cook up

verb

cooked up; cooking up; cooks up

1

: to prepare (food) for eating especially quickly

I can cook up some hamburgers.

He cooked this whole meal up in less than 30 minutes.

2

: to invent (something, such as an idea, excuse, etc.) to deal with a particular situation

They cooked up a scheme to fool their neighbor.

You'll have to cook an excuse up quickly.

Examples of cook up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The brainchild of founding guitarist and musical director Michael Sanders, One Tribe Nation has cooked up a musical stew that reflects the diversity of Los Angeles, California for over two decades. — Jim Ryan, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026

In addition to its inventive smashburgers, Mosh, a new cafe just north of Markt, cooks up some of the city’s tastiest frites. — New York Times, 16 July 2026

Hilton was quickly mocked, with online commenters pointing out that authentic Mexican street tacos are served in soft tortillas, cooked up by street vendors, and that the hard-shell varieties found in a fast-food chain do not count as the real deal. — Linh Tat, Daily News, 15 July 2026

His latest concerns the relationship between a past-his-prime painter (a stellar Ian McKellen) and his new assistant (Michaela Coel, magnificent), and a scheme cooked up by his nincompoop kids (Jessica Gunning and James Corden). — Adam Graham, Twin Cities, 12 July 2026

Rhymes for cook up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup