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For many new students, cooking for themselves is a totally new experience. It's no coincidence that the phrase 'student food' usually brings to mind instant noodles and cereal for dinner! But cooking doesn't have to be difficult, expensive or time-consuming, and at the end of a long day on campus there's nothing better than a home cooked meal.
We've put together recipe cards for five simple, versatile meals that you can make easily on a budget - and a blank one so you can start building your own recipe collection! Print them out and keep them in your kitchen so they're right there when you need them.
All these recipes feed four hungry people (if you want to be the most popular person in halls!) but they can be halved easily for smaller portions.
Go Vegan: Swap out the beef mince for 200g of red lentils, boiled for 10 minutes and drained, and use a sprinkling of nutritional yeast instead of parmesan
Go Gluten-Free: Many supermarkets now sell gluten-free pasta which you can use instead of spaghetti
Go Vegan: Swap the chicken for 400g mixed mushrooms and use a splash of soy sauce instead of fish sauce
Go Healthy: Use light coconut milk and swap the basmati rice for brown (don't forget that brown rice takes longer to cook - you'll need to put this on first!)
To serve:
Serve with tortillas, avocado, sour cream and grated cheese - let everyone build their own!
Go Vegan: Swap the sour cream for houmous and the cheese for a vegan alternative. If you want an extra protein boost, add a tin of drained kidney beans or chickpeas to the vegetable mix
Go Thrifty: This cooked fajita mix can be eaten cold for lunches too - try it with couscous, or in a pitta bread with lots of salad
Go Indulgent: Swap 250ml of the stock for single cream, and scatter crispy bacon bits on top for a meaty crowd-pleaser
Go Thrifty: This soup will keep well in the fridge for 3-4 days, or it can be frozen for up to a month
Go Vegan: Use a dairy-free butter substitute in the crumble topping, and serve with dairy-free ice cream or oat cream
Go Indulgent: Swap 100g of the apples for blackberries or raspberries, or add crushed walnuts to the crumble instead of porridge oats