Easy student recipes

Student recipes needn’t be boring. We’ve selected easy recipes that are cheap, quick and tasty, to help you eat well as you study or if you’re heading off to university for the first time. Some of our favourite cheap student meals include tuna and broccoli pasta bake, spaghetti bolognese and a warming veggie chilli.

Get some basic student recipes under your belt, including a classic tomato sauce, smashed avocado on toast and traditional pancakes for Shrove Tuesday – plus chocolate cookies to share with new friends.

With a few ingredients, you can transform cheap student meal staples like rice, pasta and eggs into dishes like sausage, fennel and mascarpone orzo, smoky jollof or turmeric eggs with spinach. Lentils are another great option – try our red lentil dal or coconut dal – and you can swap the packaged stuff for the real deal with our easy chicken ramen bowls.

Lucky enough to have an air fryer at university? Our air fryer chicken breast salad is a must-make, along with a speedy marinated air fryer salmon.

If you need to stretch that student budget, check out the rest of our budget recipes and cheap healthy ideas, too.

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Air fryer baked potatoes

Air fryer recipes

Air fryer baked potatoes

If you like your baked potatoes extra crisp, an air fryer is the way to go – it saves energy...

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Dal dhokli

Lentil recipes

Dal dhokli

Dal dhokli is a traditional Gujarati dish of thin, silky dal with dumplings. Nisha Parmar shares her recipe, which makes...

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Moujadara (Lebanese rice and lentils)

Rice recipes

Moujadara (Lebanese rice and lentils)

Food writer Angela Zaher shares her recipe for moujadara. This traditional Lebanese dish of rice and lentils is served with...

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Fridge-raid thoran

Sustainable recipes

Fridge-raid thoran

Spice up your leftover greens with this bright, tropical thoran. It’s a particularly useful recipe to have on hand after...

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Parsnip, carrot and red lentil dal

Lentil recipes

Parsnip, carrot and red lentil dal

Sweet root vegetables give a twist on coconut dal in this simple vegan supper. Parsnips and carrots are cooked with...

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Turmeric eggs with spinach and pickled shallots

Brunch recipes

Turmeric eggs with spinach and pickled shallots

The spinach yogurt base in this delicious turmeric eggs recipe takes inspiration from Turkish eggs. The eggs are fried in...

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Air fryer sausage and pepper stew

Air fryer recipes

Air fryer sausage and pepper stew

If you’ve never made sausages in the air fryer, we implore you to try it! They become perfectly browned (like...

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Sriracha tofu with shaved broccoli and edamame salad

Tofu recipes

Sriracha tofu with shaved broccoli and edamame salad

This sticky, spicy tofu is a genuine crowd pleaser. Cook it right, and you’ll even bring round the tofu-sceptics. Serve...

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Mediterranean feta pasta salad

July seasonal recipes

Mediterranean feta pasta salad

Classic Greek salad meets crowdpleasing pasta salad in this Mediterranean hybrid. Fresh seasonal veg, sun-dried tomatoes and a big block...

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Sticky peanut butter aubergines and lentils

Aubergine recipes

Sticky peanut butter aubergines and lentils

Criss-crossing, then roasting aubergines provides an incredible vehicle for flavour, as any aromatic paste spread on top will gently melt...

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Super herby tabbouleh

Working from home lunch recipes

Super herby tabbouleh

Tabbouleh is one of those rare dishes where herbs are treated as the star important ingredient, rather than a garnish...

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Creamy vegan cashew and artichoke pasta

Nut recipes

Creamy vegan cashew and artichoke pasta

Whizzed cashews provide the perfect base for creamy vegan sauces, as this super-quick pasta recipe demonstrates. Lightened with lemon and...

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Sausage, fennel and mascarpone orzo

30-minute meal recipes

Sausage, fennel and mascarpone orzo

This orzo is richly delicious and makes use of the classic flavour combo of sausage and fennel. The sauce is...

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Chicken sausage casserole

Casserole recipes

Chicken sausage casserole

This deeply satisfying one-pot combines light chicken sausages, beloved chorizo and creamy beans and chickpeas in a rich tomato sauce....

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Spaghetti aglio e olio

Easy student recipes

Spaghetti aglio e olio

Aglio e olio is simple Italian cooking at its finest. Originally from Naples, this pasta dish shows how just a...

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Orzo carbonara

Easy dinner party mains

Orzo carbonara

It certainly won’t please any Italians, but making carbonara with orzo instead of the more usual spaghetti or rigatoni creates...

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