Cooking With The Starving Student

Want to put your kitchen skills to the test? Well you’re in luck! Over the next four weeks, every Friday we’ll be posting a new cooking challenge to this blog, in collaboration with NCS Grad Lauren, aka @the.starving.student. You’ll learn how to follow recipes, source ingredients on a budget, and cook based on what ingredients you have in the cupboard or fresh in the fridge. 

Get Involved

Challenge your family or your friends, have a go and don’t forget to tag us @NCS with your attempts...we’ll be reposting our faves and making everyone jealous of your culinary creations!

Good luck!

Challenge #4: Fresh food first

You’ve made it to the final challenge! Over the last few weeks you’ve learnt how to follow a recipe, how to source ingredients on a budget and use up what you have in your cupboards. Now it’s time to avoid food waste, with the fresh food first challenge. 

There are so many ingredients - like fruit, vegetables and meat - that tend to ‘go off’ quickly so this challenge is all about using them first, rather than cooking up store cupboard ingredients that last longer. Here’s what you’ll need to make a vibrant one-pan baked chicken dish for a delicious lunch...

What you’ll need:

2 chicken breasts

2 garlic cloves

Half a courgette

1 red pepper

1 large onion

Half a pomegranate

1 carrot

Juice of half a lemon

Handful fresh coriander

Salt & pepper

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp paprika

How to do it:

Preheat the oven to 210 degrees Celsius.

Crush the garlic. Roughly chop the chicken, red pepper, onion and courgette into 2x2cm chunks. Slice the carrot into thin slices. Place everything into a large baking tray, add the oil, cumin, paprika, some salt & pepper. Mix well so all ingredients are coated.

Bake for 20-25 mins until cooked through and browned slightly.

Remove from the oven, plate up, squeeze over the lemon juice and top with coriander & pomegranate seeds. Yum!

These four challenges are great ways to prepare you for a more independent life where cooking and budgeting plays a big role…if you’ve enjoyed testing yourself over the past four weeks, why not challenge your friends and family too. And don’t forget to tag us @NCS with your culinary creations!

Challenge #3: Recipes on a budget

Two challenges down, two more to go! And now it’s time to turn up the heat with a super low-cost, delicious recipe. Yep, this week it’s all about great food, on a budget. And we’re making a simple tomato spaghetti dish, which also happens to be vegan!

The four main ingredients cost around £2 in total if you buy more basic supermarket brands. This recipe is also great if you have little kitchen experience so it’s definitely worth a shot.

What you’ll need:

300g dried spaghetti

2 garlic cloves

2 large white onions

2 tins of chopped tomatoes

1 mug of boiling water

2 tsp sugar

Salt & pepper

Optional topping - handful of coriander/basil

How to do it:

First off, peel and crush the garlic, and peel and dice the onions. Fry both in a large frying pan on low heat in oil for about 10 minutes, or until soft.

Add the chopped tomatoes, sugar, boiling water & generously season with salt & pepper. Simmer for 15 minutes on a low heat.

Put the spaghetti in a large saucepan with about 700ml boiling water and cook for 10-12 minutes or until soft.

When cooked, drain the spaghetti and add to the sauce. Mix through thoroughly, plate up, add basil/coriander if you want...and enjoy!

Challenge #2: What’s in the cupboard?

If you took part in last week’s challenge, you’ll know how to make the ultimate banana cake. We’ve raised the bar this week and challenge you to avoid food waste, by creating something based on what you have in your cupboards. 

There's usually the odd potato or vegetable hanging around, so why not put these bits and bobs together with some added flavour and ingredients, and create something delicious! 

What you’ll need:

1 medium potato
1 red onion
1 garlic clove 
7x7cm chunk cauliflower 
1 tTsp Madras spice mix 
Salt & pepper 
Optional topping – handful of fresh parsley

How to do it:

To start off, peel and crush the garlic clove, slice the onion, chop the cauliflower into small florets and dice the potato into roughly 2x2cm chunks. 

In a large frying pan, add a drizzle of oil and the spices and heat on medium heat for 30 seconds. Add the garlic, potato, cauliflower (or any other veg) and a splash of water. Fry on low heat for 3-4 mins.

Add the onion and season with salt & pepper. Put a lid on the pan and fry for another 5-6 mins until the veg is softer but not mushy. Add another splash of water if the pan starts to dry out.

When cooked, serve up with some fresh parsley and enjoy!

Challenge #1: Ultimate banana bread

During lockdown, it seemed that everyone went a bit banana bread bonkers! So, to kick off our series, we’re starting with this familiar, simple and delicious recipe by Lauren. Grab your browning bananas and get baking!

What you’ll need:

3 ripe bananas
3 eggs
230g self-raising flour
200g caster sugar
200g butter
1 Tsp baking powder

How to do it:

Preheat the oven to 170°C. Using a fork, mash the bananas on a plate until smooth with small lumps.

Beat the eggs in a small mixing bowl/mug.

Beat the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl (I slightly melt the butter first). Add the flour, baking powder, banana and eggs.

If you wanted to vary the recipe a little, you could add a handful of chocolate chips or some nuts if you have either in your cupboards.

Grease a baking tin (mine was roughly 25cm x 25cm) and lightly dust with flour. Pour in the mixture and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.

Then, slice it, serve it and wait for the ‘mmmmm’s’!