Howdy, friends. I just spent the past three hours cooking and I’m so excited to share everything with you! If you know me, you know I’m new to this whole cooking shenanigans. I’ve only recently started living alone, and I’ve been surviving without a meal plan for about a year now. Luckily, I have a full kitchen so I have a lot more options when it comes to cooking. However, I vividly remember the days of dorm living. Finding easy meals to make in the comfort of my own dorm was super challenging. Here are a few of my dorm friendly microwave recipes that you can whip up in just a few minutes with ingredients you probably already have lying around!
Cheesy Pasta & Broccoli
All you need for this bowl of delight is pasta, broccoli, cheese of your choice, and olive oil!
- Heat pasta and water in a microwavable bowl. To determine the time, add roughly 2-3 minutes to the time the pasta lists on the box.
- Strain pasta and add cooked broccoli.
- Mix in 1 tbs of olive oil (or butter).
- Finally, add a handful of your favorite cheese. I think mozzarella and Parmesan are the best for this in particular.
Quesadilla
Quesadillas are college diet staples. This one is super easy, all you need is tortillas, olive oil, cheese, and spices of your choice. You can even add salsa, sour cream, and meat if you want to get extra fancy!
- Rub both sides of 2 tortillas with olive oil.
- Lay one tortilla down on a microwave safe plate and add cheese (I like to use a taco blend), spices of your choice, and any extras like chicken or beef.
- Cover with the second tortilla and microwave for 30-40 seconds. Optional: keep a moist paper towel over the top of the quesadilla in the microwave to keep it extra moist.
- Add sour cream, chips, or salsa, and enjoy!
Egg Fried Rice
Fried rice has become one of my favorite things. But since I can’t afford Chinese take out all the time, this is a great homemade alternative. You’ll need: white rice, veggies of your choice, 1 egg, soy sauce, cling wrap, and any additional spices of your choice.
- Cook your rice according to the package instructions or use leftover rice.
- If you’re cooking your own rice just for this, leave it in the fridge/freezer for at least ten minutes after cooking for optimal results.
- Pack a microwave safe bowl with rice and layer some veggies on top. I’m using broccoli and carrots but the more the merrier!
- Cover the bowl with plastic cling wrap and puncture a few holes in it.
- Microwave for 1 minute.
- Mix 1 tbs of soy sauce and 1 egg together. Optional: add 1/2 tsp of sesame oil.
- Combine mixture with the rice and veggies. Mix well.
- Microwave again for 1 and a half minute.
- Fluff and enjoy!
Hopefully, these dorm friendly microwave recipes inspire you to get creative with your dorm cooking! It’s amazing what you can do with just a microwave! What are your favorite microwave friendly meals?