I have been looking forward to being a junior/senior for the past two years. Why is that you might ask? Being an upperclassman means not only better housing accommodations but also means being able to have your own kitchen. Having your own kitchen gives you the freedom to cook whatever and whenever you’d like, and you are no longer tied to whatever the dining hall is offering for the week. While it has been great, sometimes cooking a whole meal can seem tedious and time-consuming. Sometimes you just need a nice quick meal, so here are some of my favorites that I make when I don’t feel like cooking!
Chicken Caeser Salads
This might seem like an obvious answer, but a good Caesar salad can be a very quick and fulfilling meal. I like to make mine with chicken which adds some extra protein without a lot of hassle. I’ll either use some I had already cooked the day before for another dish or some frozen chicken that I can pop in the air fryer. It can be fun to mix it up as well and make it into wraps sometimes for something different!
Rice Bowls
Rice is super easy to make and, while you have to be careful about not letting it sit for too long in the fridge, it is a great thing to have made for a few meals throughout the week. You can easily throw veggies, beans, meat (I love adding extra chicken or beef from tacos or other dishes), or anything else you want into the bowl and then heat it up in the microwave quickly!
Pasta
This is such a classic and basic option, but you can do a lot to change it up without making it take more time or effort. If you have any chicken you can mix it in with the pasta, oil, and parmesan cheese along with any veggies that you have lying around! Another easy option is to heat up some tomato sauce and mix in beef or other ground meat. This is especially easy if you are going to be having ground beef with tacos or another meal during the week as you can save some without any seasoning to mix in with pasta or even salads!