In college, you're living on your own learning how to do real adult things. One thing that I've learned to do in college is cook. Students have hectic schedules and we try to balance everything the best we can. Usually making healthy choices is not one of our top concerns. We are reminded of the crippling debt we're soon to have, deadlines for assignments, and trying to have a normal social life.
Meal prepping, or cooking in advance, can take some stress away during your crazy week day schedule. When most people hear the words "meal prep" they think really healthy foods that can tend to be expensive and for the most part, meal prepping is that, but who says you can't mix it up and add in foods you enjoy. I once meal prepped mac n cheese and it was one of the best decisions I made. I added a vegetable and a fruit to my serving of mac n cheese and it was perfect.
College students don't have a lot of time or money to spend on expensive produce, so here are some alternative tricks I use to get me through the week.
1. Find the right store
Some grocery stores can be overly priced, when you can get the same products at a store like Walmart. With a low budget like mine, price is a big factor when shopping. At Walmart it is usually half the price of what I would spend at a brand name grocery store. They even have the option to order online and pick up your groceries in store to make it even more convenient for us busy students.
2. Choose a day to cook
The whole point of meal prepping is so you don't have to cook every day. Choose a day that works best for your schedule. I usually meal prep on a Saturday or Sunday that way I can just grab and go during the week.
3. Buy in bulk
Vegetable and meat in bulk can save you a ton of money. Fresh produce can rot easily if not cooked in a certain time frame. With frozen vegetables you can cook what you want and save the rest for later. The same goes with meat, it can easily be stored in the freezer for weeks before using.
4. Balance
When meal prepping you should always have a protein source, a vegetable, and a grain. My mac n cheese example as previously mentioned is not the healthiest, but I did balance it out with a vegetable and fruit. Having a balance of these things is important to keep you energized and full throughout the day. Brown rice is a cheap and healthy grain that pairs with most things and you can also buy this in bulk.
5. Containers
Make sure you have enough containers to put your food in and last you throughout the week. Meal prepping can also help with portion control. When you cook on your set day, you can portion out whatever meal you cooked across the containers and evenly distribute the food.
