You may not realize it, but moving into an apartment with your very own kitchen is quite the responsibility. There are various items that are essential to have in any kitchen. But even more so, there are specific items that are needed within a college kitchen. Here’s everything you need to stock your college kitchen with.
Shot Glass(es)
A shot glass is essential to the complete college experience. It might be only one you rely on, or it could be a whole set, but that one shot glass tells you just how much you need to pour into different cups, put in mixies, or really, how the rest of your night is going to go.
Wine Bottle Opener
College is the first place where you will be introduced to wine nights, where the only goal is to finish the bottle (or bottles) put in front of you. It could be an excuse to dress up and have fancy cheese with your wine, or you might just need some friends and wine after a long and hard day.
#SpoonTip: Spoon University does not support binge drinking or underage drinking. Please drink responsibly, friends!
Cutting Board
In college, it’s all about finding easy foods to make and bring with you to class. You could be cutting up veggies to roast in the oven, or in my case early on, making sandwiches for any and every meal was my go-to food. Cutting boards are perfect for all of the chopping, dicing, and cutting that lies ahead of you.
Frying Pan
Frying pans are perfect for making a grilled cheese, stir fry, sauteed vegetables, and a multitude of other things. It is easily cleaned and can be used over and over again. It can also be the key to making breakfast, whether it be eggs, pancakes, or bacon, which are the key to fixing hangovers.
Glass Containers
If you ever go out for a meal or cook too much, leftovers are the best. However, the key is having good containers for storage. First, it preserves the quality of the food. Second, you can put the container right in the microwave. And lastly, it can be trusted not to leak when taking to class or out of the apartment.
Extra Mini Fridge
In my case, I live with four other roommates, and on the weeks where we all go food shopping, it’s hard to fit all of our groceries into the fridge. Having a mini fridge allows for better allocation of space and room when it gets a bit hectic.
Ziplock Bags (all sizes)
Ziplock bags will come in handy when it comes to bringing snacks to class, meetings, or the library. They’re also perfect for putting open ingredients into so that they don’t spoil. Sandwich-sized bags are my personal favorite because I make sandwiches for lunch every day.
Ice Cube Trays
Most college apartments won’t come equipped with an ice machine/ice maker, therefore, these ice cube trays are a good tool to have around. If you need cold water, they’re there for you, or if you’re making mixies before a night out, ice cube trays have your back to make sure you’re never drinking room temperature liquids.
Sharp Knife
A good, sharp knife is important to have for the few times that you do actually make a real meal or have leftovers from one. And if your family comes and they take you out to a steak dinner, you’ll need that knife to cut into leftovers afterwards.
Also, if you are slicing delicate ingredients to add to your dish such as heirloom tomatoes or fresh mozzarella cheese, a sharp knife is the only way to effectively get neat slices.
Oven Mitts
Whether you are using the oven or the microwave, you don’t want to burn your hands. Making cookies at 2 am is going to happen at some point in college, and the middle man between the cookies and your mouth is getting them out of the oven with mitts.
Alternatively, when a container retains a large amount of heat from microwaving food, oven mitts can save your hands, as well as allow you to eat quicker by getting the food out of the microwave, amirite?
Pasta Strainer
Every college student comes to love pasta because of how easy it is to make, how many leftovers you can turn it into, and how many different things you can add to it. However, this would be a problem without a strainer, because you need some way to get rid of that excess water.
Crock Pot
A crock pot is one of the most revolutionary pieces of cooking equipment because you can make almost anything in it. It is also extremely easy to use because it uses such low heat that something can be left in there for hours without you having to worry that it will burn. People can get really creative with their crock pot recipes.
When it comes to a college kitchen, there are the basics such as forks, spoons, cups, plates, and bowls, but it’s the lesser thought of items that are listed above that are essential to making a college kitchen complete.