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Low Budget Cooking: Living on $6 a Day

July 10, 2017 by Kyle Chen 1 Comment

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College Cooking Crash Course: Cooking on a Low Budget Cooking - cooking on a low budget of $6/day. Learn how to make huevos rancheros, quesadillas and burrito bowls
Low Budget Cooking - college student cooking on $6/day

College Cooking Crash Course: Cooking on a Low Budget Cooking - cooking on a low budget of $6/day. Learn how to make huevos rancheros, quesadillas and burrito bowls

This is part 3 in a new series: College Cooking Crash Course. This series is written by Kyle, a student at Princeton University, and is designed for college students looking to learn the basics of making healthy, cost-effective, and delicious meals. Today, Kyle will be discussing how to cook and eat healthy on a low budget, and showing you how to make Huevos Rancheros, Chicken Quesadillas, and Burrito Bowls.

College Cooking Crash Course. Learn how to cook healthy on a low budget, making huevos rancheros, quesadillas and burrito bowls repurposing ingredients.

Like most college students, I’m practically broke. So a major reason why I decided to learn to cook for myself is that it would save me a ton of money. During my freshman and sophomore years at Princeton, it costs me $6,630 a year to eat in the dining hall. In my junior year, I joined an eating club and that price spiked up to $8,600 a year. That’s definitely not cheap! I figure that cooking for myself next year could save me thousands of dollars. This may be a bit ambitious, but if I am able to spend about $40 a week on groceries next year, my total cost for food during the school year would be $840 — that’s $7,760 less than the eating club plan, and $5,790 less than the dining hall plan!

Cooking for myself regularly will also save me tons of money even after I graduate from college. My current post-grad plans are either to get a job in Christian ministry or attend seminary in order to prepare for a ministry career. Either way, I’m passionate about getting into ministry as a long-term career. However, a quick Google search reveals that ministry is hardly a lucrative career. The average annual salary of a pastor in America is approximately $30,000. Take away about $28,000 for housing, utilities, transportation, charity, etc., and that would leave me with about $2,000 a year for food.

For that reason I’m interested in learning how to cook on a low budget, and I mean, low budget! If you crunch the numbers, $2,000 a year for food breaks down to about $40 a week, or a little less than $6 a day (that’s $2 per meal!). By the end of the summer, I hope to create a monthly meal plan that works within this low budget. But for now, here’s a quick peek into what it might look like to live on $6 a day.

Today, I made breakfast, lunch, and dinner using affordable, healthy, and simple ingredients. Most importantly, I repurposed some of the ingredients I used to make breakfast and lunch for dinner. Repurposing foods is an excellent way to use food efficiently and save money.

For breakfast, I made Huevos Rancheros. Not only is it super easy to make, but it’s also a great dish for reusing ingredients, such as leftover rice, beans, etc.

College Cooking Crash Course. Learn how to cook healthy on a low budget, making huevos rancheros, quesadillas and burrito bowls repurposing ingredients.

For lunch, I made a really simple Chicken Quesadilla, accompanied with sides of salsa and guacamole. Quesadillas are also perfect for reusing leftover ingredients, such as extra meats and vegetables you might have stored in your fridge from previous meals. Plus, I prefer to make quesadillas rather than sandwiches because tortillas are much cheaper than sandwich bread. You can buy 24 corn tortillas for $2! A loaf of bread would set you back at least twice as much.

College Cooking Crash Course. Learn how to cook healthy on a low budget, making huevos rancheros, quesadillas and burrito bowls repurposing ingredients.

Lastly for dinner, I made a Burrito Bowl, using the beans, salsa and guacamole from that morning’s Huevos Rancheros, and the leftover chicken from lunch.

College Cooking Crash Course. Learn how to cook healthy on a low budget, making huevos rancheros, quesadillas and burrito bowls repurposing ingredients.

All in all, these three meals cost me just about $12 to make – and since each meal was more than enough for 2+ people, the total cost for one person would be under $6. Not bad! Check out the recipes below and let me know if you have any other ideas for making super tasty meals on a low budget.

Read my other College Cooking Crash Course posts:

College Cooking Crash Course #1: How To Make An Omelet

College Cooking Crash Course #2: Shabbat Dinner: Hummus, Pita Bread and Schug

5 from 1 vote
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Huevos Rancheros

A classic Mexican breakfast that is also super easy to make. Works great with leftovers.

Course Breakfast
Cuisine Mexican
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 2 people
Calories 215 kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 corn tortillas
  • 1/4 cup refried beans warmed
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 cup cheese shredded
  • 1/2 cup fresh salsa
  • olive oil
  • salt
  • pepper

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heat oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add tortillas one at a time to skillet and fry until slightly browned, but not crisp. Drain on paper towels.

  2. Spread a spoonful of beans in the center of each tortilla and set aside.

  3. Add oil to a skillet over medium heat. Add eggs and fry until a little less done than you like them. Season with salt and pepper. Place an egg in the center of each tortilla. Top with cheese.

  4. Place tortillas on a baking dish and bake until cheese is melted, approx. 4-5 minutes.

  5. Top with salsa, sliced avocado, and a bit of lime juice, and serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

Adapted from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything.

Nutrition Facts
Huevos Rancheros
Amount Per Serving
Calories 215
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
5 from 1 vote
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Chicken Quesadillas

Really simple quesadillas that always hit the spot!

Course Main Course
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 2 people
Calories 355 kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 flour tortillas
  • 2 grilled chicken breasts chopped
  • 1/2 cup cheese shredded
  • 1/4 cup fresh salsa
  • 1/4 cup fresh guacamole

Instructions

  1. Grill chicken using your favorite rub and chop into bite-sized pieces.

  2. Place tortilla in a non-stick skillet. Layer one half with cheese, chicken, and then more cheese.

  3. Fold tortilla over and cook over medium heat until golden brown. Flip and repeat with other side. 

  4. Cut quesadilla into wedges and serve with salsa and guacamole.

Recipe Notes

Feel free to add your own meats + vegetables (whatever you have in the fridge!)

Nutrition Facts
Chicken Quesadillas
Amount Per Serving
Calories 355
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
5 from 1 vote
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Burrito Bowl

An easy-to-assemble, hearty dinner. One of my favorites.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 2 people
Calories 1022 kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 cups rice
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 15.5 oz can black beans canned
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tbsp Salsa Lizano
  • 2 grilled chicken breasts sliced
  • olive oil
  • fresh salsa
  • fresh guacamole

Instructions

  1. Prepare rice in rice cooker. 

  2. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and onion and sautée until tender, approx. 7-8 min. 

  3. Add beans, cumin, and Salsa Lizano to saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

  4. Grill chicken using your favorite rub and cut into slices.

  5. Add rice, beans, and chicken to a bowl. Top with salsa and guacamole, and serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

Mix it up by using other meats or adding in your favorite toppings!

Nutrition Facts
Burrito Bowl
Amount Per Serving
Calories 1022
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Filed Under: Breakfast, College Cooking, College Meals, Dinner, Healthy Living, lunch, main courses, Recipes Tagged With: college cooking, college cooking crash course, cost-effective, low-budget

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Comments

  1. Julie Saldana says

    December 18, 2018 at 12:10 pm

    Unfortunately for me, when I was hungry and read your post right away, I could not hold my cravings for longer. Spending a lot of money does not mean having good food or enough nutrients. I value you extremely smart when you can create healthy food and save money. I honestly appreciate this dish, especially with avocado, a favorite fruit of mine

    Reply

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