Current med students, what are some must-have items for med school?

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tessellations said:
Every once in awhile when the coffee pull is too strong, I do enjoy a caramel cappuccino with no sweetener. It's bliss.
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HEATHEN
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tessellations said:
Every once in awhile when the coffee pull is too strong, I do enjoy a caramel cappuccino with no sweetener. It's bliss.
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Coconut milk is amazing in coffee, especially cold. Buy a carton of coconut milk and pour it in your homemade coffee, you'll feel like it's a Starbucks drink and it's like, a third the price.
Try a french press for coffee.
Also, I second the cold brew thing libertyne mentioned. It's sooo smooth and delicious and has a lower acidity, so it won't upset an empty stomach ( if you're like me and you don't like eating in the morning, and you just want caffiene)
 
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jcorpsmanMD said:
You're your own man! Do what you want
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Lolol you tell her that :D I think it's also that she buys all these coffee things for me for my bday/xmas and I don't think I use them as much as I should...

freak7 said:
I bought mine with a timer from Goodwill for maybe 5 bucks. Only downside is that it gains a minute every 5 days or so so I have to correct it about once a month.
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I've definitely seen a few of those, but I always hesitate coz I just never know how long those will last, or if they'll even work well from the get go. I feel like it's just better to get one new and have it last for a while. Tough choices man.

tessellations said:
Every once in awhile when the coffee pull is too strong, I do enjoy a caramel cappuccino with no sweetener. It's bliss.
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coffee?!? more like frothy caramel milk :sendoff: :nono::whistle::angelic:

mwsapphire said:
Coconut milk is amazing in coffee, especially cold. Buy a carton of coconut milk and pour it in your homemade coffee, you'll feel like it's a Starbucks drink and it's like, a third the price.
Try a french press for coffee.
Also, I second the cold brew thing libertyne mentioned. It's sooo smooth and delicious and has a lower acidity, so it won't upset an empty stomach ( if you're like me and you don't like eating in the morning, and you just want caffiene)
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Or you can just cold brew some coffee in your french press overnight and pour on some ice the next day for an even better morning iced coffee experience!

No go for me on the coconut milk though... Adding fruit-like flavors in coffee is just weird imho. The only fruit notes I want are the ones tat come from the coffee brewing itself!
 
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tessellations said:
Hey, sorry I like my espresso with some flair! :angelic:

I also enjoy a cold brew or just plain ole coffee from time to time! Well, not so much lately as I mentioned before, but I promise I'm not that much of a heathen ;)
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I caffienate way too much.
Also, this brand called " near east cousine" has these boxes of partially-cooked rice pilafs and couscous. All you do is boil some water, add package contents ( and some butter/olive oil. The package says to do this and it can be eliminated if you wanna cut down on fat , but it's much more succulent with the butter/oil) and simmer for 20ish minutes until the water is absorbed.
Serve with meat.
Delicious.
 
I have a friend in consulting who just dropped a grand on an espresso machine. And here I am drinking keurig coffee every morning.
 
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machete fred said:
I have a friend in consulting who just dropped a grand on an espresso machine. And here I am drinking keurig coffee every morning.
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Once you have spending money its not unreasonable to make a single splurge...
 
machete fred said:
I have a friend in consulting who just dropped a grand on an espresso machine. And here I am drinking keurig coffee every morning.
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The first big splurge purchase I will make is one of those $4-5k espresso machines hipster coffee places have. Who needs a house when you can have one of those?!?
 
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mwsapphire said:
I caffienate way too much.
Also, this brand called " near east cousine" has these boxes of partially-cooked rice pilafs and couscous. All you do is boil some water, add package contents ( and some butter/olive oil. The package says to do this and it can be eliminated if you wanna cut down on fat , but it's much more succulent with the butter/oil) and simmer for 20ish minutes until the water is absorbed.
Serve with meat.
Delicious.
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Fun fact: I once found a species of termite in my Near East couscous. I e-mailed the company with pictures and they sent me a bunch of coupons and explained that sometimes the bugs mistake their packaging as a place to mate or something like that.

machete fred said:
I have a friend in consulting who just dropped a grand on an espresso machine. And here I am drinking keurig coffee every morning.
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What's funny is that your friend will actually save more money than you in the long run.

Gibbward said:
I've definitely seen a few of those, but I always hesitate coz I just never know how long those will last, or if they'll even work well from the get go. I feel like it's just better to get one new and have it last for a while. Tough choices man.
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I got mine in 2013 and it's still chugging along just fine. I'd say >4 years for 5 bucks is pretty worth. Heck I'd say 6 months for 5 bucks is still worth.
 
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freak7 said:
What's funny is that your friend will actually save more money than you in the long run
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Oh I don't doubt that at all. Just no way I have a grand to drop on espresso machine right now as much as I would want to.
 
For under 30 bucks, aeropress makes a nice shot of spro.
 
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mistafab said:
Bros deck is good for sure. I have friends that use it and love it. I just wanted to highlight that in Firecracker, the notecard gives you the answer. If you feel like you want to review the topic, you can click "more info" and it gives you a paragraph that is enough for you to understand why. Then, you can click to get even more info, which brings you to a page full of info on that and related topics to show you how it all works together.

I've got classmates who use bros and are top of the class. It is defnitely good, but yes there are differences in the amount of info you get. Anki will help you memorize facts you learn in class. Firecracker can help you learn it if you didn't already.

I feel like a salesman.
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Do you have a link to the Bros deck?
 
Hazelnut Silk Almond Milk Creamer or you're an animal.
 
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Was expecting good info, instead got four pages of coffee debate
 
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tskiihii said:
Oh god, I'm gonna die in med school aren't I? I can't stand leftovers. It just doesn't taste the same once it enters the fridge.
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Have you never had reheated pasta? When stored in the fridge with the pasta and the sauce mixed together and have a side container of some extra sauce to add, then reheated with some Parma or mozzarella cheese on top is great.

Italian meatballs stored in sauce then reheated with cheese on top is also good...add cheese at end of reheating.

Leftover rice is what's used for refried rice....sesame oil, butter, onions, garlic, leftover rice, soy sauce, eggs. Get a rice cooker, even if it's a cheapie Black & Decker or Aroma one for 20 bucks

Many reheated homemade soups are fine too...first made in crockpot, then leftovers reheated.

Buy the rotisserie chickens at Costco or Sam's Club (not at the supermarkets) , then use the leftover chicken including the bones to make soup and broth. Throw in some vegetables, seasonings, and even some leftover rice.

Granted, there are many foods that do not reheat well, but there are some that do.

Keep a large loaf of bread in the freezer, and some cheese and butter in the fridge, and you can quickly make a grilled cheese. Add some sliced ham if you want.
 
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JustintheDoctor said:
Wish there was debates about tea tbh :(
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I'm partial to chai.

Honestly, I just got a 20 oz hydro flask (wide mouth for manageable cleaning), and it's great for keeping tea hot all day.


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DBC03 said:
I'm partial to chai.

Honestly, I just got a 20 oz hydro flask (wide mouth for manageable cleaning), and it's great for keeping tea hot all day.


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Sounds like a Yeti-quality large thermal cup could be useful for tea and coffee drinkers (hot or cold).

For the coffee drinkers, anyone have the Ninja Coffee Bar? There's a model with a full sized carafe, but also has the options for single cup or large travel thermal cups. It's programmable so that you can set up the night before and wake to hot coffee.

Back to the food talk: there are some good ready-made soups available these days. Some are in the fridge section, but some of the canned versions are fine, too (the better brands). Doctor them up with some added cracked pepper and they can be quite good. I love Progresso's Rich and Hearty Tomato Florentine with Italian Sausage. It's got a pull-top so don't even need to hassle a can opener. Some of those large soup mugs are great.

Have a variety of some basic seasonings, garlic powder, onion flakes, Italian seasoning, oregano, basil, cracked black pepper, red pepper flakes, for improving ready made foods and cooking from scratch.
 
DBC03 said:
I'm partial to chai.

Honestly, I just got a 20 oz hydro flask (wide mouth for manageable cleaning), and it's great for keeping tea hot all day.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile
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PreMedMissteps said:
Sounds like a Yeti-quality large thermal cup could be useful for tea and coffee drinkers (hot or cold).
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20 ounces is too small though. That's a solid medium amount of caffeine without espresso.
 
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cactusman said:
20 ounces is too small though. That's a solid medium amount of caffeine without espresso.
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They make a 32 oz size - it can double as a muscle roller!
 
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PreMedMissteps said:
Sounds like a Yeti-quality large thermal cup could be useful for tea and coffee drinkers (hot or cold).
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I'll second the Yeti type mug for coffee/tea. Mine keeps my coffee warm for hours if I get distracted. A quality thermos would do it even better.

Based on my experience working in a hospital, I would recommend labeling your Yeti in some way. They have a tendency to disappear when left unattended.
 
When leftovers are heated correctly, most taste almost the same as fresh. Pasta taste even better the day after, after it's been soaking in dat sauce boyi


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DoctorSwagger said:
When leftovers are heated correctly, most taste almost the same as fresh. Pasta taste even better the day after, after it's been soaking in dat sauce boyi


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Pasta does taste better because the seasonings have had more time to develop in the sauce. However, the pasta does absorb a lot of the sauce, so having some extra sauce to add before reheating helps. If you don't have extra sauce, sprinkle a tablespoon of water on top before reheating (and cover with a wet paper towel if reheating in microwave)

However, there are foods that do not reheat well...fish is one of them.

Boneless/skinless chicken can become rubbery if not reheated correctly. Better to cut it up and serve cold on a salad with a good dressing, or shred and make chicken salad spread, or whip up a hot white cream of mushroom sauce and then add the chopped chicken to the heated sauce at the end to just warm the chopped chicken up prior to serving on some hot noodles or hot rice. Adding the chopped chicken to the heated sauce right before serving prevents the chicken from being cooked too much...the desire is that you just want the chicken warmed by the heated sauce, but not further cooked.

Another option is to heat a buttered flour tortilla in a fry pan, add some cheddar cheese, let cheese melt, and then add the cold chopped chicken before folding the tortilla for serving. Again the trick is not to cook the chicken further, just to let it warm up a bit, which will happen when chopped up chicken comes into contact with hot melted cheese.

Chili is another food that reheats very well. Reheat for a couple of minutes, then sprinkle some cheddar cheese on top, return to microwave for about 40 seconds, remove and top with some chopped onions, eat.

Some people love leftover meatloaf, served cold, in a sandwich. If that's not appealing, then cover with a wet paper towel and carefully reheat in the microwave. Spreading a little bit of ketchup on top before reheating can also help.

Using the wet paper towel trick in the microwave helps reheating leftovers and also helps avoids splatters. It also adds moisture to the foods.

Also, try not to reheat thick foods or a "high pile" of food in the microwave. If reheating a big bowl of pasta in the micro, make a well in the center.

Also, don't try to reheat a variety of foods on a plate in the microwave at the same time. A dinner roll reheated at the same time as meat and potatoes will end up like a rock.
 
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