Any Easy Lunch Ideas?

My way of keeping lunch healthy and easy is to cook extra for dinner the night before so that I have some left overs the next day. Then it is just a matter of warming it up. In winter months there are lots of healthy stir fry meals with a variety of veggies, and in the warmer months I like lots of salads. If I'm really stuck, I make a shake with some fresh fruit blended in and a dash of whey protein.

 

I love sandwiches too, it's very easy to make and can be healthy too. I think I will try the half tuna/half egg salad sandwich. But maybe I will add some tomatoes, lettuce and cheese too (yum) as I always like my sandwiches prepared with TLC.

 

I like roasting a whole chicken for dinner on Sundays. I can eat the leftovers in a salad monday, make a casserole with the remaining chicken on tuesday, and then save the bones for making chicken stock for soup later.

Another thing I like to do is bring a bento-type box with some salami, cheese, crackers, fruit, veggies, etc. for lunch and some yogurt or trail mix to snack on throughout the day. If I eat big lunches I get sleepy in the afternoon.

 

I find it really easy to prepare a quick lunch. When I am in a hurry, I like to get a fresh salad leaf mix, some cherry tomatoes, spring onions and cucumbers that I toss into a bowl. Then I prepare a simple avocado sauce with olive oil, vinegar, salt and some herbs. With the salad I like to have some smoked salmon, sardines or high quality tuna from a tin. All in all, it takes me about 20-30 minutes to prepare this nutritious and healthy meal.

 

Some of my suggestions aren't as creative as a peanut butter and pickle sandwich, but they definitely fit under the easy lunch category. I used to bring those microwavable ravioli containers to work with me. They're easy to carry, put up, and you don't have to worry about plates or napkins. You can also eat these without cooking them if you really needed to (I personally eat them like this when I'm in a hurry or have no way to cook them).

Those little lunchables that you used to take to school for lunch still work great for a tight budget or if your trying to portion your lunch. There's no cooking involved and you won't have to worry about over eating or feeling tired afterwards.

 

I've never done it myself but I imagine homemade burritos would be a good substitute for sandwiches when you get tired of them. It seems like something that would be very easy to prepare, pack, and transport, not to mention probably also very convenient to eat since everything is packed nice and tight into one package. Also you could play with the ingredients as much as you want as you would a sandwich and you could even include rice in it which is much more filling than just bread.

 

A fish finger with tartar sauce sandwich or tomato soup over boiled potatoes. That probably sounds weird and is probably an Irish and English thing. I think making a good stew and leaving it in the slow cooker till the day after is also good. You can't beat a good Irish stew .

 

I really like your way of thinking. I too do the same thing when I cook, I usually prepare more than enough for myself so I can still have leftovers at work. This also saves money as well. I live alone so i really don't have to feed any one else but me.

 

Make a big batch of chili on the weekends and portion it out into smaller containers to eat throughout the week. It's perfect freezer food that re-heats without any loss of quality (some would say it actually gets better with time). It's great on it's own for lunch, perhaps with some crackers or you can make a dinner out of it by serving it over a baked potato along with a side salad, or even over pasta with some shredded cheddar and diced onion sprinkled on top. Plus you can bulk it up with beans so you don't have to use so much meat in it.

Make a batch of roasted peppers then store them in some garlic and olive oil in your fridge (season with salt and pepper too of course). These are fantastic in a veggie sandwich along with some provolone or mozarella cheese, along with some finely shredded iceberg lettuce and a drizzle of red wine vinegar all on a crusty roll. Or you can use some leftover shredded chicken, and roasted red peppers on a roll and top with cheese and throw it under the broiler for a quick "chicken philly" style sandwich.

A simple pasta salad with tuna. Just cook up a sturdy pasta like penne, and toss with some mayo, tuna, sliced black olives, fresh dill and black pepper (there should be enough salt in the mayo and tuna fish). You can portion it, and throw in a few grape tomatoes on top if you like, for color.

Guacamole and Hummus are great to keep on hand for a quick veggie wrap, smear either on a flour tortilla then add some diced veggies (tomatoes, olives, cucumber, red onion, fresh spinach or lettuce...) and roll them up.