by Damali Abrokwah

Created on: April 05, 2007   Last Updated: May 04, 2012

I know a thing or two about cooking inexpensively on a student budget given that I spent about $10,000 a year in tuition for the four years I was in University. That left me on a tight budget. However, I still ate well-balanced, tasty meals. Here are a few tips that worked for me.

Tip #1: Plan, plan, plan. Learn the fine art of TIME MANAGEMENT - it will save you a lot of money. What has time management got to do with the price of eggs you ask? A lot, as it turns out. I found that if I used my time well during the week working on assignments, I could dedicate a couple of hours on a Sunday afternoon cooking up a few dishes for the week. Knowing that this was my plan enabled me to create an informed shopping list. Another advantage to planning this way meant that I didn't have to prepare dinners during the week as these were made ahead and frozen.

Tip #2: Prepare casseroles or one-dish meals. Most casseroles and one-dish dinners are great for bottom of the pantry' situations; that is, when you have the most basic ingredients on hand but can still make a killer tasting dish that can last you two days. One of my favourite casseroles in University was a dish called Carmen's Caper layer browned and spiced ground beef, spaghetti, a can of diced tomatoes, a can of cream of mushroom soup and shredded mozzarella cheese (in that order from bottom to top) and bake covered for 45 minutes to an hour. Casseroles are also great to pack for lunch so you don't have to buy food on campus. If you don't have a casserole cookbook, invest a half hour every two weeks to Google casserole recipes and shop accordingly.

Tip #3: Buy in bulk and share the cost. This tip is handy especially if you have housemates, but can also be applied to a single living situation. There are certain items I always bought in bulk, especially when they were on sale. I shared the cost with my housemates and saved big. Items such as flour, sugar, oil and salt can easily be purchased at places like Costco (Price Club) in huge quantities and will stretch your dollar.

There you have it my three best tips on cooking inexpensively on a student budget. Incidentally, I've applied the same tips with a few modifications since graduating from University and they've worked great.

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