Pots, Pans and Dinner Battles: Master the Basics of Cooking

When you first rock up to your student accommodation, the notion of a spatula might be as alien to you as advanced astrophysics is to us now. Luckily for everyone, you don’t have to do a PhD to know how to cook, and getting the basics is very straight forward.

There are lots of things around in the kitchen, while it can be a loud and perhaps intimidating environment for the novice, everyone’s got to start somewhere —and we reckon you’re up to the challenge.

Controlling the Kitchen

1. Look for lovely meals

Everyone’s got their own favourite flavours, so it’s time to equip yourself with a cookbook or two or use the web to find recipes you like.

You might have been given mountains of student cookbooks, which are full of nice and simple recipes perfect for the beginner. On the web, studentrecipes.com is a good place to start. It’s got loads of marvellous meals for you to enjoy – and you can search by type of food, occasion and choices for vegetarians.

2. Get your gear

You’ll want to a reliable set of equipment in your kitchen. If you haven’t already been inundated with loads of equipment, there are lots of lists you can find online that show you all you need. A good place to start is over on realsimple.com as it covers all of the basics pretty darn well.

Your recipe will almost definitely include a list of all the pots and pans that you’re going to need, normally in the ‘method’ part of the recipe. You’ll probably need some other stuff like a spatula or wooden spoon too, and now is a good time to get these things to hand.

3. Prepare for battle

Most recipes will tell you exactly what you need to prep before cooking, and indicate the amount of time you can expect to be cooking the meal for.

The recipe usually tells you exactly which way the food needs to be prepared, and you need guidance there are videos on the internet to show you how this is done. For example, if you have some onions you need to chop, you can follow the YouTube instruction of Jamie Oliver’s mate.

4. Full speed attack

Okay, now that you’ve picked a recipe, you’ve got your gear, and you’ve prepared your ingredients, it’s time to cook the beast.

If you need to find information about how to use your oven, or a hob, or any kitchen appliance – a quick Google of its name and brand will usually find you the information on the manufacturer’s website.

Then, with the recipe to hand, you’ll know exactly when to throw in the carrots, when to blast with seasoning and when to turn up the heat and cook.

Can Cook, Will Cook

When you’ve reached the end of your mission, you’ll have a delicious meal ready for you to eat. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect, because that all comes with practice. You can be proud of what you’ve accomplished and serve up your very own self satisfying meal.

At the Student Housing Company, we’re big believers in great cooking: we fit all of our accommodation with modern, stylish kitchen appliances — such as the breakfast bar at The Castings in Huddersfield and the cool modern kitchens at Depot Point in London.

If you have any questions about for us about our private student accommodation, please get in touch at any time.