Eating well in a dorm.

Originally Posted by Rakka

Wow, I didn't know that plastic bowls would melt down and poison you. I'm going to have to find actual dishes somewhere, I guess. I've already been stocking up on soup and juice, but taking leftover food from home is a great idea...don't know how often I'll see my parents, but I'm sure that I can wring at least a few meals out of them.

My mom had the great idea of freezing single-size portions of meals and sending them back to school with me in a cooler, so they last alot longer. Most things defrost in the microwave fairly easily, and they're much better tasting than store-bought frozen dinners. If all you've got is one of those tiny fridges with an icebox at the top that barely holds ice, I'd see if your university rents out small freezers, or find someone you know who has one, cause the ones in the mini fridges don't keep things very cold. Ice cream usually melts. =/

Also, getting a pyrex dish with a glass cover on it is worth the investment. You can cook your veggies in there the way that Alice described, as well as rice and eggs (if you put an egg--deshelled--in the microwave and heat it for a bit, it comes out as very fluffy scrambled egg), as well as cook noodles and heat up soups and all that.

Another thing that will keep you from snacking on whatever unhealthyness you can get from a vending machine is to have a large quantity of fresh fruit on hand. Bananas are good to have around because of the high potassium content, which will give your brain a boost. Keep peanut butter or almond butter around to add some protein. Have low-fat popcorn around, too, it's great when you've got the munchies at one in the morning.

Originally Posted by SemperFidelis

I would stay away from the microwave altogether because it leeches a lot of nutrients from food. A plant stops growing once watered with microwaved water and babies that are fed microwaved formula lose out on essential nutrients that die when nuked.

When a microwave is all you have access to, you use it. Obviously it's not the best choice, but for those of us who don't have access to the deliciously healthy benefits of an MRE, it's better than eating uncooked oatmeal. (Although oatmeal, if she likes it, is a good idea for breakfast, because it's one of those things that fills you up and lasts longer than cereal or bread).

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by BlueEdge

That's very true, we put in a tub of icecream and sideways...and our freezer wasn't exactly...yeah. Oh you can turn up the power...but then the stuff on the top rack of the fridge starts freezing. Cruddy uni fridges.

They really are terrible. I can't tell you how many times I drank milk with ice chips in it. My friends made the mistake of putting brightly colored popsicles in the freezer bit once, and they melted in a giant, colorful sticky rainbow all over everything else in the fridge. Shortly after that the three of them went in and bought a deep freeze that they kept in the bedroom.

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