Stocking the Dorm Room

By Cole Cervantes

Fall 2022

Having a well-equipped dorm room to be able to cook simple meals is the first step to a great school year. This reading will give you the tips and tricks to getting the right appliances and what recipes to cook with those appliances. On many college campuses across the world, the food served at school is not very good and this is why we’re going to stock our dorm rooms right! We will be focusing on the best multi-use appliances for an ultimate dorm room kitchen, followed with a delicious easy to make recipes that can be made from the dorm room. You will be able to eat healthy and tasty meals form the comfort of your dorm room in no time if you follow along with this article.  Now let’s get started stocking that dorm room! 

Can’t Eat the Food Without Utensils

I don’t have enough fingers to count the number of times I have been without the right utensils in my dorm, and it drives me crazy every time. There is nothing worse than making a nice meal and having nothing to eat it with and no plates. Now I’m not saying that you need to have every utensil in the kitchen section but to have the right ones is key. I will go over what are the best utensils for a dorm and how they can be used. The main utensils you should have been plates, bowls, and cups. From personal experience having a couple good quality plastic or ceramic ones are the best. A great place took look for supplies is the Target dorm room supplies. They have many items that can make cooking in a dorm so much easier. This is also why I have created a checklist for you to follow.  The better-quality plates/cups/bowls can easy be washed off and hold up better throughout the year in the microwave. The possibilities are really endless when you set yourself up with the right tools and that goes for everything in life, especially dorm cooking.  I have also made a list for you to look at what you might still need to get below:

  • Spoons

  • Forks

  • Butter knifes

  • If allowed a sharp knife

  • Bottle opener

  • Spatula

  • Large plate

How do you cook in a dorm?

These next view appliances that I will tell you about will give you hundreds of meal options to make.

Microwave: Starting with the Microwave, now many college dorms are not very large, with limited space. This means we have to buy smarter! We are lucky to be in 2022 because we actually have microwaves that can also function as air fryer. These will not only let you microwave food but they also can air fry and saves half the space that an air fryer would take up. The possibilities with this appliance are amazing. Here is the link to one of the better ones for your money, the perfect microwave/air fryer.

Griddle: The next appliance that I feel many do not talk about are griddles. A griddle can be used for so many things without talking up too much space. I personally used a griddle to make pancakes, burgers, quesadillas, and even toast & eggs. Here is the link to the one I personally own and will stand behind: Target Griddle at a great price.

Coffee Cup machine:  The next main one is a personal coffee maker. I know most will think a coffee maker is only good for making coffee, but it can be used for so much more. The hot water from the coffee maker can boil water for noodles and many other things that I will get into in the “Let’s get Cooking” segment.

Mini Blender: I would say that having a blender in college is a game changer when it comes to making meals. I recommend Kohl’s Magic Bullet. They can be used for many things, something being making ice cream, making a shake, and smoothies. Now there is nothing better than after a long day of classes, to come back and make a nice and refreshing smoothie to get you on your feet.

Mini Fridge: A mini fridge is probably the most important appliance to have because it keeps everything that you going to be cooking fresh and ready to go. I would recommend a quality mini fridge with a good sized freezer section, like this. Target mini fridge .

Microwave

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Ingredients

  • Shredded chicken:  The chicken can either be made by you or can be bought in the can from the store. Either will work fine and I have tried both.

  • Franks Red Hot Sauce: For best flavor I suggest the Franks sauce and if you like a little more spice you can choose to get the extra hot version of the sauce.

  • Cream cheese: a full block or two can be put in depending on how much you want to make.

  • Cheddar: Two cups of cheddar will make sure each bite is filled with cheese.

After all ingredients are put into a dish you can mix them together and place in the microwave on high for 12-15 minutes. When the dish is almost ready pull it out and add a little more sprinkles of cheese to coat the top and place back in the microwave for a minute. After you can pull it out and get to eating. Side note: is best eaten with scoops tortilla chips.

French Toast in a Mug

Are you looking for a sweet tasty breakfast? This one can be made in 5 minutes inside one of your coffee mugs

Ingredients

  • Steak (thinly sliced)

  • White Onion, sliced

  • Garlic Powder

  • Salt

  • Pepper

  • Provolone Cheese

  • Hoagie Rolls

  • Avocado Oil

  • Butter

  • Mayonnaise

1.     Start by putting the butter into the mug and microwaving until melted, then add the milk, maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, and the egg to the mug and mix together.

2.     Now you can add the bread pieces and move them around to soak up the mixture.

3.     Then you can put the mug in the microwave for 4 minutes then you should be checking on from 4-5 minutes the longer the mug is cooking the dryer the French toast.

4.     Pro tip: add whip cream and syrup after its cooked.

Chicken Enchiladas

Yes, you read that right: you can make chicken enchiladas in the microwave. Your roommates are sure to love you after this one! Feeds six.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 lbs chicken (cooked and shredded)

  • 1 package (6-8) 8-inch whole wheat flour tortillas

  • 2 cans 10 oz green enchilada sauce

  • 1 lb shredded Mexican mix cheese

  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream

  • 1 tablespoon chili powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1.     Mix together the chili powder chicken and garlic.

2.     Make sure to spray a pan that can fit in your microwave with cooking spray. You can then pour enchilada sauce on bottom until bottom is covered. Then fill tortillas with the chicken mixture and cheese. Once in the pan you can sprinkle extra cheese on top.

3.     You can then cook in the microwave for about 30 minutes till ready. Serve with left over green sauce and sour cream.

Griddle

Fluffy Pancakes 

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour (measured with a spoon, not sifted)

  • 2 teaspoons baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 1 Tablespoons granulated sugar

  • 2 eggs

  • 2 1/3 cups low fat buttermilk

  • butter for cooking

1.     Get the griddle to about 350 degrees or about ¾ if what a normal griddle goes to.

2.     Then whisk together all the ingredients to the pancakes.

3.     Butter the grill. You can now pour around a ½ cup of batter for each pancake on the grill.

4.     Pro tip: when the batter starts to bubble around the edges you can then flip.

5.     Add or favorite toppings and enjoy a little taste of heaven for breakfast.

Philly Cheese Steak

Yes, you can make Philly cheese steaks in you room and yes, they are amazing.

Ingredients

  • Steak (thinly sliced)

  • White Onion, sliced

  • Garlic Powder

  • Salt

  • Pepper

  • Provolone Cheese

  • Hoagie Rolls

  • Avocado Oil

  • Butter

  • Mayonnaise

1.     Get the griddle to 400 degrees

2.     Add oil and butter to middle of griddle and spread it around.

3.     At this point you can add the onions to the griddle, cook for about 3-4 minutes.

4.     Place onions aside for later use.

5.     Toast your roles on the griddle with a little extra butter then place to the side with the onions.

6.     Now add the steak and season it. You can let the steak cook for 3-5 minutes before chopping into smaller pieces.

7.     Now it’s time to assemble the sandwiches and feast!

Mini Blender

Protein Ice Cream

Ingredients

  • ½ cup of ice or half of whatever size blender you are using.

  • Milk of your choice, this can be whole, 2%, or almond milk.

  • Protein powder- flavor of your choice, note that the better tasting your protein is the better the ice cream will be.

  • Teaspoon of salt

  • Fruit (Optional)

1.     First add the ice to the blender.

2.     Follow the ice with the milk and protein powder.

3.     Blend until looking like ice cream.

4.     Then you can add the salt and fruit of your choice and blend one more time.

5.     Enjoy your healthy protein-filled ice cream.

Let’s hear from the experts!

Vince Pizzo, a Residential Hall Director who has been living a dorm style life for over eight years, will give us some incite of some great things he has learned about dorm eating. After his four years of actually being in school he continued to live in a dorm sweet on campus because he was a main director of the halls. He said he saw the decline in the food quality that the college was putting out, so he decided to make a change. “I wanted to eat not only better tasting food, but also healthier”. About 90% of his meals he would make could be done with a microwave or air fryer. He has been cooking meals in aa dorm environment for over 5 years now, so cooking in the dorm can really be done. One of the key things he said in our interview was to focus on the basics, such as chicken, steak, fish, and potato’s or rice then build around those.

Adam Garcia is a trainer and nutrition coach in Chicago, IL. He has been certified for 7 years and has been helping others meet their goals for 4 years. He is a great help for those in dorms because he focusses on using a lot of easy to make meals that are both tasty and good for the body. The meals he recommends most are those that are the most anabolic, which basically means the meals that are filled with the most protein and least calories. I have personally used his him for over a year to help me with building muscle and maintaining my weight for college wrestling. His meals are really easy to make and I’m able to make just about every meal with the appliances I have listed. He says, “Just because it’s good for you doesn’t mean it has to taste bad.”

Cole Cervantes is into everything. He’s someone who has been very involved in sports all his life and still continues here in college. He has been to many states around the country but have never been to another country. He’s someone who would much rather go do an activity outside with friends than stay inside. He has always been someone who has got average grades and has recently been doing a lot better. He would say that he is a very hard worker and he got that from sports. He has one younger brother in high school, and he loves watching his football games. His dream job would be to work for a professional sports team in a high-up position on the business marketing side.