Cooking in a Hotel Room: Easy Hacks for Travelers on the Go

Just because you’re on the go and away from home doesn’t mean you have to spend your hard-earned money eating out. Cooking in a hotel room is a great way to save money, eat healthier and enjoy your favorite comfort foods.

Learn what is needed to cook in a hotel room, why hotel room cooking is beneficial for a life on the road and easy recipes to try for yourself.

Can You Cook in a Hotel Room?

Yes, you can cook in a hotel room. Cooking in a hotel room is actually  a great way to save money and eat healthier, but what you can cook depends on what your hotel kitchen looks like. Is it a full kitchen with plenty of counter space? Does it include full-size appliances to store and reheat food? Or is it a smaller counter space, with no stovetop and only a mini fridge? These factors can play a role in what you are able to cook in your hotel room.

At Extended Stay America, there are full kitchens in every room. Each kitchen includes a full-size refrigerator, microwave, stovetop, sink and plenty of counterspace. This means you can cook food, store food, reheat leftovers and wash dishes all without leaving your room. Extended Stay America also has cooking supplies, like pots, pans, dishes and cutlery available to guests at the front desk.

Why Hotel Room Cooking Makes Travel Easier

When you’re away from home, it’s easy to spend more money and eat out more than you’d like. Hotel room cooking is the perfect way to stay on track with your budget and meal plans, no matter where you’re located. By cooking in your hotel room, you can save time and money and avoid greasy foods one meal at a time.

By using an ingredient-first approach, you can make sure food isn’t wasted and challenge your cooking skills. This approach takes into account the ingredients you have already and focuses on creating recipes that use them, minimizing food waste.

Hotel room cooking also helps curb homesickness and keeps you feeling warm and comforted. Nothing says home away from home like cooking up your family’s beloved soup recipe when work or life takes you on the road.

What You Need for Cooking in a Hotel Room

Before you take a trip to the grocery store to buy ingredients, we recommend looking around your hotel room to see what is available to you: Do you have a kitchenette or a full kitchen? Do you have a full-size refrigerator? Do you have a microwave? Do you have a stovetop? Do you have a kitchen sink? This helps inform what you are able to cook in your hotel room.

Next, look around to see if your hotel room has cooking supplies, pots, pans, cutlery and dishes. If there are none in the room, ask the front desk if they have some you can borrow during your stay. Now you know, based on the supplies available, what you still may need to purchase at the store when you get your groceries.

Hotel Room Kitchens vs Limited Cooking Setups

While any designated cooking space in a hotel room is a great start, the more you have to work with certainly helps. Hotels with kitchenettes usually have the bare minimum for cooking, like a small countertop area for you to prepare foods on and a mini fridge to store a few things. Some kitchenettes may have microwaves as well. Kitchenettes are helpful to have, but are usually more limited in space, appliances and functionality.

Then there are hotels like Extended Stay America with full kitchens in every suite, giving you enough room and appliances to cook a full recipe and meal prep for your stay.

With a full kitchen, you have the freedom, space and capabilities to cook more than microwaveable meals, meal prep more than one serving and stock up on groceries. Hotel room cooking is an easy way to save money and eat healthier, whether you have access to a kitchen or kitchenette.

Ingredient-First Cooking in a Hotel Room

When away from home and cooking with limited ingredients, it is important to be intentional about what you have on hand. We recommend keeping ingredients that are versatile so you can add them into many different recipes while cooking in your hotel room.

Examples of versatile ingredients include bread, pasta, ground beef, condiments, eggs, milk, butter, rice, cheese, potatoes and beans.

Proteins That Work Well for Hotel Room Cooking

When planning your hotel room meals, it is important to make sure you are getting the necessary nutrients to sustain your lifestyle. One of the most important food macronutrients is protein. Making sure you have enough protein in your meals can help strengthen your immune system, build muscle and curb cravings.

Some common and versatile protein sources to use while cooking in your hotel room include:

• Eggs: These last for weeks in a full-size refrigerator and are a great source of protein. You can make an omelette on the stovetop, boil them for a quick snack, add to a breakfast plate scramble or make egg drop soup with them.
• Rotisserie chicken: This is an easy, quick protein source. You can buy it pre-made at the grocery store and pull it apart yourself. With this, you can make a barbecue chicken sandwich, add on top of a salad or make into chicken salad.
• Canned beans: This is the most shelf-stable protein source, and probably also the most affordable option. Meal ideas incorporating beans include hotdog and beans, chili, baked beans, bean soup, bowls or burritos.

Produce That Travels and Stores Easily

When covering all the food groups, we can’t forget about produce. Fruits and vegetables that are firm, low-moisture or thick-skinned are generally easy to store in a hotel room. As we previously mentioned, versatility with ingredients is key when you’re cooking away from home. You want to find ingredients that can be used in multiple recipes so you don’t waste anything.

Here are some of the most versatile produce items for cooking in a hotel room:

• Onions: This adds a flavorful base flavor to countless savory dishes, including soups, sauces and roasts.
• Garlic: This is another great way to add flavor to recipes, and can be used raw, sautéed or roasted.
• Bell peppers: Enjoy these raw in a garden salad, dipped in ranch as a snack or sautéed with your protein of choice.
• Apples: Eat these raw as a healthy snack, add to salads or dip in caramel for a tasty, no-bake dessert.
• Lemons and limes: Both of these are long-lasting and are the perfect way to spruce up a recipe and add some flavor. You can use these to make homemade lemonade, in baking, sautéed or as a zest.

If your refrigerator is full of other foods, these produce items can live on the counter without special storage needed. No need to miss out on the nutrients provided by produce when you’re cooking in a hotel room with these delicious options.

Pantry Staples to Pack or Buy on Arrival

Pantry staples are the easiest foods to plan ahead with if you want to buy anything in advance of your stay. They are made to last a long time and can withstand a variety of climates. Some of the top pantry staples needed for hotel room cooking include:

• Dry goods like pasta, rice, flour, brown sugar, corn starch and granulated sugar.
• Canned goods like chicken, tuna, soup, beans, corn, peas and fruit.
• Condiments like olive oil, barbecue sauce, ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard, soy sauce and honey mustard.
• Seasonings like chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, thyme, Italian seasoning and Everything But The Bagel seasoning.

One-Bowl and One-Pan Hotel Room Meals

When cooking in a hotel room, it’s important to minimize your mess and make the most out of the supplies you have. You may not have access to unlimited pots and bowls to cook the recipes you make at home. That’s why, for hotel room cooking, it’s a great idea to try to stick to one-bowl and one-pan meals as much as possible.

Here are some of our favorite hotel room recipes:

• Breakfast: Eggs in a basket
  • Ingredients: Eggs, bread, butter and salt
  • Directions: First, cut a hole in two pieces of bread and butter both sides, then add to a pan over medium-to-low heat. Then add the egg into the hole of the bread. Cook over medium heat until the whites of the yolk aren’t clear or runny, flipping halfway. Salt to your liking.
• Lunch: Grilled cheese
  • Ingredients: Cheese slices, bread and butter
  • Directions: Place a buttered pan over medium heat. Take two pieces of bread, butter them and add them to the pan. Flip once they turn golden and add a slide or two of cheese on top of one of the pieces of bread. Then, add the remaining piece of bread on top of the cheese. Flip and cook on both sides until golden. For a little pizzazz, we recommend making it with tomato soup. For added nutrition and flavor, you can also add spinach or tomatoes to the sandwich.
• Dinner: Burrito bowls
  • Ingredients: Instant brown rice, ground turkey, taco seasoning, cheese, lettuce and sour cream.
  • Directions: Cook ground turkey in a pan over medium heat until no longer pink. Once thoroughly cooked, remove excess grease with paper towel. Throw excess grease in trash once cooled. Add taco seasoning and water to the pan and mix for a few minutes. Separately, heat up instant brown rice in the microwave. Add brown rice to a bowl and top with taco meat and all other desired toppings. Enjoy!
• Snack: Greek yogurt bowl
  • Ingredients: Greek yogurt, granola, fruit, chocolate chips, coconut flakes, chia seeds
  • Directions: Enjoy a high-protein snack of Greek yogurt, topped with your favorite additions. Add chia seeds, almonds and fresh fruit like banana slices or strawberry slices for a healthier version. If you want a sweeter treat, add granola, chocolate chips and coconut flakes.

Stoveless Hotel Room Cooking Hacks

If you are staying in a hotel room that doesn’t have a stovetop, there are ways you can get creative to heat up food. Cooking in a hotel room is easiest when you have access to some source of heat. If you don’t have a stovetop in your room, you can usually get creative with a microwave, toaster or toaster oven.

A lot of foods that can be heated via stovetop can also be microwaved, like canned goods, microwaveable pasta and oatmeal. There are even single-serving meals at the grocery store specifically for microwave-only cooking, like mug brownies, easy macaroni and cheese cups and microwaveable muffin mixes.

Some other Stoveless Hotel Room Cooking Hacks include:

• Microwave: Did you know you can make scrambled eggs, steamed veggies and even pasta in the microwave? Use a microwave-safe mug for single-serve oatmeal or macaroni and cheese in minutes. You can also poke holes in a potato and bake it in the microwave for an easy baked potato.
• Travel kettle: Use a travel kettle to prepare instant noodles, couscous or oatmeal. A mini rice cooker doubles as a slow steamer for veggies and fish.
• Toaster: Toast things like waffles, toast, bagels or English muffins for an easy, comfort meal.

Food Safety and Cleanup Tips When Cooking in a Hotel Room

It is important to make sure you are following food safety standards and keeping things sanitary when cooking in a hotel room. Follow these tips for a clean and safe cooking space:

• If you are traveling with food that needs to stay refrigerated, pack it in a cooler with ice during transit.
• Wipe down the counters and cooking surfaces with a warm, soapy rag before and after cooking.
• Wash your hands before and after cooking and after handling raw meat or eggs.
• Wash all the used utensils and dishes with warm water and soap.
• Store food in an airtight container and refrigerate within a few hours of cooking.
• Don’t keep or eat leftovers more than five days old. If you are unsure if it’s safe to eat, it’s better to err on the side of caution and throw it out.

Why Extended Stay America Makes Hotel Room Cooking Easier

When you are away from home for any amount of time, cooking in your hotel room can be healthier, provide comfort and save money. At Extended Stay America, all our hotels have full kitchens in every room, so you can start planning your next hotel room meal and stay nourished. Book your next stay at Extended Stay America and stay fueled with in-room cooking.