2 min read·No Kitchen

Cooking on a budget with a kettle

At some point, you may find yourself with nothing but a kettle, but even this simple appliance has the potential to whip up affordable meals.

Key points

Kettles don’t take up much space in cramped quarters and are easy to take along
Beyond hot drinks they can be used to prepare quick meals from fairly affordable ingredients
Office workers, students, hotel guests, and campers often turn to kettles for food preparation
Even in a standard kitchen kettles are useful, since they boil water faster than stovetops or microwaves, and at a lower cost.

Sometimes just hot tea, coffee, or cocoa can provide some energy and lift the mood. But a kettle can do so much more.

Boiling water is perfect for rehydrating a wide range of ingredients. Even though those ingredients may be more costly, preparing kettle meals is definitely cheaper than buying take-out meals.

Here are some ideas for inspiration:

Instant oatmeal: Cheap comfort food that ticks all the boxes. Easy to prepare, healthy, satisfying, and versatile. After pouring boiling water over the oats and waiting 3 minutes, the dish is ready for sweet or savory toppings.

Instant Oatmeal by fit foodie Finds'

Instant noodles: Loved and consumed by billions of people around the globe. Quick to prepare, quite affordable, and available in a wide variety of flavours. After pouring boiling water over the noodles and adding seasonings, the dish is ready to eat in minutes. When additional cooking appliances are available, the ways to elevate ramen are endless.

Ramen hacks by serious eats

Instant potatoes, rice, and couscous: These staples are easy to prepare by adding boiling water. Butter, green onions, and seasonings add nutrition and taste to these simple dishes.

For mashed potatoes, sour cream, shredded cheese, milk powder, and garlic salt are great additions.

Soy sauce adds a boost of savory umami flavor to plain instant rice. Leftover rice is also a good starting point for rice salad.

Instant couscous tastes better with the addition of cumin and turmeric, parsley, mint, or lemon juice. It is also a great base for a cold dish such as tabouleh.

Here are some meal suggestions: