Every college student knows the best part about having your parents visit or going home to visit your parents is the food. Whether going out to eat or having them cook, it’s easy, its good, and it’s usually free. Although we can’t fix that last one here, we can certainly get you moving in the right direction on the easy and good, and we’ll do our best to keep it cheap. Here are our top meals to make at home that cost under $15.
- Stromboli
Stromboli is my personal favorite meal. I love Italian food but don’t usually have as much time or money as I would want to make extravagant meals like chicken parm. Thankfully, Stromboli is less than 10 minutes of work, 30 minutes of cooking, delicious, and easy to get study time or TV time in while it sits in the oven doing all the work for you. When it comes out, you have a delicious meal that all your friends will rave about with enough for leftovers.
Ingredients
Pizza Dough – $2.19
½ Provolone Cheese – $3.75
½ Preferred Ham (I do Publix Sweet Ham) – $3.25
¼ Pepperoni – $2.50
1 Egg
¼ Cup Olive Oil
1 tsp Onion Powder
1 tsp Garlic Powder
2 tsp Oregano
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
- Roll out the pizza dough to about a ¼ inch thick on a floured surface
- Mix the oil, egg, and spices (Add parmesan cheese for extra taste; not required)
- Brush the oil mixture on the dough, and line the pepperoni, ham, and cheese over it (If you really like parmesan, more can go here as well)
- Fold the dough into thirds, and fold the corners on top of the center. Then use the rest of the oil mixture on top of the dough as an egg wash.
- Bake at 400 for 30 minutes, or until golden brown
Assuming you already have seasonings, the price of this meal is $11.69 following pricing from Publix on the strip. This stromboli usually feeds 4-6 regular people and 3-4 college students, so you get great bang for your buck.
The best part about stromboli is that it fits perfectly as Italian comfort food. I love souther food and mom’s cooking, but this hits the spot every single time.
- Glory Bound Gyro Copycat
We love Glory, and we think most people on this campus would agree. Whether you prefer their gyros or pizza is up to you, but their gyros are easy to make in 20 minutes with minimal cleanup while balling on a budget. It’s one pan and can be customized as little or as much as you want it to be. As a result, we think this option is a clear winner for college students looking for a good meal. The best part? You need no real cooking skills, especially if you do the bacon, egg, and cheese gyro (my favorite) we’re going to show you here.
Ingredients
Naan Bread – $4.15
Eggs – $1.25
Bacon – $4.75
Mozzarella Cheese – $3.25
Comeback sauce – Sides are free at Glory
- Toast the naan bread slightly
- Cook 3-4 slides of bacon in a pan until crispy
- Cook 2 eggs scrambled in the same pan using the bacon grease
- Pour the comeback sauce onto the naan, and lay the bacon, cheese, and eggs over it
To buy all the ingredients for this meal, it comes out to $13.40. However, given the small amount you use for each one, all of these ingredients can make 6-8 Gyros.
Glory Bound is one of the best places to get an American gyro ever, and their food hits every single time. I often find myself wanting Glory, but not wanting to leave my apartment to get in. In that sense, this 10 minute meal is perfect.
- Street Tacos
If you read our last blog on the top Mexican spots in Tuscaloosa, you know we love Central Mesa, but we don’t love their price point. Tacos are so easy to make, but even still, Central Mesa has something special we just couldn’t quite figure out. That is, until we did. Because their food is so good, we decided to make a budget version of Central Mesa’s to share with y’all.
Ingredients
Chicken Breast – $6.75
Rotel – $1.36
Taco Seasoning – $0.75
Mexican Melting Cheese – $3.75
Corn Tortillas – $1.25
- Place the chicken, rotel, and taco seasoning in a slow cooker until it shreds.
- Put the chicken mixture and cheese on a corn tortilla.
This is the longest recipe to make, but the easiest to put together and to do the dishes for. It does come in at a more expensive $13.86, but it can make up to 20 tacos, and it can be made cheaper by using less chicken.
The best part about street tacos is how customizable they are. Anything you want on them, you can have on them. Cilantro, onions, avocado, tomato, and more are so easy to toss on any taco you may want. And this recipe is perfect for that little bit of customization you may want because the chicken breast and Rotel mix makes enough tacos to experiment and have left overs.
