Mixing and Matching

College is a lot different than home. You go from having your mother cook you dinner every night, to relying on campus food to survive. However, what do you do when you live off campus and don’t have the luxury of a dining hall within walking distance? This is where things get interesting.

Here’s a scenario. It’s the last week before spring break. You don’t want to spend money on groceries because you don’t want all that food to sit in your apartment while your not there. So what are you supposed to eat?

Creativity is an essential skill in situations like this.

An easy solution would be to just find something in your freezer that you can heat up. But that’s not what we do here. We go a step further, to creating something of a much higher quality.

It is a process of mixing and matching food that you have lying around in your apartment to somehow create an edible meal for yourself. There are a few concoctions that I find particularly easy to make and that don’t taste too bad.

In my apartment, there’s always pasta around. This provides a solid base for any improvised entrée.

Next, check your freezer. See what’s lying around in there. In my case, I found some chicken nuggets. Throw those in the oven while you cook the pasta. Once those are done, throw those nuggets on top of your pasta and check for any pasta sauce in the fridge.

Within a short 10 minutes, you’ve made yourself a plate of some homemade Chicken Parmesan over pasta. Delicious!

Another solution (though somewhat common) is to make nachos. Nachos may be one of the easiest things to make. As long as you have relatively fresh chips and an eclectic array of cheeses, you’ll do just fine.

The next part of the creation is open to improvisation. Guacamole, salsa, olives, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, deli meats, basically anything you can imagine can be thrown into the mix. That’s the main beauty of the nacho.

A final solution for the desperate hungry is a simple one. Check the fridge for whatever leftovers are there. Put everything you have in a bowl or plate, and mix it all together. Though it may not look appetizing at first, you’ll learn to enjoy it. Every bite acts as a surprise and keeps you on your toes as you eat your meal.

It can be easy to get discouraged when you’re forced to cook for yourself. Most of us have no idea what we’re doing in the kitchen. But ironically, that’s the beauty of it. Don’t be afraid to experiment. You never know what you might stumble upon.

Written by Adam Okimatsu