Any college student who has the responsibility of cooking for themselves knows the internal debate over having another bowl of buttered noodles, a frozen pizza, or simply ordering take–out. Half the battle of cooking is knowing what to make and the other half is knowing how to make it. These are three cooks across three different platforms that will help students with varying skill sets improve their home cooking. Not only will these simple recipes be satisfying, but they may also impress your friends and family.  

First, is YouTube chef J. Kenji López-Alt. López-Alt is a children’s book author, New York Times food columnist and the chief culinary advisor for Serious Eats. He is also the head chef at Wursthall, a German-inspired California beer hall, and restaurant. Despite having an impressive presence in the culinary community, Kenji’s YouTube channel only has eighty-eight thousand followers. The videos that are uploaded are a really good mix of simple and complex meals. López-Alt’s food ranges from different types of pizza, burgers, and Kenji even taps into his Japanese roots and shows his viewers how to make traditional Japanese cuisine. He also includes videos on the best kitchen cleaners, how to properly sharpen knives, and some of his cooking videos feature other well-known chefs with their own tips and tricks. Overall, this YouTube channel can easily teach college students the basics, as well as help them explore more into the world of cooking.  

Next, is a food blog with a large presence on Instagram. Smitten Kitchen is a fourteen-year-old blog that celebrates the art of unfussy cooking. This website promotes classic comfort foods such as bread, birthday cakes, and pasta, but all made from scratch and stepped up a level. Deb Perelman, the writer, and cook of Smitten Kitchen is a mother of two living in the East Village with her husband Alex. Before making cooking her beloved full-time occupation, Perelman worked as a store shift supervisor, an art therapist, and a technology reporter. The beauty of this food blog is Perelman understands wanting quick and easy meals that taste delicious. Under the recipes tab on the Smitten Kitchen website viewers can pick and choose certain categories, so they have the ability to cook what is in their house. Which saves the trip to the grocery store. This food blog is wonderful for students that crave a home-cooked meal and even students who wish to try their hand at baking. Perelman offers full-length recipes on both her Instagram and website and some videos as well.  

Finally, there is the adorable grandmother who made a name for herself on TikTok. Lynn Yamada Davis or “CookingwithLynia” started TikTok in March at the beginning of the first Covid-19 lockdown with the help of her son, Tim. In the beginning, Lynn wanted to stick to the traditional format of cooking videos, but once Davis and her son started to have more fun with video production that’s when “CookingwithLynjia” gained more recognition.  Davis’s claim to fame on TikTok was her bacon, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich. That when she realized that making simple and easy–to–follow recipes was the way to go. This TikTok features smoothies, fun desserts, and ramen with a peanut sauce. This vibrant grandmother is definitely aimed toward college students who love effortless cooking.  

Elise Unterseher is a Dakota Student Arts and Community Editor. She can be reached at [email protected]