School’s back, and for those first starting their college career stocking a pantry by yourself can be daunting. In order to curb the tide of frozen pizzas and instant ramen, here are a few tips to make your first solo grocery experience a little easier on you and your wallet.
CGF-Common Grocery Fund
Have a talk with your roommates, figure out which foods you have in common, and share. This helps to save space and money and keeps perishables from spoiling. You can all throw in a twenty and have someone run to the store or just rotate and take turns buying. This works well for flour, milk, eggs, coffee, bread, spices, trash bags, etc.
Don’t be afraid of store brands
We’re programmed by advertising to stay loyal to our brands, but the store brands are often supplied by the same feeder companies and just have different labels (flour, salt, milk, bread, painkillers, etc.). Granted everybody has at least one brand name item that they’re picky about, but you’d be surprised how close a lot of store brands are to their big name counterparts.
Realize who (and how many) you’re cooking for
Even if you cooked for your family in high school it’s a lot different cooking for a single person. It can be easy to over estimate and make too much, and this leads to food being wasted. Look at the serving size on the package for help.
Keep a budget
Set aside ahead of time how much you’re planning to spend on food, especially when eating out. It’s very easy to splurge at restaurants so be careful.
Get your perks on
Coupons, store membership cards, daily specials. Learn them, live them, love them.
In general these are some pantry staples I keep around for an economically friendly, culinary savvy cupboard.
Protein: Often the most expensive part of the meal…
Chicken Thighs
I know, I know. We live in the age of the boneless skinless chicken breast, but hear me out. If you get them skinless and trim the extra fat chicken thighs aren’t bad. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics cites that they’re about thirty calories more per serving but in the big scheme of things that’s not horrible. Because of the high demand for chicken breasts, chicken thighs are considerably cheaper. I also find them to have a much richer flavor.
Eggs
Fun Fact: eggs are the standard that all other nutritional proteins are held up to because of their superior balance of amino acids.
To say eggs are versatile would be an understatement. They’re great for every meal of the day. Scramble them for breakfast or hard boil them for lunch. You can even liven up your dinner leftovers by popping a fried egg on top (or a poached egg if you’re feeling slightly pretentious).
Legumes
Beans, peas, lentils, peanuts (Not really a nut, the more you know.). These are high in fiber and healthy fats as well as protein. Do yourself a favor, find bean dish you enjoy and learn how to make it. They’re usually super simple (hello there crock pot), cheap as dirt, and make easy freezable leftovers for busy nights. I have a lentil recipe (listed below) that I make at least once a week.
Plain Greek Yogurt
Make breakfast parfaits! Marinate chicken! Mix with self-raising flour and make pizza dough! Substitute for sour cream! It’s chock full of protein and great for a grab and go breakfast.
Vegetables: These aren’t too pricy to begin with but there are still a few ground rules I like to follow.
Frozen over canned
The only vegetables I really buy canned are tomatoes. Nutritionally speaking frozen vegetables are far more intact and they tend to look brighter and be fuller in flavor.
Shop in season
We live in a time of perpetual seasons. Believe it or not, you’re not supposed to be able to purchase strawberries year round. Globalization and improved transportation means that we have access to the same produce menu constantly. However, if you shop for the foods that are in season, they’re going to be a lot cheaper because they’re naturally in surplus. They also taste better because they’re not forced to mature on the moving truck.
And here’s the recipe as promised!
Easy Lentil-Rice Salad
This is even simpler than most bean dishes because you don’t have to soak the lentils before cooking.
Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, sliced into half moons
1 cup lentils
1 ½ cups rice
For the Dressing:
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp seasoned rice wine vinegar
1 tsp of honey
Juice of ½ a Lime
2 cloves of garlic, crushed or minced finely
Directions:
Sautee onion in olive oil for 5 minutes or until softened. Add lentils and 1 ½ cups of water and cover. Cook on medium for 45 minutes or until the lentils are tender, stirring occasionally and adding more water as needed. You don’t want this to be soupy, you just want the lentils to have enough water to cook through. Don’t add any salt during this time or the lentils will become tough.
Meanwhile cook the rice according to package directions and mix the dressing ingredients together in a large bowl.
Add the hot lentils and rice to the dressing and mix well. This will help them absorb the flavors better. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
For a Moroccan flair:
Add a couple pinches of cinnamon and a bay leaf to the onions while cooking and replace the cilantro with 2-3 tbsp of chopped fresh mint.
This is good warm or cold, top with a fried egg if you’re feeling extra fancy.