We gathered the advice shared here, plus some tips from our Test Kitchen Director in this story: https://food52.com/blog/28334-advice-for-college-kids-who-cant-cook
You can also find her tips here: https://www.tiktok.com/@food52/video/7288392770480393518
She also shared a good first cookbook to start with here—Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything": https://www.tiktok.com/@food52/video/7291010329650449710
Curious if you've found some recipes that work for you!
Keep it simple and make food that can be reused. For example, baked chicken for dinner today and on a sandwich tomorrow. Or spaghetti sauce (jarred is ok - just add some meat and/or extra veggies) and make some lasagne with the leftover.
If you don't already have one, put a crock pot on your wishlist. My favorite is inexpensive pork loin with bbq sauce for pulled pork. Put it in before you go to class and dinner will be ready when you get home for dinner with leftovers or "planned overs" as someone else said.
Sunset: Easy Basics for Good Cooking. Really good book with clear instructions and good recipes. Mine is VERY well used. * It helps to think of leftovers as 'planned overs' since cooking for just two can be tricky. *Invest in a small vacuum sealer. This will cut down on waste (large cuts of meat, vegetables, flour...) These things can then be portioned out/ frozen...
Welcome to the world of cooking for yourselves! Many adventures, not a few errors (we all have them...my two worst are cooking a whole chicken with the innards when I didn't realize they were sold that way and a bread dough that refused to rise no matter which warm spot I found for it) and many more tasty meals await you.
First, a few cookbook recommendations.
A) a cookbook designed for college students. There are a lot to choose from, and I forget the title of the one I used to give as gifts.. Have a look at amazon or other online bookseller for one that fits your needs or preferences. For ex, instant pot, 5-ingredients, microwave, healthy, vegan, budget. https://www.amazon.com/s?k=college+student+cookbook&crid=1PA7ZB87AVYO8&sprefix=college+student+cookboo%2Caps%2C265&ref=nb_sb_noss_2
B) a good basic cookbook to learn from and use for many years. Mark Bittman's is good for you now and as you develop skills. Or choose any recommended to you that you can use as a long term reference and a source of recipes. https://www.amazon.com/Cook-Everything_Completely-Revised-Twentieth-Anniversary/dp/1328545431/ref=sr_1_1?crid=271PGD7URTREG&keywords=mark+bittman+how+to+cook+everything&qid=1695724856&sprefix=mark+bittman%2Caps%2C130&sr=8-1
C) If/when you are cooking for 4 or more (say in a shared apartment), consider How to Dinner by (founders of this site) Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs. It has grocery lists and meal plans for about 16 weeks of menus, geared to the seasons. https://www.amazon.com/Food52-New-Way-Dinner-Strategies/dp/0399578005/ref=sr_1_6?crid=1EHZD7T4V479T&keywords=amanda+hesser+cookbooks&qid=1695724958&sprefix=amanda+hesser%2Caps%2C303&sr=8-6
D) Don't try to learn a wide range of recipes or everything at once. Choose and practice a few basic menus over and over. This will help you develop techniques, memory, ease in cooking. Also makes grocery shopping easier. Learn, for example, 1) an easy and basic breakfast menu that you can make often and garnish for variety. Examples: pancakes, granola, scrambled eggs. 2) a good main (sandwich, rice or noodles dish) and salad combo that you can pack and take with you. 3) a favorite, reliable and relatively cheap main dish for dinner. Example - roast or pulled chicken or beef, pressed and fried tofu, bean salad or pancakes 4) basic vegetable side dishes in different colors - red/orange, green, white. Potato is not a vegetable for these purposes - it is a starch, like bread or rice. 5) an easy and relatively cheap dessert that will also provide some nutritional value (I know we all love empty calories for treats but not for every night). Something like multigrain brownies, popcorn with a grated cheese topping, nachos, apple crumble.
E) Develop some grocery shopping habits that will help both your taste and your budget. Learn which local stores have best choice and/or prices, which days are sale days, etc. Buy seasonally - e.g., tomatoes in summer but tomato paste and sauce in winter, peaches and plums in summer, apples and oranges in winter. Also, buy what are old or look like imperfect produce - they often have great taste, and can be cooked/rescued to last the week. For example, a big batch of sweet peppers on sale one week for your red/orange veg, and then one of carrots or sweet potatoes another week.
F) Use some reliable online sites for help when you hit snags. Allrecipes, serious eats, King Arthur Flour (for bread and baking), this one.
Good luck and many happy hours cooking and eating together!
PS I was thinking evening snacks when I (mistakenly) put nachos in the dessert section. Make or not, as you choose. Or top corn chips with fruit and cheese for a quick snack.
5 Comments
We gathered the advice shared here, plus some tips from our Test Kitchen Director in this story: https://food52.com/blog/28334-advice-for-college-kids-who-cant-cook
You can also find her tips here: https://www.tiktok.com/@food52/video/7288392770480393518
She also shared a good first cookbook to start with here—Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything":
https://www.tiktok.com/@food52/video/7291010329650449710
Curious if you've found some recipes that work for you!
If you don't already have one, put a crock pot on your wishlist. My favorite is inexpensive pork loin with bbq sauce for pulled pork. Put it in before you go to class and dinner will be ready when you get home for dinner with leftovers or "planned overs" as someone else said.
Best wishes!!
* It helps to think of leftovers as 'planned overs' since cooking for just two can be tricky.
*Invest in a small vacuum sealer. This will cut down on waste (large cuts of meat, vegetables, flour...) These things can then be portioned out/ frozen...
First, a few cookbook recommendations.
A) a cookbook designed for college students. There are a lot to choose from, and I forget the title of the one I used to give as gifts.. Have a look at amazon or other online bookseller for one that fits your needs or preferences. For ex, instant pot, 5-ingredients, microwave, healthy, vegan, budget.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=college+student+cookbook&crid=1PA7ZB87AVYO8&sprefix=college+student+cookboo%2Caps%2C265&ref=nb_sb_noss_2
B) a good basic cookbook to learn from and use for many years.
Mark Bittman's is good for you now and as you develop skills. Or choose any recommended to you that you can use as a long term reference and a source of recipes.
https://www.amazon.com/Cook-Everything_Completely-Revised-Twentieth-Anniversary/dp/1328545431/ref=sr_1_1?crid=271PGD7URTREG&keywords=mark+bittman+how+to+cook+everything&qid=1695724856&sprefix=mark+bittman%2Caps%2C130&sr=8-1
C) If/when you are cooking for 4 or more (say in a shared apartment), consider How to Dinner by (founders of this site) Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs. It has grocery lists and meal plans for about 16 weeks of menus, geared to the seasons.
https://www.amazon.com/Food52-New-Way-Dinner-Strategies/dp/0399578005/ref=sr_1_6?crid=1EHZD7T4V479T&keywords=amanda+hesser+cookbooks&qid=1695724958&sprefix=amanda+hesser%2Caps%2C303&sr=8-6
D) Don't try to learn a wide range of recipes or everything at once. Choose and practice a few basic menus over and over. This will help you develop techniques, memory, ease in cooking. Also makes grocery shopping easier. Learn, for example,
1) an easy and basic breakfast menu that you can make often and garnish for variety. Examples: pancakes, granola, scrambled eggs.
2) a good main (sandwich, rice or noodles dish) and salad combo that you can pack and take with you.
3) a favorite, reliable and relatively cheap main dish for dinner. Example - roast or pulled chicken or beef, pressed and fried tofu, bean salad or pancakes
4) basic vegetable side dishes in different colors - red/orange, green, white. Potato is not a vegetable for these purposes - it is a starch, like bread or rice.
5) an easy and relatively cheap dessert that will also provide some nutritional value (I know we all love empty calories for treats but not for every night). Something like multigrain brownies, popcorn with a grated cheese topping, nachos, apple crumble.
E) Develop some grocery shopping habits that will help both your taste and your budget. Learn which local stores have best choice and/or prices, which days are sale days, etc. Buy seasonally - e.g., tomatoes in summer but tomato paste and sauce in winter, peaches and plums in summer, apples and oranges in winter. Also, buy what are old or look like imperfect produce - they often have great taste, and can be cooked/rescued to last the week. For example, a big batch of sweet peppers on sale one week for your red/orange veg, and then one of carrots or sweet potatoes another week.
F) Use some reliable online sites for help when you hit snags. Allrecipes, serious eats, King Arthur Flour (for bread and baking), this one.
Good luck and many happy hours cooking and eating together!