Low-Cost Healthy Vegetarian Meals for Students
Cheap, simple vegetarian meals a student can cook with one pan or a pressure cooker: a starter pantry, ten meals and tips to eat well on a small budget.
HealthyDietDaily Editorial Team · · Updated
Living away from home on a student budget often means instant noodles, biscuits and late-night takeaway. They are quick, but they leave you hungry, tired and short of money by the end of the month. With a pressure cooker or a single pan, a few basic ingredients and half an hour, you can cook meals that are cheaper and far more nourishing.
A starter pantry for students
Buy these once and top them up as needed:
Grains: rice, whole wheat atta or ready rotis, poha, dalia or oats.
Pulses: moong dal, masoor dal, a packet of rajma or chana, soya chunks.
Basics: oil, salt, turmeric, chilli powder, cumin, garam masala, ginger-garlic paste.
Long-lasting vegetables: onions, potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, cabbage.
Protein extras: eggs (if you eat them), peanuts, roasted chana, milk or curd.
Fruit: bananas and seasonal fruit from the local market.
Ten cheap, healthy meals
1. Masoor dal and rice
Masoor cooks quickly without soaking. Add tomato, turmeric and a simple tadka, and eat with rice and sliced onion.
2. Vegetable khichdi
Moong dal, rice and whatever vegetables you have, cooked together in a pressure cooker. Eat with curd.
3. Egg bhurji with rotis
Scramble two eggs with onion, tomato and chilli. Cheap, fast and protein-rich.
4. Soya chunk curry
Soak soya chunks, squeeze them, and cook in an onion-tomato masala with potatoes or peas.
5. Rajma or chana curry
Soak overnight and pressure cook. Make enough for two days and freeze or refrigerate the rest.
6. Vegetable poha
Poha with onion, peas, peanuts and lemon is a cheap breakfast or dinner.
7. Aloo-matar with dal
A classic, filling combination that costs very little.
8. Dalia with vegetables
Broken wheat cooked with vegetables like a khichdi; filling and fibre-rich.
9. Besan chilla
Besan, water, onion and spices make a quick protein-rich meal with no soaking.
10. Curd rice with peanuts
Leftover rice mixed with curd and a tempering of mustard seeds and peanuts.
A sample three-day student menu
Day 1: poha with peanuts for breakfast, masoor dal and rice for lunch, egg or soya bhurji with rotis for dinner.
Day 2: curd with a banana for breakfast, leftover dal with rotis and a quick cabbage sabzi for lunch, vegetable khichdi for dinner.
Day 3: besan chilla for breakfast, rajma and rice for lunch, rajma rolled into rotis with onions for dinner.
Add a fruit and a handful of roasted chana or peanuts on each day as snacks.
How to save money and time
Cook once, eat twice: make dal or rajma for two meals.
Share cooking with friends: pooling ingredients and taking turns cuts costs.
Shop at local markets: seasonal vegetables are cheaper than packaged ones.
Limit takeaway and instant noodles to occasional treats.
Carry water and a snack so you are not tempted by vending machines.
Keeping food safe in a hostel or PG room
Without a fridge, cook only what you will eat that day. If you do have one, cool leftovers and refrigerate them quickly, and eat them within a day or two. Keep raw foods away from cooked ones, wash hands before cooking, and keep the cooking area clean; these basics prevent much foodborne illness.
Balancing your plate
Aim for a protein (dal, egg, soya, curd or chana), a vegetable and a grain in each main meal, and get your protein from a variety of sources such as pulses, dairy and eggs. If you eat mostly in the mess, see our guide to healthy eating in hostels.
A note on safety
If you feel constantly tired, lose weight without trying or have health conditions such as anaemia or diabetes, see a doctor. Food allergies and conditions that need special diets should be discussed with a doctor or registered dietitian. Read our medical disclaimer.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest healthy meal I can cook?
Dal with rice or khichdi with vegetables is among the cheapest and most balanced meals in Indian cooking.
Is instant noodles once a week bad?
An occasional packet is fine. Add vegetables and an egg to make it more filling, and do not make it a daily meal.
Do I need a lot of equipment?
A pressure cooker or one deep pan, a ladle, a knife and a chopping board are enough for most of these meals.
Key takeaways
Keep a simple pantry of dal, rice, atta, soya, eggs and long-lasting vegetables, cook one-pot meals in batches and store food safely. For more budget ideas see healthy Indian meals on a budget, and get a free plan built around what you eat with the assessment.