What are some good, cheap foods for college students?!
Answers: I want suggestions that are healthy, but cheap. I don't want Ramen noodles, macaroni and cheese, vienna sausages, spam, potted meat, or anything like that. Like Kraft Bacon Ranch pasta salad with tomato for example. But they need to be cheap because I am on a student's budget.
I'm a student and I could only do the whole vienna sausages and spaghetti o's kick for so long, lol! :) Now I love some healthy soups, like Campbells homestyle Chicken Tortilla, I add some cheddar cheese to it and some fritos, very good. I also buy a bag of baby spinach (it doesn't taste like cooked spinach at all) and I make healthy salads with carrots and hardboiled eggs and sometimes nuts. I also buy the Krogers brand stir fry vegis, they have tons of different varieties, and I saute or steam them and then I get a bottle of asian teriyaki sauce and put it on them. Very healthy and good, you can add chicken, tofu, seafood, or anything to it. Hummos and pita sandwiches are good too. I also eat at panera bread alot, ha! :)
I"m in college too, and have a family so i understand. I do alot of Tuna Helper. Hamburger helper, nd chicker helper, and i buy then in bulk when they go on sale, i also use coupons, and get most things free or almost free. We do alot of Salads too. (The pre mixed kind),
I've been there. :-) This is what I lived off of while a grad student. It kept me healthy while I was studying and running marathons:
Breakfasts: Eggs. I would eat these with cheese on top of a slice of wheat toast or in a tortilla. I would also add frozen spinach for an omlette. Oatmeal--very cheap and really tasty with dried fruit, a few nuts, and brown sugar.
Lunches: Ham, turkey, or tuna on top of bagged salads. When I wasn't in the mood for a salad I would make a sandwich or a wrap with a tortilla. I also would eat Trader Joe's enchilladas--very cheap and a decent nutritional content.
Snacks: Fruit--I would buy canned fruit or the big bags of apples. Also would make my own trail mix by mixing M&Ms, nuts, and dried fruit.
Dinner: Lots and lots of brown and white rice. I usually cooked a 50/50 mix of brown and white rice. I'd top with soy sauce, green beans or spinach, and tofu. Sometimes I'd use chicken.
Another cheap speciality was pasta--Trader Joe's pasta, pasta sauce, red chilli flakes, and some cheese.
Couscous is great as well. Top this with vegetarian chilli or a stew.
The key is to buy frozen vegetables and foods that will keep (oatmeal and rice) so you don't find yourself throwing out foods.
Goodluck with school!
A bag of apples is cheap and lasts a while. I love to cut up an apple and spread peanut butter on it.
Rice in bulk is cheap and healthy, and can be dressed up in different ways for very little.
Dried beans are very cheap and healthy, but they take planning, because they have to soak.
Taco Soup
Ingredients:
2 lbs.- hamburger 1 onion, chopped 1 sm.- can green chilies, chopped 1 tsp.- pepper 1 pkg.- taco seasoning 1 pkg.- ranch dressing 1 can hominy or corn, undrained 1 can kidney beans, undrained 1 can pinto beans, undrained 3 cans tomatoes 1 1/2 c.- water I also added a can of chopped olives, and served with fritos corn chips and tortilla chips on the side
Directions:
Brown the first three ingredients together in large kettle.- (I DIDNT ADD THE CHILES TIL I DRAINED THE BURGER SOME AND I ADDED MORE ONION) Stir in 1 teaspoon pepper, taco seasoning and dry ranch dressing.- Add hominy, (I USED CORN) kidney beans and pinto beans, tomatoes (I USED ONLY 2 CANS OF TOMATOES: CHILI READY TOMATOES AND STEWED TOMATOES) and water (I ADDED AN EXTRA 3/4 CUPS WATER).- Bring to boil and simmer 1 hour.-
--------------------------------------... BROCCOLI CHEESE RICE
2 CUPS RICE, COOKED
ONIONS
BELL PEPPERS
BUTTER/OIL
1 FAMILY SIZE BAG BROCCOLI
1 LARGE BLOCK VELVEETA CHEESE
1 CAN CREAM OF MUSHROOM SOUP
1 CAN CREAM OF CELERY SOUP
1 CAN CREAM OF ONION SOUP
2 TBSP WATER (MORE OR LESS)
COOK RICE
SAUTE ONIONS AND BELL PEPPERS IN BUTTER/OIL TIL ONIONS ARE CLEAR
ADD SOUPS AND CHEESE
WHEN CHEESE STARTS TO MELT ADD WATER (TO MAKE THIN ENOUGH TO YOUR LIKING)
PLACE RICE IN CAKE PAN
PLACE BROCCOLI ATOP RICE
POUR CHEESE OVER BROCCOLI AND RICE
MIX WELL
BAKE FOR 20 MINS UNTIL LIGHTLY BROWNED ON TOP
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MY OWN PASTA SALAD
Ingredients:
1 pack ROTINI NOODLES (the curly ones) 1/2 of a BELL PEPPER 1 SMALL RED ONION OR 1 tsp.- onion powder 1 PKG CHERRY TOMATOES OR GRAPE TOMATOES OR DICED ROMA (pear) TOMATOES 1/2 TO 1 Bottle KRAFT RANCH WITH BACON SALAD DRESSING (MUST BE KRAFT BRAND)
Directions:
Boil Noodles til soft.- Chop all veggies and place in bowl add enough dressing to coat veggies set aside.- When noodles are done, add to veggies and add more dressing to coat as much or as little as you like.- Refrigerate at least 3 hours to chill well.- ***You may also add in: Bacon Bits (but it makes it very salty)
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NOT SO HOT CHILI
Ingredients:
Crock Pot 1 lb ground beef salt to taste ? tsp garlic powder 1 tsp minced onions 2 cans pork and beans 2 cans tomato soup 1 tsp chili powder
Directions:
1 Crumble and brown ground beef in large frying pan.- Add salt, garlic powder and minced onion.- Transfer browned ground beef after draining to crock pot.- 2 Add pork and beans, tomato soup and chili powder.- Mix thoroughly.- If mixture is too thick, add warm water and mix until desired consistency.- 3 Cook in crock pot for several hours.- 4 I usually double the ground beef and double or triple the pork and beans and tomato soup for a large crowd dinner.-
Number of servings:
6--8
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BACON RANCH PASTA SALAD
This is a remake of a "boxed salad", only better because you can make more for less and for some reason, I think this tastes MUCH better.-
Ingredients:
1 Bag shell pasta 5 peeled baby carrots, shredded 1 can Very Young Peas,drained well (use only YOUNG ONES) 1 Packet Hidden Valley Ranch Dresing (DRY) 1 Cup Mayonaisse--NO MIRACLE WHIP
Directions:
Boil pasta and shredded carrots until cooked.- Drain and let cool.- In a small bowl, mix mayonaisse, Hidden Valley Ranch Packet, and onion powder together.- When pasta is cooled down a bit, mix pasta and mayonaisse mixture and peas together thouroughly.- Place in fridge for at least 2 hours to cool or overnight for best results.-
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Pinwheel Sandwiches OR Wrap
Great Little Finger food or school lunch or just to have as a lunch.- Made for lunches and bought at walmart, but love homemade! GOT RECIPE FROM A GOOD SOURCE! (These are sold in a grocery store.-)
Ingredients:
1 Burrito Sized Flour Tortilla Cream Cheese Lunchmeat of your choice Lettuce (Romain works best!) Sweet Roasted Red Peppers (in a jar,in the pickle section of store) Cheese, your choice
Directions:
Heat tortilla up on ONE side til lightly crispy, but still bendable.- Spread a layer of cream cheese over it, not too thick or thin.- On bottom 1/2 of tortilla layer lettuce,meat,cheese and the bell pepper.- Roll from the bottom (like a jelly roll) and seal the last edge with the cream cheese, and slice in to 1/2 inch pinwheels.-
One of my family's favourites is a pasta salad and it keeps for about 1 - 1 1\2 weeks. Make a lot. Make it to taste. Keep a little Italian dressing to add as you need to.
Cook pasta - 1lb - 2lbs (we like spiral or shells)
1 - 1 1\2 large bottle of Italian dressing
1 container grape or cherry tomatoes (cut in half)
1 green - 1 red pepper cut 1\2 - 1 in pieces
1 block of mozzarella cheese cut in to 1\2 - 1 in. pieces
mix everything together and grab and go. Add what you like.
I'm going to assume you have all the necessities of cooking, like a stove, oven, microwave. Here's the deal, (and what I always tell my daughter, who's also in college), if you don't mind cooking, and you don't mind either eating leftovers or freezing leftovers, you can eat cheap.
For instance. Make a casserole that looks really good. Eat it twice in one week. Freeze the rest in 1-2 portion containers then you'll have 1-2 meals for another week. Every time you make something, eat part and freeze part and you have lots and lots of choices in a couple weeks. Here are some pretty cheap, easy meals.
If you don't have a crockpot, ask your mom or dad, or good friend, or spring for one yourself. It is so wonderful when you can spend a few minutes putting something together in the morning, come home in the afternoon after grueling hours in class and have a hot meal ready. (I love when I come home and food is ready!)
As for healthy, use lowfat or fatfree options in these recipes. Also, noodles or rice make meals go farther.
Fill in the extra days with really healthy chef salads. Buy lowfat cheese and shred it yourself. Buy a chunk of ham or turkey and ask the deli to slice for you (they'll be happy to). Freeze what you won't eat this week for next week. Soup and salad are great. Make or buy a soup and have a salad with it.
One more thing: Wait to decide what dish(es) you make this week when you see the grocery ads. They have amazing deals, so only buy what meat, etc. is on sale. If you need more recipes or advice, I'd love to help. Email me!
Good luck with college!
Ideas:
Easy soup:
Hamburger Stew
1 lb hamburger meat (cooked and drained)
4 oz of velveeta cheese
1 can corn (undrained)
2 cans minestrone soup
1 can water
1 can jalape?o ranch style beans
1 can rotel
Stir and simmer in a big pot! It's got a little kick to it, but it's so good!!
Broccoli Wild Rice Soup
1-6oz. pkg. chicken flavored wild rice mix
1 10oz. pkg. frozen chopped broccoli, thawed
2 tsp. dried minced onion
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 8oz. pkg. cream cheese, cubed
In large saucepan, combine rice, rice seasoning packet and 6 cups water. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring once. Stir in broccoli and onion and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in soup and cream cheese. Cook and stir until cheese melts.
Amazing Potato Soup
6-- medium potatoes {pealed & cubed }
1-- 15 0z. can chicken broth
1-- can cream of chicken soup
1/3-- cup diced onion
4-- slices bacon cooked crisp &crumbled
3/4 inch slice Velveeta cheese {cubed}
Boil potatoes until tender set aside
combine chicken broth and onion simmer until onions are tender. Add cream of chicken soup and velveeta stir over low heat until cheese is melted add bacon and potatoes. season to taste. Serve hot.
With crusty bread or your favorite crackers.
When you have soup, go to the grocery store deli and buy the fresh bread made that day. It's usually french bread and it's usually not more than $2. I love that with soup!
Crockpot:
This is so easy, and you can't believe how tasty!
Swiss Steak
1 round steak
2 cans stewed tomatoes
Egg noodles, cooked.
Sear the steak on both sides.
Put in crock pot and sprinkle with a good seasoned salt.
Add the two cans of tomatoes.
Cook all day (8 hours or so).
Serve over cooked and buttered egg noodles.
Yummy!
These are so easy and wonderful. You can’t believe it!
BBQ Ribs
Country Style Ribs
Onion
Bottled BBQ Sauce (any kind you like)
Sear ribs on all sides to seal in juices. Place in crock pot. Cover with sliced onions and BBQ sauce. Cook on low 8-10 hours. Yummy!!!
Serve with baked beans, cornbread…and this salad is great:
Caesar Coleslaw
1 pkg pre-made coleslaw
1/4-1/2 cup shredded parmesean cheese
1/2 pkg caesar croutons
1 bottle creamy caesar dressing
Toss first three ingredients together. Add enough dressing to coat. It's even good the next day!
Creamy Crockpot Chicken
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
2 cups sour cream
1 can cream mushroom soup
Salt and pepper to taste
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Combine first 4 ingredients. Pour over chicken in crockpot. Cook on low 8 hours. Serve over noodles or rice.
Pork Parisienne
6-8 boneless pork chops
Salt and pepper
Paprika
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 small can sliced mushrooms
1 cup sour cream
? cup water
Sprinkle pork with salt, pepper, and paprika. Place in crockpot. Mix soup, water, mushrooms, and sour cream. Pour of pork chops. Sprinkle with paprika. Cover and cook low for 6-8 hours. Serve over rice or noodles.
For chicken parisienne: Substitute the pork for 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Easy Creamy Chicken
6-8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 can cream of chicken soup
1-3oz package cream cheese
1-8oz carton sour cream
3-4 green onions, chopped
Place chicken in 9x13 dish. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and good seasoned salt. In saucepan, combine soup, cream cheese and sour cream on low heat just until cheese melts and ingredients mix well. Pour mixture over chicken, sprinkle green onions on top. Cover, bake at 300 for 1 hour. Uncover and bake another 15 minutes. Serve over noodles or rice.
Nacho Chicken
6-8 chicken breasts (or 8-10 chicken thighs)
2 cans nacho cheese soup
? cup milk
3 tbsp worchestershire sauce
Place chicken in large baking pan. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and a spicy seasoned salt. Combine soup, milk, and worchestershire sauce in saucepan until just heated through. Cover and bake at 350 for 1 hour.
Cheesy Pepper Steak
1 ? pound sirloin steak, cut in strips
Seasoned salt
1-16oz pkg. frozen bell pepper and onion strips, thawed
1-16oz pkg. cubed Mexican processed cheese
Sprinkle steak with seasoned salt. Coat large skillet with non-stick vegetable spray and cook steak strips for 10 minutes or until no longer pink. Remove steak from skillet and set aside. Stir in vegetables and ? cup water and simmer for 5 minutes or until all liquid cooks out. Add cheese and turn heat to low. When cheese melts, stir in steak until heated through and serve over hot cooked rice.
Tangy Spareribs
5-6 pounds spareribs
1-6oz can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
? tsp garlic powder
Spicy seasoned salt
Pepper
Place spareribs in shallow baking pan, meat side down and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and seasoned salt. Roast at 375 for 30 minutes. Turn ribs, roast another 15 minutes and drain off fat. Combine orange juice, Worcestershire and garlic powder and brush mixture on ribs. Reduce heat to 300. Cover ribs, roast 2 hours or until tender and baste occasionally.
Quick Chicken Casserole
3 cups cooked, chopped chicken or turkey
1-16oz. package frozen broccoli florets, thawed
1-10oz. can cream of chicken soup with ? cup milk
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper
1 ? cups crushed cheese crackers
Combine chicken, broccoli, soup, mayo, and cheese, salt and pepper to taste. Mix well. Pour into buttered casserole dish and spread cheese crackers over top. Bake uncovered at 350 for 40 minutes or until bubbly.
with some good staples you can make lots of different stuff!
TORTILLA SHELLS/flatbread- use them for tacos(ground beef), wraps(deli meat), quesadillas(chicken) & fajitas(steak)
PITA BREAD- for pita's and mini pizza's
BREAD- for toast, sandwiches, and home-made stuffing and croutons
LETTUCE- for salads, sandwiches, wraps, and pitas
RED BELL PEPPERS-good cooked with stirfries, or cold with sandwiches, or grilled... good versatile veggie!
TOMATO- little roma tomatoes are yummy with lots of stuff!
MARBLE CHEESE- for sandwiches, wraps, pitas, and mini pizzas, or just cut up for a snack. or for crackers and cheese and meat. plus cheese makes eggs taste good
EGGS- for breakfast :)
BACON- for breakfast, sandwiches, wraps, and salads
I also think that corn, rice, and sausages are yummy, versatile items :)
Also, everyone think's I'm crazy but I love toasted bagels topped with cream cheese, tomato slices and fresh ground pepper!
And times when you boil pasta for supper, boil some extra noodles to have in a cold pasta salad the next day! all you need is a bit of grated cheese and some Kraft golden Italian dressing- very yummy!
Loose meat sandwiches. Get gr sirloin or gr round(anything else is going to be too fatty), brown the meat with red and grn peppers and onion. Season with salt and pepper. Toast some hamburger buns or just use regular bread and load up like sloppy joes. You can add cheese if you like cheese. A pound of meat should make 4 regular sandwichs or 2 big ones. Freezes well.