You may love cooking at home, but cooking in a hostel kitchen poses a whole new level of challenges.
Not only are you trying to navigate ingredients and grocery shopping in a foreign language, but you are sharing the kitchen space and limited equipment with a whole heap of other travellers.
But, cooking while travelling doesn’t need to be stressful or expensive!
Cooking your own meals in your hostel kitchen can save you huge amounts of money that can help you extend your trip or go towards amazing activities instead.
So don’t stress!
The key is to have a solid routine of predictable but delicious meals, with cheap ingredients available in most countries, makes choosing your dinner a no-brainer part of the daily routine.
In countries across South East Asia, where hostel kitchens are practically non-existent due to low-cost restaurants and availability of street food, this is unlikely to be a major concern for you. However, if you are travelling across Europe, Australia, or North & South America, you are bound to end up cooking in your hostel for at least part of your trip.
Allow us to put your mind at ease and share our top tips and hostel meal ideas for a stress-free backpacker cooking experience!
THE INSPO: Hostel Meal Ideas
Breakfast
Free hostel breakfast!!!
Seriously, do your research before choosing the property & aim for a place that includes breakfast.
It may not seem like much, but the small savings each day really add up.
If you have a beloved breakfast condiment from home, bring it with you if possible. I know a lot of Aussies travel with a tube or small jar of Vegemite which can easily jazz up that free hostel toast. I’ve seen other travellers bring their own maple syrup or hot sauce with them.
No free breakfast available? That’s ok.
Our Breakfast go-to’s:
- Scrambled Eggs – & add tinned tuna, mushroom, or onion
- Omelette + cheap local ingredients (e.g. mushroom, tomato, grated cheese, any vegetables)
- Oats (these can also be saved & stored in your spice bag!)
- Toast, peanut butter & banana (generally cheap ingredients, peanut butter can be taken with you)
- Tortilla wraps (scrambled egg, avocado, tomato etc.)
- Fruit & yoghurt – use frozen fruit such as berries if it’s cheaper! Buy a small or large yoghurt tub depending on how long you are staying in one spot
- Cereal – good old cereal can be a great cheap option depending on where you are in the world. Our favourites are muesli, granola, or Weet-Bix.
I also travel with my own stash of tea bags as I love my Earl Grey, Chamomile, and Rooibos. They take up no room and it’s comforting to know you can have exactly what you want for breakfast.
Lunch
To be honest, I am not one to return to the hostel to cook lunch.
We usually find that we are out all day and tend to have lunch on the go. Sometimes you will be heading out on an activity that will take you far from any stores or towns with restaurant facilities.
In that case, I usually pack something small and easy to bring in my day bag with me.
Traveller’s Lunch Ideas:
- Sandwich – pre-made at the hostel earlier & packaged in one of those glorious snaplock bags
- Tin of tuna & snaplock bag of crackers
- Nuts & fruit – local nuts are usually way less expensive
- Bread & dip – I survived Europe on this! I would just buy a little baguette and dip from the grocery store while I was out so it was fresh
- Bakery treat – If you don’t feel like packing lunch that day, or you will be out and about in the city with many options, buy something from the bakery. This is usually cheap and a great way to try some local pastries.
If this doesn’t suit your travel style or activities, options from the dinner will work for lunch too!
Dinner
Hostel Dinner Meal Ideas
1. Pasta (easiest option ever)
Top it with pesto, tomato, or canned fish
Chuck in cheap vegetables or mushrooms
Tuna pesto pasta is the backpacker’s best friend!
2. Rice
Just like the pasta, this is super easy.
Curry is our go-to, but a plov (pilaf) style dish is simple and delicious as well.
Uncooked rice is easy to keep in your bag!
Rice curries can be made in bulk – so do it & make some hostel friends!
3. Pizzas
Use a tortilla base to keep it cheap!
Alter your ingredients depending on where you are in the world.
Usually, tinned tomato puree is a cheap ingredient, and this meal only takes up one tray spot in the oven.
4. Stir fry
Throw in what you got and top it off with a sauce 🤩
5. BBQ
If your hostel has a barbecue, this can be an awesome way to mix it up and get out of the busy kitchen area.
Grill up meat or vegetable skewers, Halloumi, onion, burger patties (just chuck ‘em on a bun) … whatever tickles your fancy really!
You’re sure to make friends if you start a cook up!
6. Salad
The humble salad can make a light refreshing dinner on a hot night.
No cooking required!
You can even make a pasta salad if you feel like it! This is a good way to try some local ingredients as well – chuck in Papaya for a fresh Asian salad, or sun-ripened tomatoes in the Mediterranean…
7. One-Tray Roast
If you’re after a comforting, hearty meal, cook up a one-tray roast.
Simply chop a couple of veggies (potatoes, carrots, onion, zucchini etc.) and whack them onto a tray (lined, of course).
Drizzle with some olive oil – you don’t even have to peel.
You can also add a protein of your choice. Approximately thirty minutes in the oven and you’re good – just make sure the protein has been chopped thin enough to cook during that time as well.
8. Instant noodles
Desperation station.
Don’t get me wrong – I love an instant noodle! But try not to live off just these alone. They are great for a night when you are seriously exhausted or just can’t be bothered.
This cheap & cheerful option will keep you within budget for those times.
Looking for Vegetarian Options?
Most of these hostel meal ideas can be very easily adapted to suit vegetarians:
- Pesto pasta
- BBQ vegetable skewers
- Mushroom pizza
- Salad
- Tomato & avocado omelette
Many of the breakfast and lunch options are already veggie!
Creating vegetarian meals will be super simple no matter where you go.
THE TIPS: Surviving Hostel Cooking
Keep a solid routine of go-to hostel meal ideas
Having a great arsenal really aids in taking all of the stress and guesswork out of it.
When you first arrive in a new location, the last thing you want to be worrying about is trying to translate the name of tricky ingredients, or follow a difficult new recipe in a hostel kitchen surrounded by drunk pre-gamers on their way to the club.
Keep your head on and stick to your meal artillery!
When someone introduces you to an awesome new dish, add it to your rotation!
Easy.
Pack snacks!!
This is super handy in pricier destinations such as Europe or Australia where you won’t easily find cheap street food during your day out.
Stay prepared and keep snacks in your day bag.
That is not to say that we never purchase food when we are out. Of course we do, we are only human, and a huge part of experiencing new places is sampling the food.
You just can’t reasonably stick within a tight budget when also buying three meals a day PLUS snacks.
Pick your battles. Pack your snacks, and buy some local treats when you find something fun 🥳
Travel with a packable tote/grocery bag
I always take my beloved canvas tote with me. I also have a back-up green-bag for when I have a few more groceries.
These are great for markets as well and stash down super small, so you can just stuff them into your bumbag until you need them.
Keep it simple
I advise against trying to pull off a brand-new twenty-step recipe in a hostel kitchen.
Not only are you likely going to become overwhelmed, you may very well piss off the others waiting to use the stove-tops and cooking utensils.
Keep it chill, easy, and relatively speedy, so everyone can use the kitchen.
Cook during off-times
That being said, if you want to go Picasso mode, simply cook during off-peak!
If you aren’t trying to cook your dinner between 6-8pm you can probably take all the time you need.
This also works if you find that your hostel kitchen is tiny, doesn’t have many cooking hobs, or is lacking equipment. Cook outside of the off-peak times and you’ll have a much better experience.
Plus, if you eat before the dinner rush, the kitchen is probably going to be cleaner too.
Travel with your own utensils
If you are feeling a bit grim about the potential for half-washed forks finding their way into your pasta, come prepared with your own reusable cutlery.
There are so many options on the market now, from the ultralight options designed for back-country hikers, to the aesthetic eco-bamboo ranges.
Choose a little set you like and make your mealtimes relaxing again.
Pick one-pot dishes
For your own sanity, try to prioritise one (or maybe two) pot dishes.
This will not only save you time trying to wash up mountains of used pots and pans, but is sure to win you friends, as you leave plenty of stove space for others to cook their dinners too.
Eat local!!
Huge tip!
And maybe obvious, but you would be surprised how often it is overlooked.
Buying local is one of the most surefire ways to keep your costs down. You pay the price for imported goods, so eat like the locals.
I’ve found myself truly shocked at just how affordable local produce has been in the past. At a fruit & vegetable market in Piran, Slovenia, I filled a bag of produce for just over €1.50. This would be completely impossible if I was shopping in the convenience store or even grocery store there! Plus, all of the fruit and veggies were 10x more fresh.
Immerse yourself!
In Slovenia, every man and their dog were eating this ajvar (above – like a bell pepper spread) so you know I had to try it. Not only was this inexpensive, it was bloody delicious!
Eat like the locals do and I’m sure that you’ll find your grocery bills rapidly decline.
Make extra!
If you are sticking around for more than one night, just make bulk food whenever you cook.
Most hostels have some form of tupperware that you will be able to use.
I like to keep some sort of paper or plastic grocery bag on hand. I will place the tupperware in the bag & write my name on it in permanent marker, before putting it into the hostel fridge.
This method is not failsafe, but I find that potential thieves will usually opt for a slightly easier or more enticing target.
Check the free shelf
If you are staying in a hostel with a kitchen, there’s probably a good chance that the free shelf exists.
This is basically a free-for-all – take what you need. Leave behind some of your own if you can’t take it with you.
Items should be in date and of course, free!
You may find some real gems here, such as jars of pasta sauce, herbs, spices, dressings, or grains to cook with.
That’s seriously budget friendly.
THE SPICE BAG
This bitch is a game changer. Seriously!!
Grab 1 x jumbo snaplock bag. Inside, put all your small & medium snaplock bags. Fill these with your most commonly used spices, and label the bags with your permanent marker (sharpie). Roll them up & bring wherever you go!
This is a serious game changer as you will save so much money on just buying and re-buying the same spices over and over again.
What to include in the bag?
Our favourites are:
- Himalayan salt
- Black pepper
- Chicken salt (it’s an Aussie thing)
- Oregano
- Basil
- Ginger
- Onion flakes
- Garlic powder
- Italian herb mix
You don’t need to take them all – just pick your faves.
Be aware that some of the very potent spices may smell out your bag (cumin, ras el hanout). Although we love these, through trial and error we have decided to leave them out of the spice bag as they will smell out the rest of your belongings.
Into the bag you can also add your unfinished rice or pasta as you go. This helps to avoid any sort of waste (food & money).
This tip will really save your sanity as you will always have the basics on hand. No need to cave and head to an expensive restaurant! Simply pop down to the shops and grab a couple of items and you are there.
Travel with an armoury of snaplock bags
See the above point. They aren’t just great for dividing up your spices.
These snaplock baddies are going to be super helpful when packaging a sandwich to take with you for lunch, or keeping extra cookies, crackers etc. when you don’t want to use the whole pack.
You don’t need to hurt the earth to take advantage of this convenient hack. Come prepared with environmentally-friendly snaplock bags – reusable and washable.
They are super cute, and most importantly, SUPER HANDY. You will be so glad to have them with you.
We hope these hostel meal ideas and budget cooking tips help you feel reassured for your next trip. Hostel cooking is nothing to fear, and is a great experience where you can connect with other travellers while enjoying cheap, delicious and easy food, helping you stay within budget.
Keep on working, great job!