$JES 983 Being Jain In College An Experiential Guide 2nd Edition

Author(s): Sonali Vakharia
Publisher: JAINA Education Committee

Page 11

FOOD AVAILABILITY
you're interested in eating. Give them simple recipes that work for your dietary needs. It's important to start this process early for best results. If a cafeteria is your primary option, make sure you try the different options that are available to you. You never know what you will like until you've tried it. Haven't gone to the salad bar yet? Create a garden of awesome on your plate. Never been a fan of the whole veggie burger concept? Dress up a veggie pattie in a new way, and give it a shot. It's relatively low in calories and high in protein and fiber -- a great combination. Many cafeterias will also have stir-fry stations. So as not to cook your dish on a pan that recently cooked meat, you can politely request the cook to use a clean or new pan. They will happily do so.
3. Make Grocery Shopping Fun Thirdly, go to grocery stores using a car or public transportation. Don't have a car? Get a group together with someone that does -- classmates, dorm mates, fraternity/sorority members, or club members. You loved going to the grocery store when you were a kid, so why does that have to stop now? Buy foods that are filling and healthy, and, of course, get some comfort foods for stressful times! Use your common dorm refrigerator (label your foods so people don't take them!) or buy a small refrigerator.
4. Deep Freeze Meals from Home What else did I do? I bought a 5-cubic-feet deep freezer and stocked up my mom's food for months and months. Every time my parents came to visit, they would bring coolers full of individuallypackaged food (mostly Indian food). Trust me when I say this, you will definitely miss home food. Pizza can get tiring after a while. The small containers were purchased in bulk from Gordon Food Service (www.gfs.com). When I traveled home, I would carry tote bags of food back when I could. This basically allowed for me to store home food for long periods of time. I am almost positive all of you will find more options than I did, and eating home food is not the only way to go. But the point is, if I could make it with my limited diet and limited options, so will you! But, whatever you do, avoid filling up on just Maggi noodles!
BEING JAIN IN COLLEGE