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Cooking for college

McKenzie Graham

With movies like Ratatouille, Julie and Julia, Chocolat, No Reservations and the newly released Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, it's no wonder cooking is more accessible now than ever. The Food Network was even nominated for 10 Daytime Emmys this year, winning three. At first glance, this exciting culinary sensation may seem to have flown over the heads of those of us who live in cramped quarters with no kitchen or one that has little more than a sink, but there is more depth to the flavor of rural Ohio than its student inhabitants may have thought.

The students

Stir-fry- the No. 1 go-to meal for off-campus students with the room and supplies to make them.

Otherwise he'll just stick to the old standby, a turkey sandwich.

Why choose a sandwich instead of a well-balanced meal?

"My kitchen isn't usually 'clean' by conventional standards," Keller said.

Senior Nat Ratcliff said he agreed.

"If you're making a very complex meal, everything has to be washed by hand," Ratcliff said.

Even though whipping out the scrubbers and soap takes more effort than popping an Uncle Ben's Spicy Mexican Rice in the microwave, Ratcliff takes time out to make the real thing.

Ratcliff said his favorite dinner to make is cheese and chicken enchiladas.

He said marinades for the chicken are ones of the easier ways to experiment with cooking.

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Not all the students are so eager to try cooking.

Hannah McMillan said although she usually cooks stir-fry, typically anything she can make in five minutes, like frozen dinners, are her nightly choice.

McMillan said she uses fresh produce about once per month, but when she does buy frozen dinners, she goes for "Healthy Choice meals or the healthier of the frozen dinners."

Try making ... Ramen?

English Professor Anita Mannur said there are ways to be creative with Ramen, but it's all about the condiments.

Mannur, a published author on South Asian cuisine describes the versatility of Ramen noodles, she said you can think of (Ramen) as a building block and then add what you like into it.

For a package of noodles that costs less than 50 cents, some spiffed up Ramen sounds pretty good. One spice you won't find in her noodles is curry.

"I'm not a fan of curry powder because I think that's something that no native (to India) actually uses, but if you want an Indian-ish flavor in your food, chili powder is a good one," Mannur said.

Besides college staples like our favorite packaged noodle, there are other simple recipes with relatively little work and a tasty result.

Cody Ginther, the head chef at Paesano's who trained in Napa Valley, breaks down a simple marinara sauce.

Of course marinara is used all over the culinary board. Use it to dip mozzarella sticks, make homemade pizza or enjoy it over pasta.

Matt Laroche, executive chef at both 45 East and Brick Street, said another easy dinner to make is a salad.

"Salads are really simple and with fresh ingredients you can make a good one," Laroche said "Use any leafy green (arugula's got a good bite to it), throw in some of your favorite nuts such as pecans or cashews, some fruits like apple or dried cranberries and any kind of cheese. Typically if you like all the ingredients, it'll taste good".

Supersize MU

Bagel and Deli, D.P. Dough, Taco Bell ... it all sounds like the best meal you'll ever eat at around 1 a.m. on the weekends. And you won't be ordering a salad.

Senior Emily Spurlin, a dietetics major, said late night eating after nights of drinking and eating a lot of food from uptown add up over time and become unhealthy without moderation. Of course when you combine the two, it's even worse.

"Anything can be okay, if not eaten all the time," Spurlin said.

Spurlin studies sports nutrition, community wellness and food science. Often, she said, bad calories are deceitful.

"You might think sauteed mushrooms sound wonderful, but sauteed usually means fried in a pan with oil so that adds a lot of fat and calories ... although olive oil isn't necessarily a bad thing," Spurlin said.

Another healthy tip that almost seems cliche it's said so often: eat breakfast.

"You're body goes into starvation mode when you're sleeping," Spurlin said. "So the longer you wait to eat, the more your body will want to absorb from the first meal you eat ... if you're going to eat bread for toast in the morning, try to do whole grains or add an egg for protein".

Scott Downing, a seventh generation apple farmer, said the Oxford farmers market is the best market he attends. Downing said it's a good social event and the students enjoy bringing their dogs and walking around.

Downing won the national apple cider contest twice. He sells at the market and also at his fall festival, which takes place Oct. 3 and 4 at Downing Fruit Farm in New Madison, Ohio. Walking through the orchard you just might find his Downing Land Apple, the farm's very own creative hybrid.

Unwrapped

The old Kroger building where the Culinary Support Center (CSC) now stands holds the vast majority of what on campus students eat on a regular basis. In one day alone, the CSC washes, slices and packages more than 3,600 pounds of lettuce, mixes more than 600 pounds of pizza dough and makes 80 gallons of chili. All of this is stored in its proper place, whether in a massive freezer, dry storage, ingredient room or produce processing center. If food made in vats and big frozen rooms creeps you out, no worries.

Paula Green, associate director for dining and culinary services, said the market at MacCracken is set up like a grocery store so students can get their own ingredients.

"Cooking is a life skill, and we're happy to help," Green said.

In fact, the CSC offers theme-based cooking classes throughout the year. Green said they focus not only on the theme of the class such as Asian cooking or gingerbread house-making, but also the basics like knife skills and how to measure.

Mannur said knives are important.

Even if better-made knives are more expensive, you can get by with a single good chef's knife. A middle range chef's knife averages about $100.

Outside of utensils, Mannur said she believes less is more.

"One sauce pan and one frying pan is enough," she said.

Even if buying the actual supplies is somewhat pricey, Laroche said you're saving money any time you cook for yourself.

"With the food cost and labor cost and the cost of running a business, it's going to be more expensive to go out to eat than it would to be to buy the ingredients and make it at home," Laroche said.

Laroche said he recommends buying a few books on the basics of cooking. He added that the Midwest Culinary Institute at Cincinnati State offers classes outside of their degree program called creations community cooking focused on basic skills, soups, chocolate, etc. To register, call (513) 569-1643 for more information. But if classes seem too daunting and you're feeling spontaneous tonight, try making some Ramen. Cooking might be easier than you think.


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