College student wants Ramen off the menu

Many students at UNH have a hectic schedule that they don't have time to cook a good, healthy meal. They only have time for cooking Ramen, baking a boxed pepperoni pizza, or eating out. There may be a solution, though, and his name is Arthur King.

As Gainesville State College sophomore, King strives to alter the perception that home cooked food is too difficult and expensive for the college student's lifestyle and budget.

Three weeks ago, King created a show called Cookin' for College. Four to six times a week, King posts videos on his website that teach people how to cook simple recipes with a small budget. Some of his recipes include taco chili, bacon-wrapped teriyaki pork chops, homemade wings, and s'more pancakes.

King has been cooking since he was a child. His favorite chef is Emeril Lagasse. He said that he didn't get into cooking unique things until he got to college. Once at Gainesville, he began experimenting with food because he got tired of eating a lot of the same things. As a result, he decided to try and add different ingredients to recipes and see what ended up tasting good.

"I always come up with this random stuff," said King. "It was just making a joke one day about making a show and then we ran with it."

King stated that his show would not be as popular as it is today if it wasn't for Kira Glasser, his girlfriend. She created his website, a Facebook page, which currently has over 1,000 fans, and a Twitter account. King is pleased with the popularity of the show, and said he just started watching them himself, though he thinks it is weird seeing himself online.

When it comes to continuing the show, King said that as long as he is having fun doing it and people are enjoying it, he will keep doing  cooking for the camera.

King has not declared a major yet, though he is taking business and accounting classes in order to learn how to run a business, in particular a restaurant.

Glasser, also a sophomore, has started to cook a little now too, but only with King's help and guidance. She said that she rarely cooks, and when she does, she calls King constantly with questions.

Glasser thinks that a lot of college students are intimidated by the kitchen, because she herself was one of those students last year when she first came to college. Glasser said that King's main goal is to show people their age that cooking their own meals with a variety of different ingredients can be easy.

"I really believe that this show contributes to every college student's life, and I am doing everything that I can to get this show on television and available for everyone," said Glasser.   

"Our main goal is to get it on nationwide television, so that it is available for everyone," said Glasser. "But, if that does not happen, Arthur still wants to continue his shows to help as many people as he can." 

Sam Mansfield, a UNH senior and English major lives in the Gables and usually cooks five to six nights a week because his meal plan only has enough meals to cover lunch. Mansfield tries to keep weekly grocery costs between $30-45 to save money and tends to cook vegetarian food, especially using ingredients like lentils, quinoa and brown rice.

"It's a great way to take better care of yourself and know more about what you're putting into your body," said Mansfield. "Knowing how to cook makes you a more independent person."

For students who are nervous about cooking their own meals, Mansfield suggested starting out by cooking with someone who is experienced.

King said if you are just starting to cook, the best thing to do is to buy a spice rack that holds 12-15 different spices because spices  are very useful and can save you a lot of money. King says that he spends eight to nine dollars per meal for two people. The key, according to King, is to always look for sales. King says that if he gets out of class and is trying to kill time before another class, he will cook something so he can enjoy a good meal before his next class.

"I have fun doing it," said King. "I hope college kids lose their fear of cooking because it is a lot fun."

Arthur King's Grilled Cheese Hamburger:
1 lb ground meat
Salt & Pepper, paprika, seasoned salt, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, garlic powder, onion powder.

Place the meat in mixing bowl with desired amount of soy sauce, teriyaki, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and seasoned salt. Use your hands and mix together well. Pack meat into baseball size balls, and flatten into patties Heat the frying pan or George Foreman grill and spray with cooking spray. Set the heat to medium-high. Put the patties in pan and cook until brown all the way through. This will likely take five to seven minutes. The burgers are done when the juice that comes from the burgers looks clear when the burgers are pressed on.