Beyond Bagels: A Grad Student’s Guide to Good Food

We’ve all been there. A week to go before the next paycheck and a maxed-out credit card. 500 exams to grade by Tuesday, and your advisor wants a draft of your thesis before the weekend. Is it really so strange if you end up a regular at Wawa and Magic Carpet…? With that kind of time and money (by which I mean, lack of…), who wouldn’t?

But don’t despair! With a few simple tricks, even the most destitute lab rat (er, I mean grad student…) can enjoy a healthy and balanced diet, that will in fact end up saving you a good amount of money (by which I mean, more to spend at happy hour…).

Throughout this semester, I will share my hard-won lessons on how to make the most out of a little — whether it’s the void of your bank account, the 20 minutes to spare before recitation, or the lonely can of beans sitting in your pantry.

Half the solution lies in this one little piece of advice. It’s ridiculously easy to follow, and will save you many a dollar wasted on greasy overpriced hoagies. It all comes down to this simple culinary truth: cooking 10 cups of rice is really no different from cooking one cup of rice. All you need is a bigger pot, and more water. To start off, my next post will explore this idea in the domain of the butternut squash, the golden delight of the season… Stay tuned!

-Kajsa Djarv

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