Dorm Food Dilemmas

Photo Courtesy of Azriha Eats World

If you have ever dined in a cafeteria, a Luby’s, or the like, then you know that eating in a dormitory cafeteria is a downgrade. What’s even worse? Trying to eat vegetarian.

The meat dishes in a dorm cafeteria are scary enough. It’s easy to tell that it’s the cheapest and lowest quality meat around. So, when you are able to find vegetarian choices, it’s the biggest let down to find that the vegetable soup is made with chicken stock or that there’s bacon in the one dish that you’re able to eat. Who puts bacon in green peas anyway?

If you’re like me, then you have to resort to eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, grilled cheese sandwiches and cheese pizza, all the time. These dishes may be delicious, but they’re easy to get sick of. Take advantage of the rare times that your cafeteria serves a dish with some potential and get creative.

If they have tortilla chips out for chicken tortilla soup or Fritos for chili pie, put some chips on your plate, add shredded cheese, jalepeños and salsa, throw it in the microwave and you have some savory nachos! If you’re lucky, the cafeteria will have beans out that day that you can add to your dish to get some protein. But, that rarely ever happens.

So, here are a few ways to get your recommended daily protein from your cafeteria. Peanut butter is your friend. I have found myself eating a lot of toast with peanut butter or peanut butter and banana sandwiches. If you get tired of it, check out the salad bar. Most cafeterias will have a pasta salad section near the salad bar. Sometimes there are some protein-promising dishes like garbanzo bean salad or a cold vegetable salad that almost always contains beans.

Eating these dishes almost everyday for an entire semester or year can get very old. If you have a mini fridge, keep it stocked. There will be plenty of ‘bad’ days in a dorm cafeteria and you’ll have to resort to eating in your room. Going grocery shopping every now and then is a lot cheaper than eating out multiple times a week.

Here are a few things to add to your shopping list: peanut butter (of course), milk, cereal, yogurt, bread, canned beans, canned soups, crackers, granola bars and any of your favorite fruits and vegetables. Low maintenance fruits and vegetables include apples, grapes, oranges, pears, celery and carrots. Also, invest in some flatware, plates, cups and a can opener. They’ll definitely pay off.

So remember, keep an eye out for food in your dorm’s cafeteria that has potential, be sure to eat your protein for the day, keep your dorm room stocked with food that doesn’t perish easily and most of all, be creative.