University Kitchen

What you eat

  • Most Uni Students don't eat well.

  • You have no one telling you to eat healthily, eat more or less.

  • Fruit and vegetables are more expensive but needed.

  • You will tend to eat the same meals that you learned to make before you came.

So what?

  • Buy vitamin tables/gummies/pills if you don't want to buy fruit and veg.

  • Get a recipe book or do a cooking course.

  • Meal plans - Make sure you know what you need to buy when you go shopping.

  • Shop cheap - find an Aldi or Lidl, or work out when the shops reduce their food.

When you eat

Your Meal timings will be destroyed

  • Whilst you may know your academic timings, you can never prepare for the social life, day drinking, hangovers, day trips, and your forever altering hours of sleep.

So what?

  • Pre-make your meals. Bring Tupperware and cook in bulk, so when you decide to suddenly go out you can put the food in the microwave instead of panic cooking a whole new meal.

Don't eat alone

  • Especially during freshers, eat at the same time as others and talk. If in catered accommodation try to sit with different people and make new mates.

  • The more people you know the better for getting into parties/events.

Cooking Equipment

Equipment that helps you cook

You will need:

  1. Spatula

  2. Wooden Spoon

  3. Cooking Knives x 2 (One for meat, one for vegetables, you don't need the whole set) serrated knife is best

  4. Blender - make milkshakes/smoothies or soup

  5. Rice Cooker - Makes cooking rice so much easier.

  6. Slow cooker - Great for casseroles, increasing the flavour of food and making cheaper meat tender.

  7. Toastie maker - 100% worth it - make great easy snacks

  8. Chopping Board

  9. Measuring cups/spoons/jug

  10. Ladle (good for sauces)

  11. Tongs

  12. Scissors

  13. Grater

  14. Can-opener

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Glass and Cutlery

What You Need To Eat And Drink

  1. Knives x 2

  2. Forks x 2

  3. Spoons x 2

  4. Pint Glass + Wine glass

  5. Large plastic cup (use at parties)

  6. Mug - tea and coffee, or a toothbrush holder

  7. Drinking glasses x 2 (they will smash but buy more once there)

  8. Water bottle for day trips

Pots and Pans

What You Need To Cook

  • You will need a

  1. Baking tray

  2. Frying Pan

  3. Cooking pots x 2

  4. Pasta dish (ceramic).

  5. Induction pots if you have an induction hob in your kitchen

  6. Sieve (for filtering out water from pasta etc)


Cleaning

Keeping The Kitchen Clean

  • It's a pain to clean up, but a dirty kitchen not only makes everyone grumpy but it's horrible to cook and socialise in.

  • You only need a few things - bring them on the first day or get once there.

  1. Surface cleaner

  2. Dish Soap (Fairy Liquid)

  3. Hand Soap

  4. Brush and Sponge

  5. Kitchen Roll

  6. Bleach - for the floor

Decorating your living area

At most universities, your flat's social area will be the kitchen which is plain and boring.

  • Decorating it helps it become a nice area to actually be in.

  • Flat Charts - Every flat has a flat chart. Get a big piece of paper or card. Write all the flat names vertically up one side and the categories horizontally along the top. Category ideas = Shag, kiss, bits, chunder, Simp, walk of shame, in bed first.

  • Beer Crate Walls - Cut up beer crates and stick them to your wall. Looks amazing when the wall is completely covered.

  • Whiteboard pen wall drawings - Draw on whiteboard-like surfaces (tiles, fridges) with whiteboard pens. Can get all visitors to add their names to the wall.

  • Shop-bought decorations - B&M and Tesco usually have decorations.

  • LED lighting - the kitchen lights are generally very bright.

Food Ideas

Hangovers

Eat before you go to bed - (bread, Maccies etc) - it 100% helps the morning feeling.

Packet pastries (croissant/Pain au Chocolat) - about a pound from the shops - keep in your room for when you're too lazy to go make food.

Drink - Drink lots of water, small amounts at a time - if you down water on an empty stomach you will feel or be sick, especially in the morning. Don't drink milk or acidic drinks (orange juice). Warm drinks like tea and coffee or warm squash in the morning are always nice.

Move about - Going outside 100% helps - sit in the fresh air, going on a walk or a run helps awaken your body.

Pancakes

  • 100g plain flour, 2 large eggs, 300ml Milk, 1tbsp vegetable oil, a pinch of salt.

  • Put in a large bowl and whisk until smooth.

  • Heat a frying pan and place a teaspoon of butter in. Once the butter has melted, pour a thin layer of the pancake mixture to cover the frying pan. Heat until the mixture becomes a golden brown on either side and is easy to flip, then take off.

  • Then add whatever toppings you want.


Overnight Oats

  • Must have, Milk, Oats, water.

  • In a pot add as many oats as you want, then add double milk or water in comparison to the oats, or both (depends on how creamy you want it).

  • Put in a pot and heat up until it turns into as thick a consistency as you want. Make sure to keep stirring it otherwise it stick and burn at the bottom.

  • Add whatever flavours you want - Chocolate Spread, Peanut Butter, frozen fruit, Sugar, Syrup, protein powder.

Fry Up

Scrambled Egg - Add 1 tablespoon of butter to a frying pan and allow to melt. Then for every 2 eggs add 5 tablespoons of milk. Mix until it scrambles to the consistency you would like. It will stick to the pan if you don't keep stirring. Add salt, pepper, and cheese if wanted.

Eggy bread - 1 egg per 2 slices of bread. Crack an egg into a bowl and whisk. Then brush the egg onto either side of the slices to cover it. Place in a frying pan with a small bit of oil and heat until the bread's eggy outside is lightly browned.

Bacon and Sausages - Either grill or fry in a pan with oil. You can cook from frozen. Check meat colour and if meat juices run clear to see if cooked.

Garlic Mushrooms - Slice thinly. Put a small amount of butter or oil onto a frying pan. Add garlic paste or 1 crushed garlic clove. Heat in a frying pan until mushrooms become floppy or as crisp as you like.

Jacka Potato

  • Get as many potatoes as you want.

  • Slice an X at about a quarter of the depth into the potato and place it on a baking tray with a small amount of oil and salt rubbed on it. Add any herbs and spices you want.

  • Leave in the oven at '200' for about 40mins until golden brown. Put in the microwave first for 10mins if you want the potato to cook quicker. The potato should be soft on the inside.

  • Flavour - Baked Beans, Cheese, Tuna, Cold or Hot Meats, onions, and herbs.

Casserole

Method

  • Oil, Pork shoulder x 4 (avg 750g), Onion x 2, Leek x 1, Carrot x 1, chicken stock cube x 2, mustard, 1tbsp cider vinegar, water.

    1. Slice pork into small chunks and season before placing in a frying pan with oil. Cook until deep brown.

    2. Add the onions and leeks and tsp of dijon mustard into the frying pan until the vegetables are browned.

    3. Heat oven to 180 or put a slow cooker on high setting.

    4. Place sliced carrot, herbs, 1tbsp mustard, and 1tbsp of vinegar, 2 tsp of cornflower, and 1tbsp of honey into the pot or slow cooker.

    5. Set slow cooker on high for 5-6 hrs. If using an oven, keep at 180 for a few hours but keep on checking the food every so often.

    6. Serve with mashed potato.

Pasta

SPAGHETTI BOLOGNESE

Method

  1. Spaghetti, minced meat, onions x 2, Jars of tomato/bolognese sauce x 2, Salt, 4 tomatoes or tomato puree, 4 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce.

  2. First, finely chop two onions and crush four garlic cloves. Put into a pot with 2 teaspoons of oil and salt and heat until slightly browned in a pot or frying pan.

  3. Then place the mince in as well and cook cooked brown (packet instructions). Add Worcestershire sauce. Add thyme and spices like cumin and paprika for increased flavour if you want.

  4. Pour the jarred sauces in and mix with the mince. Allow to simmer at low heat for 10mins.

  5. Boil spaghetti in a separate pot (look at packet instructions). Use a Colander to drain the pasta once boiled. Then serve with the Bolognese sauce.

PASTA BAKE - 501 avg calories.

Method

  • Onion, oil, garlic clove x 2, chopped tomatoes, salt, Worcestershire sauce, rigatoni pasta.

    1. Place 1 onion in a pan with 1tbsp of oil and fry until light brown.

    2. Add 2 garlic cloves, 400g of chopped tomatoes, a couple pinches of salt and tbsp of Worcestershire sauce. Allow to simmer for about 10 mins.

    3. Meanwhile, boil rigatoni pasta (tube-like) using the packet instructions.

    4. Grate as much cheese as you want a mix with breadcrumbs. Get breadcrumbs from blending 2 pieces of bread.

    5. Drain the pasta once cooked and mix with the sauce in a large dish.

    6. Place the dish in the oven at around '200'. Leave until the breadcrumbs are crisp and cheese golden.

    7. Add sausages for protein if wanted.

TUNA PASTA - 752 avg calories per serving

  • Boil pasta (use packet instructions).

  • Drain water from pasta using a colander.

  • Add tuna, sweetcorn, mayonnaise, onions and mix. Eat cold or hot.

PESTO PASTA

  • Easy - 4tbsp of pesto (292 avg cal) - 280g of spaghetti (422 avg cal)

  • Boil pasta using packet instructions

  • Add as much pesto as you want + salt and cheese for flavour.