When you’re trying to balance study with work , family and social commitments, planning a home-cooked meal can seem like an impossible task. And while the option of Uber Eats, frozen meals or two-minute noodles might seem appealing, it’s not sustainable – for your health or your budget.
So what can you do when even thinking about what to cook feels like another thing on your growing to-do list ? That’s where we come in, or more accurately, this blog post. We’ve put together a list of our top 10 quick student recipes, that all time-poor students need in their arsenal.
1. Simple tomato spaghetti
How can a dish taste so good and be this easy to make! With a sauce that includes only five ingredients (tomatoes, onion, garlic, tomato paste, dried herbs) you’ll have a healthy and nutritious meal faster than you can say ‘that’s amore!’.
2. Sweet potato fries
Whether you’re looking to curb a 3pm craving or you want a healthy and easy side dish, you can’t go past delicious sweet potato fries that can be made in a blink of an eye. Try this delicious recipe from Jamie Oliver and thank us later.
3. Tacos
Who doesn’t love tacos? They’re fun, they’re easy, they’re quick and most importantly – they’re tasty! Obviously, there are a myriad of different taco recipes online but in the name of fast and easy we say just grab a box from the supermarket and get cooking!
4. Thai beef salad
This is a meal that will taste like you’ve spent far more time cooking it than you actually have. And it tastes far better than any salad has a right to! With only five steps, you will have a healthy meal that is filled with fresh, flavoursome ingredients and packed with nutrients !
5. Omelette
Omelettes are notoriously quick to make and are perfect for students. A nutritious omelette is healthy, filling and will take approximately five minutes to cook. It’s hard to find a quicker dish, really. The beauty of an omelette is that once you have the eggs, you can fill it with a myriad of other veggies and proteins. Add a piece of grain toast and you cover all of the food groups.
6. Home-made pizza
When you’re craving something tasty, but don’t have a lot of time then home-made pizzas are a great idea. Once you’ve spent about ten minutes prepping your ingredients all you need to do is top your pizzas and pop them in the oven. Easy!
7. BLT
Bacon, lettuce and tomato: does it get any easier? We think not, which is why this one of our favourite time-saving meal options. If you want to up the nutrition value you can add things like avocado, grated carrot, beetroot, cheese and even an egg. And if you would prefer a vegetarian option why not switch out the bacon for haloumi!
8. Chilli Con Carne
If, when you think of chilli, you think of slow cooking on the stove all day, think again! This recipe from Delicious, claims to be ‘a chilli con carne when don’t have the time for slow cooking’.
9. Soup
Not only is soup easy, but it’s perfect for a time-poor student because once you’ve made a batch you will have many leftovers in the fridge (or freezer!), ready to go when you need them. A simple Google will have you overwhelmed with recipes to choose from, but to help get you started, here are 40 soup recipes to try
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10. Stir Fry
It’s hard to go wrong with a classic stir fry. Considering the key to a good stir fry is a quick cooking time, it’s the perfect dish when you’re struggling for time. This basic chicken and vegetable stir fry is a great place to start.
Not only are these recipes great for saving time, they will also help save you some money. Find out more ways to save money and the best money-saving apps here.
