Student meals? Low-Calorie, Healthy, and most importantly CHEAP!

Hey! I was wondering if you guys wanted to share any of your Student recipes? You know, healthy, filling and cheap?

Any tips on how to stay healthy and well fed on under 6,000.00 a year?

It's hard not to fall into the pasta/Mr. Noodles/Kraft Dinner trap. In the winter, I live off of hearty homemade soups and in the summer off of salad, cheap fruit, and bulk chicken breasts.  (Among other things, of course!)

But right now I'm really into this:

Potatoes 'N Tomatoes

1 Meduim sized potato (161 cal)

1 cup Canned Tomatoes, no salt added. (50 cal)

Punch a couple of holes in the potato with a fork, and nuke it in the microwave for about five minutes.

Cut the potato up into 1inch cubes and mix it in a microwavable bowl with the tomatoes.

Microwave for 1-2 minutes longer, stir and enjoy!

211 calories, Grade A meal, fills me up like nothing else. A healthy hot delicious meal in 7 min! Reminds me of a chilli baked potato, without the calories.

I make this when I have very little time, and when I'm really hungry for something filling. It's good for fast lunches and is easy on the bank account for the student types, like me.

Thanks for that!!! I'm a student as well and I'm definitely going to try that out! I don't have many suggestions unfortunately. Cereal seems to do the trick for me :P
I make grilled cheese with Dempster's bodywise bread + Kraft low-fat cheese. I toast the bread then put it in the microwave with the cheese so I don't have to use butter. hehe. Wish I could offer more suggestions. My roommate makes pancakes in our sandwich maker and they're awesome! lol :)

bean burgers are what i live on. 1/2 cup of beans (i use canned kidney beans or pinto beans, but any will due), 1 tbsp of bread crumbs, 1 tbsp of ketchup and 1/2 tbsp of mustard. mush up the beans, then add the other ingredients. form into a "patty" and cook in frying pan until golden brown. throw on a bun and you are good to go!

This is the basic recipe, add spices, chopped onions, anything! have fun with it!

I'm a student as well and I find it really hard to eat like I want to within my budget...What's most expensive here is fruit and vegetables(I'm in France). And that's what I live on!

One thing I use a lot is tuna. It's quite cheap, and you can use it for lots of  stuff-salads, sandwiches, even with pasta!Last year, my first year, I used to it just pasta...Cause I was just not organised enough to have meat/proteins home. I thought I could live with just carbs...guess what, I put on 5 kilos! And I was wondering why caues I wasnt eating a lot...After I started logging what I eat, I realised I have lots of trouble getting enough protein into my diet.

Another food I use a lot is broccoli! With everything-pasta, meat, salads. It has protein and it's easy to prepare, you just boil it for 15 minutes.

Im in a similar situation
I have to buy meals from the "dorm cafeteria" All of them. But I cant eat half of it (intolerant) and the other half is disgusting or limp lettuce. So I'm pretty darn scummy with money (having to buy TWO sets of meals often. Lucky our meals at the cafeteria are cheap)
As students, we should be focussing more on healthy, than SUPER low cal meals.
I have a blog in which I cook only in a micorwave and toaster/sandwhich press BUT I often get pre-cooked meat (you can do it too - I get it now and then and freeze it up)
I'm a BIG foodie. I'm trying to gain acutally, but am injured, so not so active. My breakfasts on there are the best, and usually 300 cal or under, and mostly healthy, if not, its still low fat (I cant eat much fat)

Lunches cahnge, but start from around 200 cal (I bulk mine up with drinks) and dinner, if its over 400 cal I give tips on how to lower it (I bulk up on rice.)

So have a look. You might like it, you might not. I'm an aussie, so chances are you can make it nicer/lower cal/healthier. Comment if you like it or not on there.

I came across this book: http://www.deepdiscount.com/viewproduct.htm?p roductId=8260988&categoryId=69590 and I'm thinking of purchasing it. Has anyone ever used it?

Maybe you can glean some tips from this article

Healthy Food on the Cheap

This can be done in a single serving, microwaveable bowl

Chicken Mexicana

Divide the recipe in to a single serving.  Heat the tomatoes and corn in a covered bowl.  Put in the chicken and microwave on 3/4 power until the chicken is done.  Be careful not to over cook the chicken or it will be dry and tough.  You can also sustitute tofu or beans in this for an even cheaper version.

Thanks clairelaine!!

A little off topic, but a diet clinic told my coworker that bananas aren't that good for you! I hated to hear this because I love adding bananas to EVERYTHING - pancakes, sandwiches, yogurt..etc. Any thoughts?

ooo!  i love this thread!   you know what i hate?  how everything fresh like fruits and veggies are sold in ginormous packages.  i'm one person...i can't eat eight bananas before they go bad...or a few pounds of grapes!

anyway, my latest obsession...

a can of tuna, drained, plus a cut up potato that's been nuked.  stick it in the pan with no oil and add some cayenne flakes and maybe some curry powder, or any other spice...on the cheap, i've done it with ramen noodle mushroom seasoning X)  (i never use the whole pkg, and i'm too cheap to throw it away)  makes a great sandwich filling!  no mayo, because its soft enough without it!

OK--I'm not a student now but I did go to college and grad school for 10 years to become a college professor and I am still up to my eyeballs in student loans/debt.  Sooo, here are a few thoughts . . . I hope they help!  You're all doing an amazing job, given the challenge that school eating presents!  Keep it up! :D

wackywoman--you may want to try getting a to-go box of your favorite veggies and fruits off the local supermarket salad bar.  It is usually $2.99-3.99 a pound, and if you don't put dressing on things until you get home, you can pack a lot of stuff in there.  :)

rosevelt--the potato/tomato thing sounds good.  You could also add some beans for cheap but healthy protein and fiber.  The soup and bulk chicken breasts sound great, too!

If you have a fridge and something to cook with, maybe get some eggs and milk and a thing of protein shake mix (you can get them for $6-8 at Wal-Mart or the grocery, and they typically have 20 servings), and whatever fruit is on sale.  For breakfasts, you can make smoothies or shakes and add fruit or peanut butter if you have any.  And the eggs you can scramble or hard boil to eat as snacks or in egg salad for lunch. 

I didn't eat on campus much but had a tiny dorm fridge and a hot pot and typically had milk, eggs, tuna, beans, cereal/instant oatmeal, protein shake mix, salsa, salad dressing (if you use ff ranch, it can double as "mayo" in tuna or egg salad), apples, and carrots.  Sometimes, I'd also have a loaf of wheat bread and some canned veggies.  Once or twice a week, I'd bring home a to-go box of veggies and chicken sometimes from the salad bar at school or the supermarket.  I avoided buying anything out of the vending machine and tried to use my meal card (I had the one meal on campus a day plan in grad school) for yogurts, fruit salads, cooked veggies and meat, or baked potatoes.  If you live in the dorm, buy some with a friend or two and split them up.  That's pretty economical, and you can microwave them. 

Good luck!  Keep posting those inexpensive and easy to make ideas, too, OK?  They're great! :)

My brother and I both did the same thing when we were starving students.  We always had onions in the apartment, and put diced sauteed onions in everything savory we cooked.  Even the blandest food can benefit from onions, and they are pretty cheap and keep a long time.  If you have eggs, sauteed onion helps pep them up (and means they taste great without cheese!).  Of course, if you only have a microwave, then it's a little harder, but to me, onions make things taste more "gourmet."

Baked potatoes are a great idea.  If you have a microwave, a potato, and just about anything for a topping (salsa, beans, salt & pepper makes a yummy Southwestern tater), you can get a filling meal for not much $.

If you can, get ingredients that function in many different ways.  You can stretch your dollar further and help prevent things from going bad if you use them up quickly.  Certain yogurts (like Greek yogurt) can be used like sour cream (on potatoes, natch) and also can have honey and fruit added for breakfast.  I like the idea of the fat free ranch dressing which can be used in place of mayo in certain situations...

I had this oatmeal recipe this morning.

Cinnamon Rasin Oatmeal

1/2 cup dry quick oats

Small handful of rasins

1 tsp. brown sugar

1tsp. cinnamon

Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl. Pour boiling water over everything. Stir and let sit for a couple of minutes, Enjoy!

This one can be made in a dorm room with just a kettle. It's about 200 cal, low in sodium, is super filling and healthy.

You can get all of the ingredients at your local bulk foods store. For about 5 bucks you can get enough oats to last awhile!

It's great for those super cold days in the winter, when you have 9am class. Also great for hangovers.

Just to make sure you know that bananas are incredibly GOOD for you, here's nutritional information

Bananas

Whoever said they aren't good for you, perhaps meant that they are higher in calories than some other fruits.  That's because they are more dense and less juicy.  They are well worth the calories - a health bonanza bargain in fact.

No cooking needed for this one!  It keeps for at least 5 days in the refrigerator, and gets better as time goes on.  It's also a complete meal in one.  If you add some shredded, low fat cheese and a slice of whole grain bread, or some brown rice, it has all the food groups in one dish.

Calico Bean Salad

Indeed! Banana not good for you! PFFT!
I'm still trying healthy recipies in the dorm, but I havent posted in a while. Just a few brekkies and snacks
My best tips are fridge and freezer. That way you can buy/cook in bulk

Protein shake mix and eggs are two things I can't live without as a student!!!  I live in a basement suite so I have a fridge and stove which gives me a lot more options, but I have a lot of food allergies and intolerances so I still have difficulty eating properly.

I would recommend a food dehydrator!!!  You can make huge batches of meals, fruits, veggies, soups, all dried up they keep for a long time.  I especially love to bring dehydrated soups or spaghetti with me to school.  I keep an electric tea kettle in my locker (for both tea and rehydrating) and pour enough to rehydrate into a ziploc freezer bag (NOT sandwich ziplocs!) and it's a yummy, healthy, homecooked meal.  I would probably starve at school without the dehydrated stuff, or eat only clif bars all day long LOL. 

Protein shake stuff can be blended with just about anything to make a healthy, fast, on the go meal.  I usually do mine with almond milk, a small banana, and frozen berries, but really anything will work.  Sometimes if I'm really poor I just mix with water!!!  They're definitely a life saver though!

This time of year, zucchini is very common, so it is fairly cheap.  It is delicious grilled.  You can chop it up pretty thin and fry it with onions.  Or use it instead of spaghetti noodles and cover it with sauce after you fry it a little.  I experiment with it alot.   It is very low in calories and very filling to me.  It is also good when chopped and fried with just a bit of sugar and then put fat free cottage cheese on top.  Very healthy!

Steel cut oats...make them in a rice cooker, you can make a week's worth at once.  Check out thrift stores for small rice cookers that people have gotten rid of for a fancier model or a bigger model.

Add milk and frozen berries.

Here are some of my college days menu:

I used to heat and eat frozen spinach, and add butter substitute and lemon. Cheap , fillling and good for you

Miso broth made from scratch (Buy the paste in the asian section of supermarket) Add cut up mushrooms, green onion, and tofu if you have it. (I also ate it plain, or with pasta thrown in) I would boil the water in an electric kettle

Vegetarian chili : can beans, can tomatoes, can corn, hot sauce or salsa

Use a blender to make a smoothie from skim milk, lowfat sugar free yogurt and fruit. (save and freeze leftover fruit to add- be sure to peel bananas before freezing in ziplock baggies) I have used sugar-free jelly in the past and it was pretty good.

Fiber rich cereal and oatmeal are always winners

Hope this helps!

I'm going into my second  year in college, and was very concerned about NOT gaining the "Freshman 15" ... and I didn't! Instead of buying the gross meals, I would buy food from the campus store with my meal card.

A great breakfast or snack is a fruit smoothie. I have a small "Magic Bullet" blender that I had in my dorm, and just threw frozen fruit, OJ concentrate, some water, and some protein powder in and blended until smooth. Splenda helps if the taste is too tart for you.

Another fairly healthy and not-so-heard-of snack is taking turkey breast or ham slices and spreading a SMALL amount of fat-free cream cheese on it, rolling it up, and ta-da!