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In this Discussion
- Cheers January 2022
- HunterUnderSaddleGirl January 2022
- indiza January 2022
- Ktarpey January 2022
- Lallyhop January 2022
- RubyJoFarm January 2022
- whywishesarehorses January 2022
Food Suggestions
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Hello,
I'm about to go back to my dorm at school. My meal plan is an absolute rip off. For almost 1800$ I get 400 "dining" dollars and 100 meal transfers. The "meals" come out to about 13$. But the only place that you get value for that is the buffet. Otherwise that only gets you ONE small drink and an unhealthy pastry at the campus starbucks. Or it only gets a smoothie at the smoothie place. And the dining dollars are 1-1 so you might as well just use your card. So long story short I"m droppping my meal plan. The problem is I don't really have a good way to manage food making. There's like two real kitchens all the way across the building, but its first come first serve, and I"m kinda too lazy for that, and you have to borrow stuff and there's typically too many people using the kitchen etc. In my dorm I have a teeny tiny refrigerator that is basically full after only 2 take home boxes from a restaurant.... I only have a teeny tiny microwave, and the only counter space is in the bathroom and it's only big enough to put MAYBE one dinner plate on each side of the sink. And the sink is so tiny I can't even wash a full size contigo to go cup.
All of this is completely fine with me. Part of the college experience. I have more room than most people I've seen. However, now that I need to come up with my own meals that is somewhat of a problem. The only thing I"m OK on is pantry space. For about 2 years now I"ve just been eating soup out of the can. Yes gasps of horror. From everyone I tell that to..... But its just an example of how low maintenance I prefer to be and how easy I'd hope meal prep should be. I have the cooking skill level you might hope from a toddler. I do have an electric kettle and a small coffee pot. My step mom Helen got me a teeny tiny crock pot but I don't know if I"ll be brave enough to use it. Last semester I got small frozen burritos, but they were in packs of 8 and typically 1 wasn't near enough to tide me over so I ended up eating 3 at a time. Helen also got me macaroni and cheese but not the microwaveable kind so not sure how I'll make that in my dorm.
So super long story short with the challenges in mind does anyone have any suggestions on food that is palatable enough that I can survive on it for the next 2+ years that takes minimal to no referigerator space, minimal to no prep time, minimal to no counter space, and minimal to no extra dishes to wash.
Thank you
HUSG
Breeder of any and all crazy colored drafts and RH horses.
15552 -
You can make normal boxed mac and cheese in the microwave! I've done it many times, the texture of the pasta may not end up exactly the same but hey it's boxed mac and cheese :P. You do need some butter, but that takes up very little space in the fridge and lasts forever (unlike milk).
Dump it in a microwave safe bowl, put in enough water to just barely cover the pasta, and heat it 30 seconds to 1 minute-ish at a time (stir it in between) until it's done, and when you take it out put some butter in and then the cheese powder and mix it all together.
In my microwave it usually takes about 6-7 minutes total but it might be different in yours. Once you know the timing just set it for that and stir it a few times in the middle so you don't get a brick of solid macaroni!
Use the crock pot, they're super easy! Heat up the soup cans in it so at least you're eating warm soup - assuming you live somewhere where there's winter and warm soup is nice, maybe if it's too hot cold soup is fine :)
You could get some frozen veggies and meatballs and dump them in the crock pot with a bit of water and a stock cube. Or steam vegetables in the microwave and put some butter/salt/pepper on them. It sounds like chopping veggies might be a pain given your set up and pre-chopped things are super expensive so frozen might be a good alternative to get something fresh sometimes.
You could also maybe get a cheap rice maker for some more variety, I had one that cost like $10 from Walmart or Target. You can cook more than just rice in them, too.
When I was in college I also ate a ton of peanut butter and honey sandwiches (I didn't have a fridge at all so jam was out), sometimes with bananas if I came by some. I'd also buy shelf-stable things like granola bars, protein bars, etc a bunch at a time so if I needed a "snack" there was always something a little less gross than eating chocolate bars or potato chips or whatever from the vending machines.
Also those instant oatmeal packets and instant ramen things, you can make those with just boiling water from the electric kettle. Super easy and a lot of them come in little bowls you can eat out of if you don't want to dirty dishes. Throw some frozen veggies in the ramen to mix it up a bit if you get bored of the taste.
Oh and I got one of those collapsable... basin? things to wash dishes in, because I didn't have my own bathroom and didn't want to do my dishes in the public one. Huge quality of life improvement!
Okay I could probably go on forever but I won't overwhelm you :P. I have a real kitchen now but I lived for a loooong time in places with very tiny/impractical cooking situations so I'm happy to share what I learned! -
I'm so serious... a microwave, a small crock pot, and an air fryer can provide you life. LolID# 24891
Specializing In WBs: Appaloosa/Leopard Apps with heavy gene combos!
Featuring : Thunderstruck, Watercolor, Macchiato, Onyx, Snowflake, Kit Promoter (KP/KP2), Ice (1, 5, 8, 10), Shatterglass, Satin, Nexus, Sooty+, Dense Pheomelanin (DP), Chinchilla, Mushroom, Toner, Ink Spot, and Wrong Warp. -
Also if the crock pot seems like washing it will be impossible (because mine occasionally does and I have a full size kitchen) look into crock pot liners! You can cook everything with the liner in, then you just take it out and the crock is still clean. Not super cost-friendly for the long term but at the same time, you can make a week's worth of keels in one full size crock pot so the tradeoff may be completely worth it.
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I recommend taking a look at the site Budget Bytes! She taught me to cook, everything is affordable, and lots of it is easy to do with limited kitchen access/supplies.
I also ABSOLUTELY second the rice cooker rec - you can get teeny tiny ones that hold 3 cups of cooked rice (about two meals worth) and make rice super fast. You can also add chicken to be steamed, or other proteins (try chickpeas, peas, and wild rice with any spices you have. Whew that's a fav). -
I love budget bites for cheap goodies, especially if you're up for just a little extra time, like spending 15 minutes on something instead of 5. Lots of the recipes there are really simple and taste great!
And definitely seconding the rice cooker too, they're amazing! And rice is such a versatile base for so many things, from breakfast to dinner to dessert. You can cook more than rice in them too!ID 45703 | he/himOpen barn policy - no closed lines! I'm always selling straws and eggs from anything I have that catches your eye, don't hesitate to PM me and ask! -
That's definitely a good crock pot. I had no idea how I would supposed to wash it when I can't even wash a cup....
I'd love to find one of those collapsible basins too.
Budget bytes looks awesome, thank you everyone.
Breeder of any and all crazy colored drafts and RH horses.
15552 -
I just bought a new basin thing for laundry - I got it on amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0893CN6HS
there are lots of other options too if you need bigger/smaller/different colour/etc! -
That looks perfect!Breeder of any and all crazy colored drafts and RH horses.
15552 -
Tuna in a can is your friend too, if you can stand to eat it. Grab one of those premade salads or a bag o salad, drain your tuna and add it, some salt, some pepper, badabing you’ve got a healthy meal with a solid protein hit to it.
I also like making tuna salad with tuna and Dijon mustard (which is shelf stable, where Mayo isn’t!) and then making a sandwich, or spooning it onto crackers, or into lettuce leaves if you can get a small head of lettuce.
While not the most environmentally friendly advice out there, it’s also worth it to note that most packaging food comes in is not the most efficient way to store it if you have minimal space. Consider investing in plastic ziplock baggies of various sizes and repackage foods that need to be refrigerated into them to maximize your fridge space. Just remember air needs to be able to circulate in your fridge to keep things cool, so there is a limit to what you can cram in.
Depending on your space, yogurt is another fairly versatile ingredient. If you get unsweetened, unflavoured Greek yogurt or something similar, a spoonful can add creaminess to most anything you cook like soup or pasta or ramen, and a drizzle of honey, little bit of fruit or jam and handful of granola is a solid snack or breakfast.
And finally, lots of fruit is actually yummier if you don’t store it in the fridge. Citrus, tomatoes, berries, most stone fruits are all fine on the shelf. Apples keep better in the fridge but if you’re only buying a couple at a time, they’ll be fine on the shelf til you eat them—just remember they will hasten the ripening and then decline of any other fruit you store close to them.