Guide to Eating Cheap n Healthy in College and Life
Here goes -- I keep veggo, so this is more oriented towards veggos and vegans, but add in chicken if you want idk. This is designed for people who don’t really know how to cook, and are mostly eating ramen currently. It is very possible to eat healthy, delicious, cheap food.
Stocking your kitchen: Never buy pots and pans fresh. Too expensive. You can get perfectly good ones at any thrift shop for less than 5 dollars. Get yourself a big soup pot, a smaller pot with a handle, a big frying pan and either a second big frying pan or a smaller frying pan. Avoid scratched pans. Other things to remember -- can opener, cheese grater, a sharp chopping knife, a serated knife for tomatos. Obviously plates/bowls/cups/silverware/mugs (ask grandmothers for these, they seem to have them in bulk, otherwise buy at thrift shop, can get some good looking ones)
Spices: Very expensive. This is a slow process of building up your pantry. Start with the basics; the only spices you really need are salt, pepper (hereafter abbreviated snp), cinnamon, garlic and ginger. Beyond that, My secondary spice essentials are bay leaves, cumin, curry powder or garam masala, parsley and thyme. As you cook more you will develop your own pantry.
Other basics: Essential veggies: onions (buy fresh in bulk to save money), peppers, mushrooms, broccoli/cauliflower, carrots, celery (buy any of those frozen to save money), avocados (avos) (expensive but there literally isn’t a better fruit to splurge on), a bag of fruit for the week (apples/oranges/bananas whatever is on sale). Baking supplies (flour/sugar/powder/soda etc. buy once a week to build up your pantry). So many cans of beans. Coconut milk always. Eggs (or tofu fried in garlic and onion as a vegan substitute). Oatmeal. Bread (always, always buy whole grain -- way more filling than white). Rice (buy in bulk, this stuff is gold as a college student), pasta. Butter/margarine. Vegetable/canola oil.
-note -- all veggies can be bought frozen or canned to save money (don’t buy frozen onion that’s the only exception). I try and keep all my recipes fairly easy and quick and relatively healthy. -
1 cup long grain/basmati/jasmine rice, margarine/butter. Fry rice in butter for about 2 minutes. Add water in a 1 cup of rice to 2 cups water ratio. Bring to a boil, add salt. Cover, put on low until little divots appear and the rice grains are distinct and soft.
Mango and Chick Pea Curry: sweet, filling, comforting
1 can mango, 1 can chick peas, 1 can coconut milk, snp, garlic, ginger, cumin, curry powder, 1 onion, peppers (optional), chive/cilantro as garnish (optional).
Fry garlic, ginger, onion, pepper and peas in oil for about 10 minutes or until soft. Blend mango (optional). Add mango and coconut milk, stir until even yellow. Add spices, simmer until rice is done or for 10 minutes. Serve over rice.
Red Curry: savory, filling, can be spicy, generally fucking delicious
1 can coconut milk, red curry paste, 1 onion, garlic, ginger, pepper (optional), tofu (optional), other veggies, snp, cumin, curry powder.
If cooking with tofu (always get firm), drain for 1 hour and fry in oil until outside crispy. Set aside. Fry onion, garlic, ginger, pepper for 10 minutes till soft. Add tofu. Add curry paste, mix in. Add coconut milk, mix till even orange. Add spices, simmer until rice done or for 10 minutes. Serve over rice.
Peanut Noodles: extremely filling and sweet delicious
soba noodles, broccoli, carrots (optional), onions, garlic, ginger, (creamy) peanut butter, soy sauce, brown sugar/maple syrup/honey, snp, peanuts (optional)
Boil soba noodles. Fry peanut butter and soy sauce in pan in a 1:1 ratio until smooth. Add sweet thing to taste, add snp. Set aside. Fry broccoli, onions and any other veggies in a pan. Add peanut sauce, add noodles post drain, mix together. Serve with crushed peanuts (optional)
Stir fry! -- always a hit, easy to make bulk
Serve with either pasta or rice (probably your leftover). 1 onion, garlic, ginger, literally any bag of frozen veggies, snp, soy sauce, favorite stir fry sauce (ie, teriyaki, yum yum, etc. -- optional, can just use soy sauce).
Fry your veggies, onion, garlic and ginger in a pan. Add soy sauce and stir fry sauce, add spices, add starch, stir in, fry a few more minutes, serve.
Veggie fried rice. -- good way to finish off your leftover rice
Make perfect rice. In a different pan, fry up whatever veggies you want in garlic and ginger (generally I combine mushrooms/peppers/onions, or broccoli, or carrots -- etc.). Add in rice, add in soy sauce. Add in egg if desired. cook until egg is firm, serve.
Red beans and rice -- filling and delicious
2 cans red beans, 1 onion, celery, thyme, bay leaf, snp, garlic, pepper (optional).
Fry onion, celery, bay leaf, garlic (pepper) until soft. Add beans, cook till thick. Add spices, serve over rice. Add cheese/tomato/spinach/lettuce/avocado/sour cream to desire. Substitute red beans for lentils and thyme for cumin, follow cooking instructions on package to shake it up.
Potato pancakes and homemade applesauce-- easy to make bulk, everyone loves you. This is a little more time intensive, usually takes about an hour to make so I save it for special occasions.
1 bag apples, 1 bag whatever potato on sale, 1 onion, garlic, brown sugar, cinnamon.
Cut and core apples, throw in a pot with water until apples just begin to float. bring to a boil, add sugar until sweet and cinnamon. Cover and simmer on low. Grate potatoes, cut up onion, mix together with garlic. Form pancakes (keep em small otherwise they take forever to cook), fry in oil. Serve with warm applesauce on top and sour cream/chives (optional).
Easy Bean Soup -- good way to use extra cans, get veggies very cheap
1 can corn, 1 can beans (black or red), 1 can diced tomatoes, 1 onion/pepper (optional), snp, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, other veggies if desired (ie, potatoes, zuchinni, eggplant, celery, etc -- avoid broccoli or cauliflower, not a good soup veggies -- any of these can be substituted for each other).
Fry onion/pepper, garlic until soft. Add corn, beans, tomatoes, bay leaf and other veggies. Boil until soft. Add spices to taste. Serve over rice or pasta.
1 onion, 1 pepper, 1 mushroom, tomato paste to taste, snp, garlic, oregano/thyme/bay leaf, parsley
Bring pasta to boil, let cook. Fry veggies and spices in a pan, add pasta. Serve with cheese (optional).
Snacks, Breakfast and Lunch:
For lunch, I cook all my recipes in bulk and eat leftovers. Sandwiches are life savers, I eat pbnj all the time, or grilled cheese is another good one. Cheese/spinach tomato and a sauce of some kind is also a classic. Hummus and carrots -- literally a meal in of itself. Homemade mac n cheese is amazing -- make pasta, and then add half a bag of shredded cheese, milk and butter just like boxed mac n cheese. Ramen is good with two eggs over easy -- I try to keep it more of a treat than a regular meal.
For breakfast, I generally eat half an avo, a banana, a slice of vegemite toast, or toast and eggs. Eggs can be substituted with tofu diced and fried with garlic and onions. Omelettes are a meal -- eggs n cheese (if you’re not vegan). Oatmeal super filling -- eat with bananas to get some fruit, or raisins. Serve with brown sugar to make it sweet, substitute milk for water to make it even less healthy but more delicious. Add chocolate chips to make desert. Pancakes are super easy -- bisquik is a lifesaver, mix with water and fry. Add choco chips or blueberries if you want.
Fruit that u bought (that why u bought it). Treat yourself to chips and cookies yo! You’re buying your own food. Just try not to eat all of the thing u bought in one go. Carrots and hummus are an excellent snack -- filling and healthy. Craisins always. Nuts (almonds or cashews are my go to) are great, though they are a treat as they are pretty expensive. Triscuits or wheat thins are a gift to humanity. A slice of cheese is very filling. Sometimes I’ll buy a can of mandarin orange slices or peach slices. I crave chocolate all the time, a handful of semisweet chips is a frequent snack of mine, esp after I’ve finished an essay. Another treat -- berries !! raspberries, blueberries, strawberries. Buying frozen is totally doable, and then u can make smoothies. Yogurt -- buy a big bin of vanilla yogurt, toss in some honey/berries/nuts/granola or cereal, it’s a parfait. Everybody likes parfaits. Also breakfast. Blend up a banana and a bag of frozen blueberries with some sugar, ice and milk/almond milk for some vegan ice cream.
I try and go on the weekends, and plan 1-2 meals to cook on sunday night and eat for the whole week, and then buy ingredients for those meals specifically. Veggies go bad -- don’t be afraid to buy frozen, they’re basically just as healthy and way cheaper. I try and keep an emergency bag of frozen veggies in my fridge. Usually if I buy for the week, plus a bag of avos, a loaf of bread, a thing of hummus, a thing of eggs, and maybe other bits n bobs, my grocery bill comes out to about $25-35. Items like peanut butter, jelly, a big block of cheese and so on, will last at least two weeks, accounting for the fluctuation. If I really need to save some money for a week, I’ll edit eggs/avos/hummus -- those are the three most expensive things I buy regularly. Keep beans and ramen in your cupboard -- always good in an emergency. Buy rice in bulk always, a 20 pound bag of rice costs $20 and lasts for literally months.
