Student – How to eat cheaply!

I know better than anyone what it feels like to be a broke student. The amount of times I’ve hit the bottom of my overdraft is quite scary. Then the student loan comes in, and I think I’m rich – for about two weeks.

If you’re on this website, it’s probably because you’re looking for a new recipe to try out,  or you’re interested in how companies in your area give back to their communities. This article won’t help you with either of those things. However, if you’re looking for help on making delicious food with a small budget, you have come to the right place.

Let’s start with the obvious. Ready meals are not cheap. Even if they’re frozen! The price says 3 for £6 at ASDA so you think, what a bargain! But the portions are small, and that’s only going to last you three dinners! Also, if we’re being honest, cheap ready meals from ASDA do not taste good and definitely aren’t good for you, no matter what they put on the label. The salt and preservatives stuffed into one of them almost gives me a heart attack by looking at it, and I haven’t taken a bite yet! That’s not to say I’ve never eaten one. In my first year of uni I had more ready meals than I could count on four, maybe five hands! And how did I feel after eating them? Gross, undernourished and hungry! Ready meals are the easiest things to cook. It’d be pretty hard to do it wrong, but is it worth it?

As long as you have the basics in your fridge and cupboards, you can make a nutritious and delicious meal for just as cheap as a ready meal. When I say the basics, I’m talking flour, salt, pepper, stock cubes, garlic and tomato puree and milk etc. These are the basics for a lot of meals! The initial cost will be slightly higher to buy these items, but as soon as you have them they should last you a long time! I’m still on the same bag of flour I bought in September!

Soon, you’ll find that your weekly shop really goes down in price. Have a look at some of the recipes on this website for some cheap, and easy meals with bare minimum ingredients. Some that I would recommend would be Spaghetti Bolognaise, Chicken Curry and Lasagne. Imagine being able to say that you can cook these dishes from scratch! It’s a lot easier than it sounds, trust me.

Catering-Online