Batch cooking is one of the best things you can do for your bank balance at uni. Spend a couple of hours cooking something big and thank yourself for the rest of the week. It also means nothing gets wasted, and that makes us pretty chuffed too.
These six meals are the ones worth making in bulk – all cheap, freezer-friendly, and all a lot better than an overpriced takeaway 🍲
🍚 Lentil dhal
A bag of red lentils costs around £1 and makes five or six portions. It’s one of the most filling things you can cook for under 60p a bowl. Reheat straight from frozen in a pan with a splash of water and serve with naan, rice or pitta for your dinner. Try this red lentil dahl.
🫘 Chilli con carne
One pot of chilli can give you four or five completely different meals for the week- over rice, in wraps or on a jacket potato. Want to make it more budget friendly? Swap half the mince for kidney beans without losing any of the deliciousness. Try this version for around £1.23 a serving →
🍠 Creamy sweet potato soup
Sweet potatoes are cheap, filling, and blend into something that tastes quite luxurious. Roast them first for maximum flavour, blitz with stock and a few warm spices, and you’ve got a delicious soup that freezes for up to three months. Serve with crusty bread for a hearty meal. Try this easy recipe →
🥕 Minestrone soup
The ultimate fridge-clearout recipe. Any veg that needs using, tinned tomatoes, stock and cannellini beans. The key freezer tip: leave the pasta out before you freeze it, then cook a fresh handful when you reheat.This BBC Good Food recipe is a solid starting point, but the whole point is to use whatever you’ve got already!
🍅 Tomato pasta sauce
A rich, garlicky tomato sauce is one of the most useful things you can have ready-to-go in your freezer. Make a big batch, freeze it in portions and you’re always ten minutes away from tomato pasta for dinner. It also works as a pizza base, a chilli starter, or a soup base.Jamie Oliver’s hero tomato sauce was made for exactly this.
🍛 Potato and cauliflower curry
Warming, filling, and made almost entirely from cheap cupboard staples. Potatoes and cauliflower simmer down with tinned tomatoes, spices and a swirl of yoghurt at the end. The best bit? It freezes for up to six months.The Kitchn’s potato and cauliflower curry is a great weeknight version
Batch cook, freeze properly, and you’ll always have something delicious for dinner – without spending a fortune or letting anything go to waste.And remember, you can always share leftover ingredients on Olio.