Written by Chloe Debono
Uni life can get so busy, especially when you are balancing work, exams, assignments and a social life.
Food is essential for function, so preparing nutrient balanced foods, or prepping ingredients on hand ensure you are eating good food without breaking your budget.
Start with planning your meals:
- Write down what ingredients you’ll need and prepare a shopping list
- Choose meals where you can use the same ingredients across multiple dishes – for example, you can bulk buy chicken breast to make schnitzel, stir-fry, wraps, or a pie
Hot tip* When I remember a recipe I love or find one on social media I write it out on a word doc – this comes in super helpful when I don’t know what to make.
Prepping your ingredients – this will help you get the most out of your food and limit food waste:
- Cut fresh fruit (watermelon, honeydew, strawberries) for a simple mindless snack
- Cut fresh veggies to make cooking easier – instead of cutting up all your veggies when you make dinner you can just throw them straight into the pan or on your plate
Hot tip* Look at price per kg instead of the item price when comparing the same items to get more value for your money
Ensuring you have the essentials:
You’ll want to buy these ingredients and have them in your cupboard. They come in handy by elevating your meal and saves you from buying pre-made sauces and curries and will work out cheaper.
My top suggested staples include:
- Spices – paprika, cinnamon, garlic (powder or fresh), cumin, salt, pepper, Italian mixed herbs,
- Sauces – soy sauce, oyster sauce, tomato sauce, barbecue sauce
- Oils: olive oil, sesame oil
- Tomato paste or canned tomatoes (diced or crushed)
- Flour, sugar, bicarbonate of soda (if you’re into baking i.e. cookies, pizza dough)
Meal prep:
Meal prep can be time efficient, even if you’re not prepping the whole meal it cuts time immensely. For example, if I have burrito bowls for dinner I will cook up the mince, pre chop veggies and cook rice so when I want dinner I just have to heat it up and assemble it.
Finding simple recipe’s:
Cooking can be daunting at first but having the right recipe’s that don’t complicate cooking can be the make of a meal. You can look on online websites, Taste, Recipe tin eats, and Allrecipes are my favourites. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Tik Tok offer a wide variety of recipes that aren’t too tricky. Remember you can always alter a recipe to what you like (and find what is on sale).
Some of my favourite recipes are below:
- Chicken burrito bowls
- Two-ingredient pizza dough
- Chicken spag bowl
- Chicken, cashew, and broccoli stir-fry
- Zucchini slice
- Tuna mornay
- Beef stir-fry
- Banana bread
- Thai chicken meatballs
- Beef tacos
Charlie blog is a SSAF funded initiative.
