Cooking has never been my thing, and honestly, I never had any interest in making it my thing. In fact, until only a couple of months ago, the extent of my skills was a grilled cheese sandwich, and I didn't even like it that much.
In the fall of 2017, I started my second year of college, and at the same time, I moved out of my dorm room and into an apartment. Along with the transition, I was given the option to purchase a meal plan, and I didn't take it because, among several other reasons, dining hall food is simply not good.
In light of my situation, I was forced to acquire at least the most basic cooking skills — you know, for survival. It didn't happen overnight. It was more of a slow and steady process that clearly is still going on, but now, over a semester later, I'm very glad I did it.
The First Weeks
![macaroni, pasta, spaghetti, cheese, cheddar, sauce, vegetable](/images/spacer-1x1.gif)
I'd be lying if I said I didn't contemplate the idea of not cooking at all, and simply getting take out every day. I quickly realized how stupid that was, though, because 1) I'd be broke within days, and 2) Who does that? Realizing how insane this would be, I instead decided to make my peace with the fact that I had to learn, whether I liked it or not.
The first time I bought groceries, I figured I'd keep things as simple and basic as I possibly could, so, the most complicated item in my bags was pasta which, of course, I didn't know how to make. The only protein I had picked out was sliced deli turkey breast. To round out my haul, I bought tomatoes, pop corn, and Velveeta, among a couple of other things.
So, during my first few weeks as an apartment resident I lived off of sandwiches, microwavable mac and cheese, and ridiculously large portions of spaghetti with marinara sauce — special thanks to my roommates for teaching me how to cook it. I was not running a five-star restaurant, or anything remotely close to that, but it sure could've been much worse.
A Few Months In
![beer, wine](/images/spacer-1x1.gif)
Every time I went to the supermarket, or in my case, ordered groceries online, I increasingly expanded my list. Being the inexperienced cook I was, and still am , I often forgot about some of the stuff I'd bought, and when I found them, they'd already gone bad. Other times, I just left stuff sitting in the fridge or in my pantry because I had no clue what foods to put them in or how to cook them.
Once I started noticing what I could and could not cook, what I liked and what I did not like as much, I gradually went back to a reduced groceries list. I started eliminating everything that I would realistically never consume, which incidentally helped me save a few bucks and kept food from going to waste.
At the same time, I progressively learned to cook more elaborate meals. By elaborate, I mean stuff that's still really easy to cook for virtually anyone, and barely elaborate, like chicken breasts. Once again, I have my roommates to thank for this.
![egg](/images/spacer-1x1.gif)
In addition to this breakthrough, I'd finally learned how to cook eggs in three new ways: scrambled, boiled, and poached — I'm especially proud of this one. As small as these victories may seem to anyone else, I was pretty thrilled with myself, and the fact that I was expanding my daily menu made me very happy.
Today
After almost two semesters, I am very glad to report that I've learned to cook a relatively wide variety of dishes. Nothing complicated, but still really good, and just enough to allow myself to make something different every day if I want to.
Of course, there are awesome resources like Tasty, which I sometimes turn to when I'm feeling creative. Before, I'd be scared to try their recipes, because given my lack of experience, I'd expect a total flop. That being said, I got my favorite salad recipe off of their app — yes, a salad. Ever since, I try to make it at least once or twice per week.
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As you can probably tell, my creativity level in the kitchen is not very high, but that doesn't take away anything from the fact that Tasty is a great tool and it's helping me expand my culinary abilities.
All in all, living in an apartment has basically forced me to learn how to cook, and now, I really like it. I'm almost completely sure there are hundreds of college students out there who've had a similar experience, and other hundreds who are worried about their situation once they move in, much like I was.
My word of advice? Don't worry. You'll be fine. If I can do it, anyone can.