13x meals under €3 per person
Whether you’re a student or not: by the end of your money, there’s always a chunk of the month left. And of course, you still want to eat well. With these meals under €3 per person, you’ll be all set.
Every month, you eagerly look forward to the moment your salary or student grant lands in your account. Fortunately, that really doesn’t mean you have to eat spaghetti with red sauce every day. The prices in this article are based on four people. That way, you can cook for your friends or family for next to nothing, or simply eat that wonderful meal four times yourself.
Mushrooms on toast
It may sound a little simple, and it is, but when you’ve just moved into student housing, you shouldn’t make things too difficult for yourself right away. With a shallot, some garlic and thyme, you can turn one of those blue boxes of mushrooms (value pack €1.29!) into a wonderfully tasty meal. Add a fresh salad and your budget meal is complete. If you’ve long since outgrown the student cooking level and want to be fancy, you can always serve a poached egg on top.
Sausage with beans
The humble bratwurst is a classic for a reason, and it’s also one of the cheapest cuts of meat. In this recipe, you remove the seasoned meat from the sausages, so two sausages are more than enough for four people. Fry the meat until crispy and add kale (spinach works too) for the vitamins, plus white beans for some budget-friendly carbs.
Lentils with caramelized onions
This recipe proves that you can make an amazing meal with the cheapest ingredients if you have the time. You stew lentils with spices and rice, and serve them with caramelized onions. Mega budget-friendly, mega delicious.
Spaghetti aglio olio e peperoncino
Spaghetti aglio olio e peperoncino is my go to when I have no money and don’t feel like cooking. With just spaghetti, oil, garlic and fresh red chili or chili flakes, you can feed quite a few people for a couple of euros. Ideally, I’d eat just the pasta, with lots of Parmesan, but it should be nutritious too. Add a simple tomato salad with olive oil, salt and basil, and you have a delicious, inexpensive meal on the table in ten minutes. Just get your basil from the Turkish shop rather than the supermarket, where €2 gets you about three leaves.
Bucatini with roasted tomato sauce
Okay, I did sneak in another red-sauce pasta, but this one is so delicious! Bucatini isn’t any more expensive than spaghetti, but it sounds a lot fancier. You roast canned tomatoes in the oven with butter for an incredibly intense flavor. Sometimes I add anchovies too, for even more flavor. It costs next to nothing.
Fried rice
The ultimate leftover meal is also the ultimate budget meal. Garlic and (spring) onion are the only things that absolutely have to go in it; you can decide on the rest yourself. Get some cabbage (Chinese cabbage works too), green beans, peas, carrot—whatever your budget allows—and start stir-frying. Here’s how to make perfect fried rice.
Risotto
You do have to invest in some Parmesan and wine for this one. Thank god for small bottles—or just get a large one from your drinks budget, right? You only need a splash; you can simply drink the rest. Other than that, you mainly need rice. Serve it with green asparagus in spring, or stir spinach through it at the end. Here’s how to make perfect risotto, step by step.
Shakshuka
Where would we be without canned tomatoes? This cheap ingredient has saved me from many a meal during lean times, sometimes in the form of shakshuka. You stew the tomatoes with bell pepper and onion, then crack eggs into them at the end so they cook in the sauce. Make sure you have enough bread in the house to scoop everything up with.
Tomato and rice soup
Okay, one more ode to canned tomatoes. Here, you cook them with rice until you have a filling soup. Add some fresh parsley for freshness and perhaps a salad on the side—but perhaps not.
Hainanese chicken rice
Anyone watching their money stays far away from pre-packaged chicken breasts and buys a whole chicken instead. How do you prepare it so it tastes like a king’s feast? Poach it with ginger, spring onion and garlic, then cook the rice in the stock left over from that. That gives you Hainanese chicken rice, Singapore’s national dish and, as it happens, a wonderfully budget-friendly meal.
Tuna melt
You can’t call yourself a student if you don’t occasionally eat bread for dinner. Mix canned tuna with a little mayo and season with pepper and salt. Make a grilled cheese sandwich with cheese on both sides and the tuna salad in the middle, cook it over low heat in a knob of butter in a pan, and you’ll have a sandwich so filling that it works perfectly well as dinner.
Pissaladiere
Puff pastry, anchovies, olives and onion. That’s all you need for this classic French tart. Add a salad and you have a delicious meal. It’s also handy if you’re going to a drinks party and need to bring something: minimal expense, maximum result.
Eggplant and tomato curry
Craving a curry, but really can’t afford the chicken right now? Make this version with slowly cooked eggplant and tomato. The coconut milk makes it wonderfully creamy, and all you need is a scoop of white rice to serve alongside it. Oh, and it’s completely vegan too.
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