level from 450-525 is by purchasing recipes with Chef's Awards (which are received from doing the Cooking Dailies in Stormwind and Orgrimmar). Luckily, these dailies are really simple to do. Keep in mind that you can buy any recipe you want, assuming you buy one that you can train at 450, one at 475, and one at 500. You could even buy recipes that require fish if you don't have fishing, if you buy the fish off the Auction House. I'll list the best recipes to get if you are planning to farm meat, but the choice is up to you.
Level
Item
Mats
500-525
Dragon Flank or Crocolisk Tail or Basilisk "Liver"
Cooking is a great profession to have completed to its fullest not to mention you will gain several achievements while doing it. It is much less problematic if you work your fishing and cooking at same which makes life a good bit easier. Check out Fishing and Cooking Guide
