Going to university and haven’t cooked before? These student recipes are an easy way to start, they’re cheap and easy to follow. With most of these ingredients already in your cupboard, these are some fun and more delicious ways to use up spare ingredients.
Recipes & Images by Eve Gittus
Miso Soup with Rice
Serves 1 person
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 5-10 minutes
Ingredients:
1 tbsp miso paste
pak choi
mushrooms
dried red chili flakes
1 cup white rice
(or any vegetable of your choice)
Miso soup is traditionally made with tofu and seaweed but you can just about include anything you fancy.
With the remaining ingredients, you could make 2-3 more portions.
Method:
1. Measure 1 cup of rice, rinse thoroughly until water is clear. Cook with 1 1/2 water until fluffy.
2. Boil some water in a pot and add 1 tablespoon of miso paste. Stir and let it boil for a few minutes.
3. Chop up pak choi and mushrooms to your liking.
4. Add vegetables into the soup and cook until soft.
5. Add a shake of dried chili flakes towards the end, for taste.
6. When your rice is cooked, serve it in one bowl and in another, add your soup.
Tip: Once you’ve eaten all the vegetables, the best way to finish your soup is to add your remaining rice to the soup bowl.
Leek & Potato Soup
Serves 2-3 people
Prep: 5 minutes
Cooking: 20-25 minutes
Ingredients:
2 chicken stock cubes
1 onion
2 leeks
miniature potatoes
4 cloves of garlic
Method:
- Heat a pan with oil. Chop up garlic and onion into small pieces and throw into the pan. Stir for a couple of minutes.
2. Wash your leeks and cut into chunks.
3. Add leeks into the pan once your onions and garlic have caramelised.
4. Stir for a few minutes.
5. Cut up some potatoes into small bite-sized pieces.
6. Add some boiling water to a jug along with your 2 stock cubes. Stir until stock cubs have dissolved and add into your pan.
7. Throw your potatoes in and once your potatoes are soft, your soup is ready to eat.
For extra flavouring you could add a sprinkle of mixed herbs.
Instant Noodles
Serves 1 person
Prep: 2 minutes
Cooking: 5 minutes
Ingredients:
1 pack of chicken instant noodles
1 cup of frozen vegetables (or fresh vegetables of your choice)
Chili flakes
Method:
- Boil some water in a pan and add your seasoning packet along with some chilli flakes.
2. Throw a cup of frozen vegetables into the pan or chop up some fresh vegetables and add to your pan.
3. wait for about a minute then add your noodles.
4. Cook until noodles and vegetables are soft.
Pesto Pasta with Broccoli
Serves 1 person
Prep: 1 minute
Cooking: 10 minutes
Ingredients:
linguine pasta
pesto sauce
broccoli
salt & pepper
chili flakes
Method:
- Boil some water in a pan and add your pasta. Let it cook til soft.
2. Chop up some broccoli and throw into the pan when the pasta is halfway cooked.
3. Once pasta and broccoli is soft, drain the water and place back onto stove and add some chopped or minced garlic along with a few teaspoons of your pesto sauce.
4. Stir until pasta and broccoli is covered in sauce and add salt and pepper if need be.
Spaghetti Meatballs
Serves 2 people
Prep: 5 minutes
Cooking: 20-30 minutes
Ingredients:
6 beef meatballs
1 onion
garlic
white button mushrooms
1 tin of tomatoes
spaghetti pasta
mixed herbs
chili flakes
Method:
- Boil some water in a pan and cook your pasta til soft.
2. Heat up some oil in a pan
3. Add your meatballs into the pan and cook for a few minutes. Until the outside of the meatballs turn brown.
4. Open your can on tomatoes and add to your meatballs.
5. Once your pasta is cooked, drain the water and plate it out.
6. Cook your sauce for about 10-15, making sure the meatballs are cooked through.
7. Add mixed herbs and chili flakes for taste.
Tomato & Mushroom Omelette
Serves 1 person
Prep: 5 minutes
Cooking: 5 minutes
Ingredients:
white button mushrooms
cherry tomatoes
2 eggs
romaine lettuce
spring onions
sriracha sauce (any hot sauce, optional)
Method:
- Whisk 2 eggs in a bowl and leave to the side.
2. Heat up a frying pan with oil, chop up tomatoes and mushrooms into small chunks and toss into the pan. Stir for a few minutes.
3. Once vegetables are soft, take them out the pan and leave to the side.
4. Add more oil in the pan and pour in your whisked eggs. Cover the pan with the eggs and on low heat let it cook for a few minutes.
5. Cut off the ends of some romaine lettuce and lay them out on a plate.
6. Throw the vegetables onto the eggs and spread evenly.
7. Fold your omelette in half and cut in half.
8. Serve your omelette on top of your romaine lettuce.
9. For some spice, add your favourite hot sauce and enjoy.
This is one easy way to cook yourself a healthy lunch using spare vegetables in your fridge.
Avocado & Tomato on Flatbread
Serves 1 person
Prep: 5 minutes
Cooking: 3-4 minutes
Ingredients:
1 ripe avocado
cherry tomatoes
2 white flatbreads
Method:
- Cut your cherry tomatoes into halves and fry them for a few minutes
2. While tomatoes are cooking, cut your avocado in half and slice them into small pieces and lay them onto one side of your sandwich
3. Add your tomatoes on top of your avocados. Add salt and pepper or any sauce of your choice.
Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Ham
Serves 1 person
Prep: 1 minute
Cooking: 4 minutes
Ingredients:
cooked ham
cheese of your choice
flatbread
butter
Method:
- Add two slices of ham to one slice of bread
2. Cut some slices of your cheese and place them on top of your ham
3. Add some butter to a frying pan and cook each side of your sandwich for a few minutes on each side (or until the cheese has melted)
Garlic Stir Fried Spinach with Rice
Serves 1-2 people
Prep: 5 minutes
Cooking: 10 minutes
Ingredients:
baby spinach
garlic
soy sauce
chilli flakes
white rice
Method:
1. Measure 1-2 (1 cup per person) cups of white rice, wash and let it cook.
2. Chop up your garlic into small pieces. (How ever many you want)
3. Heat up your pan with some oil, after washing your spinach, add all your spinach to the pan and stir.
4. Add your garlic and soy sauce and let it cook for a few minutes.
5. Once your rice is cooked, place it on a plate and add your spinach ontop.
This is a healthy and filling lunch. Other vegetables that go well with spinach are bak choi, beansprouts, green beans & mushrooms.
Tuna & Cream Cheese Dip
Serves 1-2 people
Prep: 2 minutes
Cooking: 0 minutes
Ingredients:
cream cheese
1 tin of tuna
salt & pepper
chilli flakes
crackers or oatcakes
Method:
1. Add half a tub of cream cheese to a bowl.
2. Train your tuna chunks and combine with the cheese.
3. Mix until everything is combined.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.
You can eat this as a dip with your choice of crackers or this works perfectly for sandwich fillings. Add some chilli flakes or ginger for a kick.
With the remaining half of your cream cheese, you can make another serving.
Pesto Eggs on Toast
Serves 1 person
Prep: 1 minutes
Cooking: 4 minutes
Ingredients:
Pesto sauce
2 eggs
bread
Method:
1. Add a tablespoon of pesto sauce to a frying pan and spread around the whole pan.
2. One it starts to heat up, crack in two eggs, carefully.
3. Cook for a couple of minutes and add a lid to finish off cooking.
4. Toast your choice of bread, add butter if you like.
5. Once your eggs are cooked to your desire, serve them on your toast.
Creamy Tomato & Spinach Pasta
Serves 2 people
Prep: 4 minutes
Cooking: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
cream cheese
cherry tomatoes
spinach
garlic
penne pasta
Method:
1. Boil some water with salt and cook your pasta.
2. Heat up another pan and add oil.
3. Chop up your garlic and add to the pan, let it cook for a minutes while you cut up your tomatoes.
4. Once you’ve washed your spinach and tomatoes, add to your garlic.
5. Stir until spinach is cooked and tomatoes have soften.
6. Add half a tub of cream cheese and a spoon full of some of your pasta water. Mix until you get a creamy sauce.
7. Drain your pasta and set a side.
8. Once your sauce is ready, add your pasta and mix until everything is combined.