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Do you have a microwave at work? If so the sky is the limit on what you can pack for lunch.
I always pack my breakfast and lunch. Typical day:
-Fruit
-kashi bar
-A Main entre' (Usually it's salad, but sometimes soup, leftovers from the night before, tuna and crackers..etc)
-Raw veggies (cherry tomatoes, broccoli, green beans, carrots, sugar snap peas, celery, peppers..)
-Nuts or pretzels or some other kind of dry snack.
Now...I typically eat the fruit and kashi bar shortly after I arrive at work because I don't eat breakfast at home. Lunch is typically the main entre and veggies and the nuts are for right around 4:30 or so when I'm getting hungry again, this usually prevents hunger so I don't go searching for crap-food when I get home from work.
Salad in a jar is easy...make it on Sunday night for the week and it will still taste fresh come Friday (don't put the dressing in until you are ready to eat it):
I frequently make extra for dinner so that there are leftovers to take for lunch.
I love cold meatloaf sandwiches!
When I make chicken for dinner, I chop up the leftovers and add them to salad, just like they serve at Wendy's only mine is homemade.
The main things to remember are to plan ahead (think about what leftovers are good for lunches when you shop for the weekly meals) and make as much of your lunch the night before as you can for easier mornings. If you take a thermos/lunch bag, make sure you bring those into the kitchen and clean them so they are ready to be packed. I generally do day prep about 8 pm. I stop whatever I'm doing and make lunch, lay out clothing, and supplies for the next day.
Maybe you have more time in the mornings. I like to sleep as late as possible. (:
If you have a fridge at work, don't worry about anything. If you don't, get one of those little insulated lunch boxes. I like the soft kind, they're lighter to tote around. And I agree if it will be sitting out somewhere hot, put an ice pack in. I'd get one of the soft ice packs, as they're more maleable and easier to fit around stuff than the hard plastic kind.
Something easy to fix ahead of time for the whole week is hard boiled eggs. I used to put mine in cold water on the stove, turn the heat up and set the timer for 15 minutes. That way you don't have to watch to see when it boils, to then time if from when they start boiling.
Get one of those cheap salt & pepper shakers that are in one shaker (pepper on one side, salt on the other) at the grocery store that are already full of salt and pepper. And keep it in your lunch pail. I used to keep plastic silverware in my desk.
Another easy thing I used to watch for on sale are lunchables. They're a good little snacky kind of thing to be able to just throw into your pail. If you watch the sales, you can get them pretty cheap.
Yogurt is another one you can just throw into your pail.
Be thoughtful when you use a microwave in the office. Some foods are stinkier than others and have a longer-lasting aftersmell. Your co-workers may not care for the lingering odor of BBQ smoke flavor, curry, fish, to name a few pungent comestibles.
I find that tuna or cold cuts are the easiest to use to make sandwiches to go. One can add mayonnaise/mustard, lettuce, tomato, cucumber/pickle according to one's individual taste.
SO insists on taking lunch. Juice, a cookie, fruit or fruit cup, lunch size helping of something that microwaves easily and does only require limited cutting (pasta/ragu, chili, stir fry, fajitas, ...), small salad.
I cook and freeze lunches and pack his bag at night.
Be thoughtful when you use a microwave in the office. Some foods are stinkier than others and have a longer-lasting aftersmell. Your co-workers may not care for the lingering odor of BBQ smoke flavor, curry, fish, to name a few pungent comestibles.
Oh god I hate when people cook fish in the microwave!
Sometimes I'll make "Adult lunchables" and get nice cheese, nice meat, maybe some olives, some chopped veggies, nuts, and crackers to make my lunch. It is pretty easy.
I used to do wraps or pitas with hummus, roast beef, arugula or spinach, roasted peppers and maybe a cucumber. Turkey was a good choice as well.
At the moment I am liking classy ham and cheese: rosemary ham, aged gouda, brie or similar, and dijon mustard on a baguette! Feels very french bakery.
Or I just make a big salad like dish with quinoa. And add different sides. Maybe a kale salad. Maybe a regular salad. Tomatoes. Whatever is floating around.
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