Maintaining a healthy diet whilst learning to live on your own for the first time can be tricky! Amidst the demands of hectic University life and the gradual accumulation of student debt, it can be challenging not to keep succumbing to the same old routine of pesto pasta every night! However, I’m here to assure you that with a few small adjustments to your meal planning and weekly shopping, cooking can be both easy and delicious.
Firstly, consider the types of cuisine that you enjoy eating, as this will help guide your selection of ingredients to prioritise during your weekly shop. For instance, I absolutely LOVE Italian and East Asian recipes, so always maintain a stock of essential seasonings and sauces, such as smoked paprika, oregano and soy, which consistently feature in most meals I prepare (I will showcase this later!) I then do the same with vegetables. Personally, I always reach for bell peppers, carrots, and leafy greens of some kind like spinach or cabbage. This practice will aid you when it comes to budgeting, by ensuring you get optimal use out of all the food in your fridge and pantry, minimizing waste.
My second tip involves opting for frozen or canned foods whenever feasible. I personally feel that the negligible compromise in taste and nutritional value is outweighed by the advantage of preventing the accumulation of rotten veg by the end of the week! These foods are easily storable, so don’t need to be consumed at once, and, most notably, make cooking much simpler by eliminating the time-consuming task of vegetable prep!
Finally, I would highly recommend meal prepping. I find this so useful for busy weeks filled with lectures and socials especially, as you simply have to prepare one substantial meal that can then be portioned into containers for consuming throughout all the next week. Although it may seem initially labour-intensive, if you do it on a leisurely Sunday afternoon, future you will definitely appreciate the reduced workload in the kitchen.
Now, as promised, here are examples of some of my favourite meals to prepare in a week that use similar ingredients, along with a breakdown of the cost for each meal!
- Vegetable Chilli
This is perhaps the most time-consuming meal on the list, but it’s super easy to prepare in advance, and is perfect for heating up throughout the week. There are not many steps: simply fry off the veggies in the oil for a couple of minutes before adding in the remaining ingredients, allowing everything to simmer for half an hour or so. That’s it!
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (£0.13 – Tesco)
- 1 onion (£0.32 – Aldi)
- 1 bell pepper (£0.52 – Aldi)
- Handful of frozen carrot (approx. £0.20 – Aldi)
- 1 tin of tomatoes (£0.35 – Aldi)
- 1 tin of black beans (£0.59 – Aldi)
- 1 tsp garlic puree (£0.05 – Aldi)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika (approx. £0.09 – Aldi)
- 1 tsp oregano (approx. £0.30 – Aldi)
- 1 tsp chilli powder (approx. £0.09 – Aldi)
- 1 bay leaf (approx. £0.10 – Tesco)
- 1 tsp parsley (approx. £0.35)
Total cost: £2.64
- Black Pepper Stir-Fry
This is one of my favourite meals because it’s so easy to make! Once the sauce has been prepared you can add whatever veggies you have to hand, mixing everything until it has thickened. I personally love to serve this with some sticky white rice. Yum!
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (£0.13 – Tesco)
- 300g Chicken (£2.39 – Aldi)
- 1 onion (£0.32 – Aldi)
- 1 bell pepper (£0.52 – Aldi)
- ½ Cabbage (£0.31 – Aldi)
- 3 tbsp soy (£0.15 – Aldi)
- 1 tbsp white vinegar (£0.05 – Tesco)
- 1 tsp garlic puree (£0.05 – Aldi)
- 1 tsp pepper (£0.08 – Aldi)
- 1 tsp sriracha (£0.03 – Tesco)
- 1 tbsp cornstarch (£0.04 – Aldi)
- 50 ml water (free!)
Total cost: £4.02
- Marinara Pasta Sauce
This might sound fancy, but it’s simply a homemade tomato sauce that uses up the most common ingredients found in your kitchen. You don’t even have to have this with pasta; it is lovely as a dip, or in a sandwich too! Versatility is key to ensuring that everything in your fridge gets used. It’s also super cheap to make!
- 1 tin of tomatoes (£0.35 – Aldi)
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (£0.13 – Tesco)
- Handful of frozen carrot (approx. £0.20 – Aldi)
- 1 onion (£0.32 – Aldi)
- 1 tsp garlic puree (£0.05 – Aldi)
- 1 tbsp basil (approx. £0.19 – Aldi)
- 1 tsp oregano (approx. £0.30 – Aldi)
- 1 tsp pepper (£0.08 – Aldi)
Total cost: £1.62
Now you know how to budget and plan your meals, hopefully the prospect of cooking for the next year (and beyond) isn’t so daunting! One last thing to always remember: it’s entirely normal if you can’t adhere strictly to a weekly plan. We are all navigating the challenges of independent living, and there is no shame in having your own unique journey that is different to everyone else’s! Food is for enjoyment as well as nutrition, so step into your kitchen and start cooking!
Edited by: Millie Nutburn