There’s a lot about college that’s difficult. Classes may be the first thing that comes to mind, but there’s so much more that adds to the struggle of being young and broke. We’re all familiar with the trope of eating ramen and hot dogs in college. But what happens when you decide to become a vegetarian? Of course there’s original flavor ramen that’s technically vegetarian, but either way that’s hard to pack as a lunch on-the-go. It’s also still processed, which some vegetarians try to avoid. With that in mind, here are three super salad ideas that are cheap, easy, and delicious!
The idea is that you can easily take any few vegetables that compliment each other and prepare them ahead of time, so you can easily throw them on top of some greens later. With this concept, you can make basically anything you want!
Canned vegetables and items from the produce section are typically cheap. For example, two cans of vegetables will only cost you $2. Splurge on one more ingredient and you have a simple and delicious vegetarian salad!
This featured salad is one I originally found in “The Vegetarian Student Cookbook” published by Ryland Peters and Small. Even though I’ve already been using this method of pre-mixing toppings to go on salads, I really liked seeing it in a cookbook specifically for college vegetarians. The recipe calls for a base of polenta, which is boiled cornmeal, instead of lettuce, but it also says that you could easily add the mix to any base you want. The dish is made up of tomatoes, scallions, parsley and thyme mixed in with some olive oil and salt and pepper.
Additionally, here are two of my favorite salads of my own creation that I’ve been making since I started college. For the first one, simply mix a can of corn and beans and let the two ingredients marinate in olive oil and any spices you like. Usually, I get the reduced sodium black beans and do not add any extra salt. When you’re ready for a salad, add some of the mix plus half of an avocado. It goes great with any type of chipotle dressing!
My other favorite salad is diced cucumber, feta and red onion marinated in olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Again, when you’re ready for a salad just spoon the marinated contents over your greens!
This concept is very versatile, and pre-made toppings can go on many types of food. I just happen to use it most for my salads. Another way to use the pre-made ingredients is on top of polenta, adding the toppings to pasta salad or as a side to accompany a protein.