Hello folks! Welcome to the first of Cooking on a Budget Series! This first recipe is based on the fried rice I made frequently during college. Since then, I’ve expanded on my techniques, however you have to start somewhere. There were times during and after graduating college that I lived on an extremely tight budget. Knowing how to cook helps save you money, and keep you relatively healthy. Skip buying premade packaged meals when you can learn some simple tricks. Cooking doesn’t have to take a long time or be difficult.
This first video assumes you already have some seasonings in our kitchen. If you don’t have soy sauce, you can use salt. Vinegar, if you don’t have lemon juice, and of course you can replace granulated/powdered garlic for the fresh stuff! In fact there were times I only had salt and pepper to add to my fried rice. My second year of college really challenged me to get some cooking skills. No more dorm living and meal plan card. I lived in an on campus efficiency apartment that was probably less than 200 square feet including the mini kitchen. That’s where I really started my journey into cooking.
There were times I remember only having the budget for $7.00 a week for groceries. I had to spend those dollars wisely. Rice, eggs, and frozen vegetables became a staple, along with beans, spaghetti, tomato sauce, frozen chicken, peanut butter, and bread. Trips to Save A Lot, and Meijer on the bus line helped sustain me. Carrying a backpack or reusable bag before they became fashionable, because it had to be tough enough to carry on a walk. Campus food was expensive, so cooking was a needed skill.
Whether you’re in college, hitting hard times, saving for a trip, or whatever life reasons you have for sticking to a budget.. It’s important to know how to cook so you can maintain your health. Some of the things I cooked back then were not the most healthy, but it was better than just eating plan ramen, or crackers. Eating doesn’t have to be boring either if you’re on a budget. Hopefully these videos will inspire you to explore your own takes on these recipes!