Back to school? Don't settle for subpar cafeteria food. Here's how to be a master dorm chef, even if you don't have any heat or refrigeration. Oh wait, you do? Then check out our guides for how to cook when you have a fridge and a microwave, or when you have a proper kitchen.
So many delicious meals require little more than a can opener, cutting board, and glug of olive oil. And yes, assembling counts as cooking: Think of salads, cheese plates, and hummus platters. No kitchen? No problem. Here's how to still kill it at cooking in college.
Shopping
Shop only for shelf-stable foods that you love to eat. These are more numerous than you’d think: Even without a kitchen, you can stock bread, nut butters, jelly, oatmeal, dried fruit, almonds, apples, pears, avocados, cherry tomatoes, olive oil, and salt. Citrus fruits hang on for several days at room temperature. Look for packaged goods that are neither too pricy nor too unhealthful, like wholegrain crackers or granola.
Even foods that don’t need refrigeration won’t last forever, though. Don’t be tempted to stock up on ingredients to last more than two weeks. Rather, shop as you need or crave. “Buy” smaller quantities at the dining hall or supermarket bulk bin.
Storage
Find a large box or basket, maybe with a lid, and call it your kitchen cabinet. Keep all your food and equipment there so bread never goes moldy, forgotten between two textbooks, and crumbs don’t collect between your dresser and your bed. Keep most of your equipment in here too.
Equipment
A collection of sealable baggies, plastic wrap, and binder clips will help to keep packages closed, and make food last longer. For prepping and eating, get two sets of silverware, two plates, a roll of paper towels, a cutting board, a can opener, and a small, sharp knife. For cleanup, a plastic tub, a sponge, and soap should do. If you want to cook with heat (and your dorm allows it), consider getting a rice cooker, electric pressure cooker, toaster oven, or electric water kettle.
Gazpacho. No stove needed. Photo: Gentl & Hyers
Meals
Your mantra: Assemble, don’t cook. It’s as if you’re on a permanent camping trip without so much as a camp stove. Classic no-cook meals start at sandwiches (canned tuna is shelf-stable before opening, and you can find hummus and cheese in one-time-use packets), progress through bean salads (canned beans, olive oil, and lemon, plus an herb or spice) and top out at gazpacho (made with tomato juice, chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, and onions) or overnight oats (combine water and oatmeal the night before; in the morning, bulk up your bowl with nut butters, dried fruit, and honey).
You’ll have better luck “cooking” in the dining hall. Make “vodka” sauce for pasta by doctoring the cafeteria’s marinara with the coffee bar's half-and-half. Microwave to thicken, then add pasta, Parmesan, salt, and pepper. Slice up an apple, mix the tea station’s honey with the sandwich station’s mustard, grab slices of cheddar, then pile them on bread for one of the greatest sandwiches of all time—try toasting it, too, if your dining hall has a panini maker. Rather than seeing your dining hall as a restaurant, treat your meal plan as a lifetime supply of ingredients, and you’ll soon develop your own set of creative recipes.
Daytime Snacks
While it’s easy to rely on prepackaged cookies, chips, and energy bars, snacks are the dorm cook’s time to shine, since you take most meals in the dining hall. Dip dried apricots in almond butter and sprinkle with crushed chocolate chips or M&Ms for a sweet snack. Season half a pitted avocado with lemon juice and salt for a healthy but filling afternoon banquet, best shared with a friend who’ll eat the other half. Combine pretzels, cheese crackers, peanuts, cereal, and chips for your own snack mix. Top individual nori slices with Sriracha. Mash up oats, honey, peanut butter, chocolate chips, and salt until you have a cookie-dough-like consistency you can roll into energy balls. If you don’t have enough ingredients on hand, improvise with the collection from your nearest vending machine.
