Many students will be living away from home for the first time, and you might never have cooked for yourself or done your own shopping before. There is no shame in this and, as with everything about university, it’s a learning curve! We’ve put together a list of cupboard essentials you need to grab for your kitchen cupboards.
Some you’ll need to stock up on regularly, and some will last you a long time. The longer-lasting items could be something you and your flatmates purchase between you, easing the cost for everyone involved if it’s something you are likely to be able to share.
Without further ado, here are the cupboard essentials you need as a student at university!
Salt & pepper
Vinegar
A jar of mixed herbs – and any other herbs, spices or flavourings you personally like to use in cooking
Stock cubes or paste
Flour
Tomato puree and/or tinned tomatoes
Olive oil
Condiments such as ketchup, brown sauce, mustard and so on
Honey
Sugar and/or sweeteners
Tea bags & instant coffee
Cordial (or squash, depending on where you come from…)
Pasta
Rice
Couscous
Baked beans
Tinned soup
Instant noodles
Peanut butter or Nutella (as long as there are no allergies among your flatmates)
Cereal and/or breakfast bars
These are dry cupboard items, as well as tins and bottles, which will live in your kitchen for longer periods of time. There are other staples which you’ll find yourself buying weekly to supplement these products – think of these as the backbone of your diet, which you’ll pad out with bread, meat, fish, cheese and so on! We’ve also linked some fantastic and relatively easy student-budget-friendly meals down below for you to have a look through, take inspiration from and try out. The instant noodles are all well and good when you’re in a pinch, but they aren’t nutritious enough to have every day…
Cheesy ham and broccoli pasta – perfect for keeping the leftovers for lunch
Cauliflower & chickpea curry – this one’s vegan AND gluten free!
Biscoff microwave mug treat – a quick and easy treat
Chicken and houmous wraps – an ideal lunchtime snack which you can eat on the go too
Sweet potato and chicken traybake – a great idea if you’re cooking dinner for all of your flatmates
Cooking doesn’t have to be daunting or boring – it can be a super fun activity once you get into it. Batch cooking is a great idea if you have really long and busy days at university, and it’s always nice to share the cooking with your flatmates if you get on well and like to eat together. Take it in turns to make different dishes: whoever cooks doesn’t have to do the washing up that night! In our high-spec, custom built student accommodation, you’ll share your kitchen between 4-8 of you.
Hopefully this post has given you a good idea of what to add to your shopping list for cupboard essentials you need as a student.
