Cryptic crossword clue
Alchemists in cooking about right — to earn these? 8,5

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 plus 5 letter word MICHELIN STARS

I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
M
I
C
H
E
L
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N
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T
A
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S

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "these" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case these = michelin stars.
The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.
This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.

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