Ideas for meals for picky teen for Uni

[Itsadoglife]

I wonder if anyone could give me some ideas of some recipes/things that my daughter can cook at Uni. She is quite a picky eater and has some sensory issues around textures. Things she likes are:-

Carrots
Brocolli
Gravy
Chicken
Peas
Sweetcorn
Tuna
Cucumber
Raw peppers
Letters
Fruit wise she will only really eat Strawberries and Apples
Bread
Mashed potato
Bird's Eye chicken quarter pounder burgers (the ones with like crispy rice on the outside)
Quorn chicken nuggets
Pizza
She does quite like stew, but the beef needs to melt in the mouth - if it is chewy it will freak her out

Big no's for her are:

Beef (she will eat Lasagne but doesn't like bolognese, but her handling of meat isn't great)
Lamb
Pork
Nothing with a bone in
Fish (apart from tinned Tuna)
Cooked peppers
Tomatoes
Anything spicy

I'm finding it a bit of a nightmare finding things to feed her myself to be honest that are full of nutrients and vitamins - she ate anything as a child, but has got worse and worse as she has got older. Given half a chance, I'm sure she would live on brown food :-( She made a stir fry last night - but cooked the carrots and veg first as she didn't want it al dente, she prefers it mushy. I would really like to help her with teaching her to cook some nice easy things she could replicate when she goes to uni in September next year.

Any ideas would be most appreciated!

considering you’ve already invested a lot of time trying to find things she likes I’d concentrate on teaching her those. Or at least the basics of rice, eggs, pasta etc.

There are lots of student cook books. Buy a few and see if anything inspires?

I’d also get her a slow cooker. If she likes falling apart meat she can leave whatever cut in she likes.

to be honest though once she’s responsible for her own meals she’ll either live on brown food or start getting creative. Nothing you can do :)

My dd went off to uni with containers so that she can eat leftovers on other days. She doesn't mind eating the same meal 2 or 3 days in a row.

On days that she cba, she gets things like prepackaged salads from salad bars, packets of ramen topped with precooked chicken or veggies.

Does your dd eat eggs or bread/wraps? Eggs are often my go to quick meal and bread/wraps are cheap and can be toasted so it's crunchy (it sounds like your dd likes crunchy food) Raw veggies would make any wrap or sandwich healthier whether they were inside or on the side.

Thank you both for your suggestions - eggs definitely a yes. A student cook book is a great idea, thank you!

It sounds like she could make some really nutricious salads- does she like any dressings?
The veg including lettuce, chicken, some dressing and some sort of carb- maybe boiled potatoes or quinoa/rice if she manage it would be quite hearty.

She can make a roast dinner with chicken, roast veg, spuds and gravy

www.nigella.com/recipes/chicken-and-pea-traybake this?

Burgers with sweet potato fries (or normal spud if she can't manage sweet pots) and some roasted broccoli (or boiled for mushness)

Pasta bake can have mushy veg and uses up leftovers too. Tuna sweetcorn, veg, chicken, etc

a slow cooker could be great for mushy veg- chunky soups maybe? Leek and potato or cheese and broccoli could go down well and low skill level required

Something that is pretty nutritious, and easy is a rice base, steamed vegetables she likes, topped with a fried egg, seasoned with some soy sauce, sesame oil and maybe chili etc if she enjoys that.

If she doesn't handle cooking meat well, would she enjoy something like the Vegetarian Richmond sausages, they are good and less of a problem to cook, they come frozen now too, so can cook only what's needed.

Jacket potato? Macaroni cheese? Tuna pasta bake? Chicken wraps?

This is delicious and she can exclude the bits she doesn't like, so just leave the chicken and sweetcorn.

www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/chicken-noodle-soup

Pesto pasta
Egg fried rice
udon noodle broths

All can have chicken or whatever veg in she will eat

tray bakes with Whatevwr combination she likes. Ie sausage, veg, new potatoes. Can cook double and just microwave leftovers next day

I bought copies of Nosh for Students by Joy May for both my kids. They love it, and the recipes are actually pretty good - I use a few of them myself.

Mine hated handling meat so she chose a veggie cookbook before she went to uni. She also used various forms of quorn instead of meat.

I bought my 16 year old a copy of Nosh for Students so he could practice cooking the dishes and he's enjoyed it, but is not a fussy eater. The veggie one might be better for your dd

Stir fries - chicken, tofu
Fajitas - chicken/tofu/quorn mince
Pasta with any mix of veg, chicken, ham, cheese sauce, cream cheese etc or pesto/stir in sauces
Egg fried rice with added veg, chicken, ham etc
Soup/broth/ramen type bowls
Microwave rice pouches (different flavours) with chicken, nuggets etc
Spag bol type thing/chilli with quorn instead of mince

My DD has just started uni. Is pretty fussy and also has a gluten intolerance so limited options. However, at hte moment, she is so tired with all the new experiences, combined with having to look after herself - shopping, washing etc that cooking needs to be very quick and easy.

The other thing to remember is that they have very little space - usually a single fridge shelf and single freezer drawer if they are lucky, and a cupboard for dry food, crockery, utensils etc. Most of DDs store cupboard ingredients are under her bed in her room

Will she eat chickpeas and/or beans?

Could she batch cook some tuna and sweetcorn fishcakes, fairly simple but easier to make a batch in one go and freeze.
Chicken skewers, using chicken breast marinated in lemon and garlic. Easy to pop in the oven an£ serve with salad and a wrap or pita.
Is all pork out? No bacon or sausages. If so she could use chicken or veggie sausages to make sausage and mash, toad in the hole.

If your dd likes mash potato, would she eat the insides of a baked potato? Cook in microwave then finish in the oven, it can be done in 20min, then you can add tuna/cheese and have with veg or salad.

Also, does she eat breakfast cereals? Sainsbury's GF muesli is cheap and filling.

The air fryers are handy for students. You can do the nuggets or crumbed chicken in them from frozen. Sausages too and potato waffles.
As suggested the sachets of microwaveable rice are handy. She could add cooked chicken pieces or tuna. Or make burritos by sticking it in a wrap.
You can do boiled eggs in the air fryer too. She can microwave potatoes. Buy her some multivitamins too if you are really worried.

Not only student books but ones like Jamie Oliver's Five Ingredients, Nigella's Express are really good.

Chicken Caesar salad? We often have this as a main in summer.

Majority of the ingredients are optional, so she can pick and choose what does and doesn't go in it.

Lettuce, cooked chicken, Ceasar dressings are really the only mandatory bits. Chicken isn't mandatory either, but I saw its something she likes and would add protein.

Options extras: boiled eggs quartered, crispy bacon, grated parmesan, croutons, anchovies.

These ideas are all brilliant thank you 🙏🏻

DS is 21 now, and I had similar concerns. Tbh, I think it's all in vain. He ate microwave meals for the first year despite being sent off with student recipe books etc. My advice is emphasise the need for some fruit and veg, even if it's just fruit juice, and maybe buy some multivitamin and mineral supplements.

The options you’ve given all make a great variety of pasta bakes
also great variety of pies
pasties
savoury and sweet crumbles
risotto
egg fried rice
fritata
tortilla
Orzo pasta bake
filled pasta