Cooking on my own has been one of the greatest challenges of being an off-campus student. With a busy schedule, it is hard to prioritize cooking my own food and making sure it is nutritious, affordable, and actually edible. Originally, I was terrified to wean off dining hall food and hours (praise Whitney Dining Hall). However, once you appreciate the self-expression of cooking, you can truly enjoy it! I love the freedom to buy foods I love versus looking over menus and hoping I find something decent. Choosing fresh ingredients and finding my own recipes is part of the fun.
Over the past four weeks, I have been getting back into meal prepping and cooking for one. I realized I had fallen back on some classic meals that I can share with the Her Campus community!
4. Homemade pizza
I wish I had a photo of when I did this, but I ate it too quickly. I had no clue how easy it was to make your own pizza. I feel like you could pay anywhere from $10 to $20 for a pizza near Storrs, CT. Making pizza homemade is simple and effective for a busy student. With my family, I usually make my own pizza dough but at college, I buy premade dough. I know every college student has marinara sauce in their pantry. Then I can go crazy with cheeses and toppings but I often like to keep it classy with mozzarella cheese, bell peppers, and onions. I use the instructions on the store-bought dough to cook to perfection and then I often have leftovers for the week! It’s amazing.
3. homemade bread
Bread is not a meal, I know. I use it for avocado toast, peanut butter, and jelly sandwiches, or using the leftovers for breadcrumbs. I also sometimes make fairy bread as a dessert!
This may be a crazy suggestion for a lot of people. However, I know there are people reading who want to get into bread making. I am here to say, that a bread machine was the greatest thing that ever happened to me. I thrifted a Pillsbury bread machine this past summer for $10. I was initially scared to use it because having a machine mix, rise, and bake the bread for me felt like too much. Now I love it. Homemade bread in my food rotation is the best thing! I literally feel healthier when I eat it. I have also made bread on my own without a machine so it is definitely doable but requires more of a time commitment. For convenience, I recommend trying to find a secondhand bread machine on Facebook Marketplace. Last week I put everything into my bread machine and left for class, then came back to fresh, warm bread.
2. Creamy TUSCAN pasta
I had a random vision of a creamy Tuscan pasta when I remembered I bought chicken thighs and needed to use them badly. Experimenting with a roux and cooking chicken was very daunting at first until I found this one-pan recipe. I felt like a real chef. If you aren’t used to cooking chicken, I think this is a good way to start! I am ultimately recommending it because it is a great recipe for a beginner. I was able to throw everything together within an hour.
1. Tuna Bowls
I was never a tuna girly. After hearing my roommates and sisters rave about tuna, I grabbed a can of tuna from the grocery store. I had absolutely no plans to use it until I realized I had everything to make the perfect sushi bowl. I whipped up one serving of rice, cracked open a tuna, and mixed in sriracha and kewpie mayo. I always keep some carrots on hand so I decided to slice those really thin. The rest of the toppings can vary to your tastes. I have experimented with using onion, corn, cucumber, avocado, and edamame. The last and most crucial step in a sushi bowl is adding spicy mayo and nori komi furikake rice seasoning (thank you to my roommate who introduced me). I would say add whatever protein or toppings you want but don’t skimp out on using spicy mayo and kurikake. They make every bowl amazing! I make these bowls almost every week, if not, two or more times.
Overall, I highly recommend getting creative and trying new recipes until you find your classic ones. Cooking takes patience and time, but sometimes you can find those quick and fast meals that you also love. My biggest tip in starting or continuing your cooking journey is to focus on ingredients you like. Buy food you will eat. It sounds easier said than done but when I am at the grocery store, I focus too much on price and what I could do with something versus what I will actually do. I hate food waste but when I get ingredients I look forward to buying, I know I will be happy with whatever I do.