Cooking in College

By: Remington Vaughan 

When I first moved into my apartment this past summer, I was excited to trade in my dorm's mini fridge and microwave for a fully stocked kitchen – where late-night ramen could now turn into real meals. I bought tons of food and made a list of all the recipes I wanted to try, but as school ramped up, I realized I did not have the time or energy to cook every day.

Let’s face it, as a college student, most of us find ourselves in the same boat, reaching for the Grubhub and Doordash before turning on the stove. However, it quickly gets expensive to order takeout every night, much more than buying ingredients at the grocery store will.

My roommates and I decided to go on a mission to find cheap and affordable meals that make enough leftovers for us to survive off of for a week. One of our favorites is the Trader Joe’s Orange Chicken and Kung Pao Chicken, both of which you can find in the freezer section. Each pack feeds four (but it can definitely feed more) and only costs five to six dollars per pack.

However, sometimes it is nice to be able to have a homemade meal ready for the week. Here are a few of my household’s favorite affordable recipes that last up to a week.

This has been a go-to in my apartment since school started. My roommates tend to overbuy produce and we end up with a lot of fruit going bad before we can eat it. This is where banana bread is useful. All the ingredients besides the bananas and chocolate chips are kitchen staples you will likely use again and again. Plus, this is a one-bowl recipe, which makes for minimal cleanup. I tend to make a loaf on a Sunday evening so we have a quick and easy breakfast option that lasts our house of five people at least a week.

Photo: Tasty

Viral TikTok Cucumber Salad

In the attached recipe link, there are recipes for both viral cucumber salads, but the one my roommates and I prefer is the one with cream cheese. My roommate made this as one of our first meals when we moved in. Although some of the ingredients are a bit pricier, there is a market near Passyunk Square in South Philadelphia, called Hung Vuong that carries all of them at a pretty affordable price. Another pro tip: the Rittenhouse Farmers Market is on Tuesdays and Saturdays from 9 am to 2 pm in Rittenhouse Square and runs year-round. I have gotten amazing cucumbers there for a dollar per cucumber, so if you are on the hunt for affordable but high-quality produce, go scope out the market. This is a great meal to have on hand in a pinch. If you add some white rice it makes for a yummy and quick lunch.

My Instagram reels consist solely of recipe videos, and this was a simple one I had wanted to make for a while. The nice thing about this recipe is you can mix up the ingredients or how you serve it and the flavors still work well together.

Although the recipe calls for a 50/50 mix of beef and lamb, I do either 50/50 ground beef and ground pork or just ground pork which is just as delicious and much more affordable. I wouldn’t recommend skipping the other ingredients, but do not fret, most of the ingredients are either staple kitchen items or budget friendly from the Fresh Grocer’s produce section. What really makes this recipe shine is letting the meatballs cook in your choice of tomato sauce. I am a Rao's girl at heart, but any tomato sauce works for this and adds an incredible depth of flavor. Then serve up the meatballs as sandwiches, over spaghetti, or just on their own. They tend to last up to five days and make for great leftovers.

Although this is just a handful of recipes and ideas, it’s easy to find affordable meals everywhere you look. By exploring different grocery stores across the city or visiting community gardens and farmers markets, you can find amazing deals at every corner.

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