Having to adapt to a new environment can be a little daunting for most of us, and adjusting to life as a university student is no different. Suddenly, cooking becomes a mammoth task. After a day of attending lectures, tutorials and soc meetings, making dinner is the last thing on your mind.
Initially I thought that cooking would give me more freedom to eat foods that I enjoy. This was true to some extent as I come from a family of horrifically picky eaters, but I soon realised that my cooking skills and as a result, the meals I made were incredibly limited. I had a vague knowledge of how to cook basic dishes but at the end of my first term at university, despite possessing basic culinary skills I found myself being bored of eating some form of pasta virtually every day. Since I had yet to discover the fantastically fresh fruit and specialist artisan pastries, cakes and breads Borough Market had to offer, my usual source of student rations was the tiny, mouse hole sized Sainsbury’s in Waterloo which specialises in ready ‘meals’ and other pre-packaged gastronomic delights. These rarely looked appetizing or particularly healthy.
I also encountered another problem - my attempts to avoid having to cook meant I was going to restaurants and cafes for most of my meals. This was cutting into my budget and soon I realised that I needed to drastically change my attitude to food otherwise, I would become extremely large and penniless. To ensure you don’t encounter the same troubles as I did, or fall into hungry pit of despair you must heed my warnings:
1. BUDGET – I know, you’re probably feeling vaguely nauseous because this is the millionth time this word has appeared since people have started offering you university advice. Watching the pennies is essential for university expenditure. Food will probably eat up a significant amount of your weekly expenses. Work out how much you should be spending on groceries and eating out and then try to stick to it. Admittedly, this is no mean feat and it is certainly not my forte but no one can blame you for trying your best.
2. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF MOTHER’S COOKING (or any others who have ‘feeder’ tendencies) – Although you may well be feeling extremely glad to be far, far away from your beloved Mater and Pater, there may be times when you feel a bit homesick. Some good old fashioned home cooking might be what you’re looking for. Well, do not despair – simply make regular visits ask them to pop meals in the freezer. Next time you visit home, there will be a small stack of frozen home made takeaways for you to bring back to uni.
3. COOKING = BONDING – You probably don’t want to be pottering around the kitchen like Aunt Bessie all day but the kitchen is often the most sociable place to be. It’s a great opportunity to meet your fellow hall mates and maybe even sample some international cuisine. The first time I cooked in halls was with my flatmate and even though our tuna pasta extravaganza turned out to be a bit of a nightmare, it broke the ice and we have become good friends. The tuna pasta however, was not lucky enough to experience such a happy ending as it found itself languishing in a dustbin some days later.
4. BE HEALTHY – It’s difficult, and with all the constraints of university life, like the endless rounds of socialising, drinking and occasional work you might find yourself gaining all sorts of bad eating habits. You have undoubtedly been told a hundred times, but things like eating three meals a day, avoiding sweeties between meals and eating enough fruit and vegetables still apply. Luckily companies like GRAZE (www.graze.com) make it a little easier for students to get their five a day. You can arrange regular deliveries of yummy fruits and nuts which means you won’t have to venture much further than your post box. You might also want to consider stocking up some healthier snacks for when you’re feeling peckish.
5. THE FREEZER IS YOUR FRIEND – Befriend and bond with your freezer! That may be going a little too far, but it won’t hurt to utilise all available freezer space. You will inevitably have days where you are far too tired and weary to drag yourself to the nearest supermarket, so stock up your freezer when you have time. You’ll end up with an Aladdin’s cave of edible goodies and won’t ever have to find yourself eating a 16th century prison diet - bits of stale bread and chunks of mouldy cheddar.
6. INVEST IN TUPPERWARE – It seems like something your great aunt would do, but although Tupperware is certainly not the most glamorous of containers to store your food in, it is extremely handy, virtually indestructible - a scientific miracle! They’re also freezable and microwavable. Another glorious thing about Tupperware is that if you are as clumsy as I am, the container is firmly sealed. This is unfortunately not the case with some other more traditional food receptacles, as I found to my detriment one morning at 6am as a glazed enamel baking tray full of meatballs and tomato sauce crashed to the floor.
These are merely a few of the myriad of tips I have to offer, but I think it is only fair to allow our most esteemed readers a chance to chip in with some of their own. I would strongly encourage you to e-mail or snail mail in your best tips and tricks as you can be sure that there will fellow students carefully poring over your every wise word. Remember: sharing is caring and although this is sadly not applicable to all things in life, it certainly is the case here!
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