Freezer meals for college

[nonuteen]

As an accommodation...can the residence hall director allow her a mini-freezer in addition to a dorm fridge? They make them the size of the smaller dorm fridges.

If you are stuck with that little bitty freezer space in a dorm-size fridge...I have no suggestions    

I hid a toaster oven, hot plate, and used my hot pot quite creatively when I was stuck in a dorm without a kitchen and a non-understanding food services place. 20+ years ago, food services had zero clue about food allergies.

I would LOVE if she could use a George Foreman or hot plate of any sort but they are absolutely not allowed and they will not budge.   They do room checks often too.  They did give her a bigger dorm fridge but it is still pretty small.   They are trying to work with us but it is still tough...

[hedgehog]

Yes, it is easy to pop frozen soup out of a quart bag.  That is how I always freeze my soup.  The only problem is finding a bowl the frozen chunk fits into, since it is flat, but very wide.

When I was in college, nothing that heated was allowed, period (we could not even have irons, and hair dryers were to be used only in the communal bathrooms).  But everyone had hot plates, hot pots, etc.  and they did frequent room checks.  However, it is illegal for them to look inside anything that was closed without a warrant.  So everyone was just very good at putting their stuff away when done cooking.  I am not advising you to break the rules, just letting you know how to do so if you are so inclined.

[hedgehog]

And there is this:

http://youtu.be/p63yS2gPS68

[becca]

Are canned soups not an option?  I know they are not the healthiest, but with a sandwich or salad, or some bread and fruit, not a bad meal. 

[Janelle205]

For soup, I freeze in muffin trays to make larger soup 'ice cubes', then put in a freezer zip lock and suck out the extra air.  Then you can take out as few/many as you need and they fit easily in a bowl.  Do you have any experience canning?  Canned soups that are soy free are nearly impossible to find, but you could pressure can homemade and then it would be shelf stable.

As far as washing, I know it isn't the most environmentally friendly idea, but I kept paper bowls/plates at school for when I was sick and wasn't able to wash plates - then I just had to wash my silverware.

Another thing that you could consider is dehydrating some of the foods.  Check out some backpacking cooking websites, there are ones that have made from scratch recipes that you then dehydrate, and rehydrate with boiling/hot water.  Would make storage easier, or even just be good for some 'emergency' meals if she couldn't get fresh food because of weather or something.

If you can find safe canned chicken, it isn't bad at all as long as you doctor it up, and the small cans are just enough for one.  Good mixed with a safe BBQ sauce or buffalo sauce.  I usually kept a can of chicken around as an emergency food - I'd mix with some bbq sauce add cheese and a tortilla and microwave for a BBQ chicken quesadilla.

If you can find safe summer sausage, my brother's favorite lunch is crackers or flatbread, sliced summer sausage and cheese.  No cooking, has protein, and relatively healthy with some fruit or veggies added for a side.

[nameless]

As an accommodation...can the residence hall director allow her a mini-freezer in addition to a dorm fridge? They make them the size of the smaller dorm fridges.

If you are stuck with that little bitty freezer space in a dorm-size fridge...I have no suggestions    

I hid a toaster oven, hot plate, and used my hot pot quite creatively when I was stuck in a dorm without a kitchen and a non-understanding food services place. 20+ years ago, food services had zero clue about food allergies.

I would LOVE if she could use a George Foreman or hot plate of any sort but they are absolutely not allowed and they will not budge.   They do room checks often too.  They did give her a bigger dorm fridge but it is still pretty small.   They are trying to work with us but it is still tough...

yeah - those things weren't allowed for me either --- but I hid them and used them wisely (windows open, attended to the whole time).

[momma2boys]

Oh the crock pot salsa chicken would probably freeze well! She could eat it plain, with rice or in a tortilla as a wrap.

[Macabre]

Soy has got to be one of the most difficult FAs to deal with.  It's great to see some good ideas here. 

[CMdeux]

As an accommodation...can the residence hall director allow her a mini-freezer in addition to a dorm fridge? They make them the size of the smaller dorm fridges.

If you are stuck with that little bitty freezer space in a dorm-size fridge...I have no suggestions    

I hid a toaster oven, hot plate, and used my hot pot quite creatively when I was stuck in a dorm without a kitchen and a non-understanding food services place. 20+ years ago, food services had zero clue about food allergies.

I would LOVE if she could use a George Foreman or hot plate of any sort but they are absolutely not allowed and they will not budge.   They do room checks often too.  They did give her a bigger dorm fridge but it is still pretty small.   They are trying to work with us but it is still tough...

Have you asked specifically about induction elements?


Because those, there is effectively zero fire risk, and no real way to "leave the heat on" since there isn't any.

[GingerPye]

What do you mean by induction elements?  DD could use something this way, maybe.

[becca]

http://www.amazon.com/MaxiMatic-EIND-88B-Platinum-Induction-Cooker/dp/B00CJB0UF8/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1420901842&sr=8-4&keywords=induction+elements

http://www.amazon.com/1800-Watt-Portable-Induction-Countertop-8100MC/dp/B0045QEPYM/ref=pd_sim_k_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=11S35RB9316YJ12JXSA7

[GingerPye]

ooh, thanks for that.  I hadn't seen those before.

[CMdeux]

Technical description of how induction works

Less-technical, but still thorough, description of how induction works

BTW, in addition to the great control and obvious safety, induction is FAST.  You can boil water on an induction element in nearly the same amount of time as you can in the microwave.  Really not kidding.  Some manufacturers claim 90s to boil a cup of water, and while I think (having lived with an induction cooktop) that is a BIT of an exaggeration in practice, I will agree emphatically with 2-3 minutes.  That means that you really could make Angelhair pasta in about five minutes.

You can also boil water for a minute, move the pot, and set your hand directly on the surface where the pot was sitting-- with almost no risk of burning yourself.  (Really-- though I obviously wouldn't recommend that, since the heat can be transferred from the pan TO the glass surface over time.) 

One might have to work at it to convince university housing/dining-- maybe even petition/appeal for them to specifically address the issue with approval for microwave/induction but not thermal cooking elements-- I think it could be done. 



Induction cooking elements are very efficient, and they are popular outside of N. America.

[nameless]

I was looking up ideas for lunches (something I can freeze and heat easily at work).

Empanadas! Freeze easily - can have a variety of ingredients (veg and meat) in a nice little package that can be defrosted in the fridge for a day or nuked. Easy handy lunch or meal w/ a salad.

- black bean, mashed sweet potato, corn, and shredded chicken
- leftover pot roast and mashed potatoes
- shredded chicken, caramelized onion, butternut squash w/ green chile salsa

Lots of options! Easy to freeze and you can make them rectangular instead of half-moon shape to freeze/stack easier for the small space.

[CMdeux]

Tamales are another option like that-- once you learn how to make them, they are super-easy, and they also freeze well. 


I do ours with parchment paper and dental floss or string, believe it or not-- had to improvise once when I couldn't find corn-husks, and the convenience and lack of mess convinced me-- I'll never go back.