Meals for Uni

mildredalien

I ate a lot of stir fry as a student, with noodles or rice. It's great for picking up whatever vegetables and meats are on offer and making a quick, healthy meal. If she picks up a few staples (soy sauce, spices, sesame oil etc.) they will last her a good while and many meals.

Putting a few quid each with her student house/flatmates for household staples (butter/margarine/oil/loo roll) is a good idea to save the problem of everyone buying everything and having 5 tubs of flora in the fridge all the time!!

One pot meals that she can either portion and refrigerate/freeze or share with friends are great - curry, spag bol, chilli, stews and soups. Perhaps investing in a slow cooker would be useful if she likes making that kind of thing? You can get a basic one for £20 or so.

Phoolgrrrl

We had a lot of tuna pasta (also chicken pasta, or spag bol) and stir frys!

If you could send her off with a tub of italian seasoning, fajita seasoning, and some soy sauce would be good.

Bean chilli is good too.

Soups for lunch and a flask? Cereal bars for brekfast, better than nothing.

If her course is time intensive, like labs into the eve,then online shops are good. Check what shops are near her, my friend went to Nottingham uni and only had wee corner shops so did an online tesco shop twice a month as much cheaper and easier than getting the bus into town, and out again with shopping.

freyasmum

Teach her how to make at least one or two 'mother sauces' - bechamel, veloute, tomato, hollandaise, and espagnole.

With the bechamel, she can top lasagne, or stir in pasta, meat and veg and have a pasta bake, or she can add cheese and have a mornay sauce that can top fish, or again have pasta stirred in to make macaroni.

With the veloute (like bechamel, but with chicken/fish stock, rather than milk), she can add in a little wine and have white wine sauce for any type of fish, or a sauce supreme with a daub of butter and cream as a sauce for chicken - all she needs to do is cook chicken and mushrooms and add the sauce.

Tomato sauce can make bolonese, lasage, chilli, etc.

Then ensure she knows how to cook meat properly, without drying it out, rice, pasta, potatoes, etc. Also a roast is pretty essential, and dead easy.

That should give her a good grounding - you can, of course, give her specific recipes for each different thing, but if you teach her how to taste - that sounds really odd, I know - but if she can taste a sauce and recognise that it would go perfectly with something else, or would be ideal for doing x with, then she'll find it easier to cook.

I also agree with LiR - don't expect that there will be loads of space for her, so don't go overboard with the batch cooking, unless she's cooking for her friends.

kazmeister

stormbreaker wrote: »

I am interested in this . I have found the web page but can't find the student pack? I take it there was a specific one??

TIA

This is the one we ordered but split it before he went. The pork comes in one piece so you can cut a couple of joints of it before cutting into steaks. The meat is such good quality and like he said one chicken breast was enough for him and his girlfriend. We got a roll of loose film stuff from lakeland and wrapped evrything individually, and the bacon a few slices at a time. The half pack lasted him ages.

Forgot the link

http://www.westingourmet.co.uk/gourmet-student-meat-pack.html

mrs_motivated

Thank you everyone, you have given us lots of ideas.

So far, she has mastered a chicken curry, spag bol. So far I have been most impressed with the frittata she made, it was so tasty and cheap too .

This week, I am giving her a budget to feed us on and she is off to the market tomorrow (I'll let you know how she gets on)

mrs_motivated

thefamousexcuse wrote: »

One of the things I would try and teach her is how to budget and plan - as we all know students don't really take food into consideration when they are "budgeting" for the coming months - I know I was terrible!! The only thing I knew had to be there was money for the pub!

Things like a basic tomato sauce that can then be adapted into they usual suspects, spag bol, lasagne, chili etc. Or how about mac'n'cheese or a vegetable pasta bake. I lived on pasta when I was a student. Actually I have a recipe for a turkey pasta bake that is really simple and cheap to make I will try and find it for you if you like?

Sausage casserole or some type of stew - will she have access to a SC - if she does something like this would be brilliant!

Hope that helps, and you enjoy the three nights off from being chef!!

TFE

xxx

I would love the turkey pasta bake recipe please, it's the kind of thing she loves.

mrs_motivated

Wondering if you guys would give some more advice. She is in a five bedded flat, with shared kitchen, living room and bathroom (:cool:). She has shown me the list of things provided which are cooker, four ring hob, fridge, freezer and microwave.

It doesn't mention kettle or toaster or anything else.

Now so far, I have bought her a cheap set of stainless steel pans, tea towels, kitchen knives, cutlery, plates, cups, glasses etc. a casserole dish. Baking tray. Now I am thinking if everyone takes the same that's gonna be a rather crowded kitchen!

It seems a bit silly for one flat to have five can openers, five toasters etc. and I am wondering if I should wait until she meets her flat mates and give her some money so they can buy 'what's mssing'?

vanoonoo

I think you are right - they can always do toast under the grill and boil water in a pan if no one brings a kettle or toaster.

alternatively buy them but from a shop near to where she is and give her the receipt so she can take them back if not needed.

PasturesNew

Things you can do with a tin of soup: http://www.campbellskitchen.com/TenRecipeUnder10.aspx?documentId=3

mrs_motivated

Pastures new - thanks, what a great site, I might give some of these a go myself