Every college student has gone through that phase where they eat disgustingly cheap meals to save money. I’m not a doctor, so the meals I’m about to list aren’t the healthiest options. However, they are some of the cheapest options. Without further ado, here are some of the most disgustingly cheap meals I’ve stuffed down my throat over the past few years:
1. Ramen – I think every college student eats at least one bowl of ramen noodles during their collegiate career. It’s cheap, it tastes good, and it’s not very healthy — the epitome of a college meal. For the health conscious, add some vegetables to give it more nutritional value and make it a more rounded meal.
2. $1 Menu – I have a love/hate relationship with fast food. I loved it, then I hated it, and now I hate to love it. It’s cheap, it tastes good, and it’s not that healthy. I see a pattern here. Fast food chains do offer healthier options now, so you can eat healthy if you choose.
3. Soup – Make a pot of soup and it’ll usually last you at least a week. If you’re too lazy to make your own, canned soup is also really cheap, and it goes on sale frequently.
4. Burritos – Bean and cheese burritos are one of the cheapest and easiest meals to fix. Burritos are great because it’s easy to add in new ingredients, so you don’t get tired of eating the same thing over and over again.
5. PBJs – These are great because you can mix them up too — PBH (peanut butter and honey), PBB (peanut butter and bananas), PBP (peanut butter and pickles). The combinations are endless.
6. Free food at campus events – I can’t even begin to remember how much free food I’ve consumed at campus events. If you tried really hard, you could probably find free food at some event on campus every day of the week.
7. Frozen dinners (the cheap ones) – Yes, I’m talking about the 10 for $10 frozen dinners. Quite possibly the most disgustingly cheap meals I’ve ever eaten.
8. Half price appetizers – A lot of restaurants have half price appetizers during happy hour. It’s a great deal as long as you don’t blow all the money you save on extra drinks. 
9. Hot dogs – There’s nothing like a juicy hot dog to the get the day started. They have healthier hot dogs nowadays, but I still prefer the beef franks.
10. From the garden – Here’s one that I have yet to try, but my parents have been doing this for as long as I can remember. Growing your own food in a garden is great because you save money, and you know exactly where your food is coming from. Depending on where you go to college (urban vs. rural), this may or may not be an option for you.
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From the garden – try sprouts, cheap, makes lots, ready in 3-5 days. Also, windowsill gardening: lettuce, chard, baby carrots, spinach. Check for books at your local library.
Hi! Nice list!
I’ve added your chart to the NCN Network…
Thanks for joining – good luck!
NCN
@Bellen – Thanks for the suggestions!
@NCN – Thanks for adding my chart to the NCN Network!
My favorite quick and cheap meal in college was a baked potato topped with salt, pepper, and a scoop of cottage cheese. I also made my own egg drop soup with a handful of noodles, a stock cube, a few frozen veggies, and a beaten egg.
Ah, good times.
You can also get mini pizzas 2/$1. I used to pop one in my toaster oven for lunch (microwaving them, they taste gross to me).
And adding an egg to instant noodles right at the end makes it way more delicious.