Ideas for packed lunches on a budget

nicolaturner1986

Hi

I'm looking for some inspiration for low cal, healthy and filling packed lunches which are cheap to make. I work nights and have a 10hr shift where I sit at a desk waiting for the phone to ring.

We don't have a toaster (we're not allowed one) but I can use a microwave. Because of the nature of my job, eating a meal whilst it is hot is not always guaranteed - you never know when it's suddenly going to get busy.

Thanks

x

Rachelc1992

Tuna and sweet corn pasta?
Wraps
Left overs from last nights tea?
Quiche
I will continue to think I have this struggle too!! x

little_schmidt

Please tell me you're allowed a fridge at least! Ok focus on a couple of things. Two foods that play off of eachother to make a lasting meal. Protein and a healthy grain. Protein gives the energy, fiber gives the "stay fuller for longer" feel. One of my easy favorites is a breakfast burrito. Protein: boiled egg and turkey lunch meat. Fiber: whole GRAIN (not wheat) tortilla. a lil salsa, maybe some black beans for extra fiber AND protein. DELISH! I have also taken to making "salads" like chicken salad, tuna salad. NO MAYO!!! just use some canned chicken or whatever meat, some chopped celery, navy beans and greek cream cheese. Has like... 1/3rd the fat and calories of cream cheese and its way more tasty than mayo. For a twist, add a little dill or some lemon pepper seasoning. All these things are pretty cheap to make and easy AND delicious. Just remember, Protein and Fiber. The two important ingredients that will save your meal. And with all the money you will save, you can afford to treat yourself with something nice! Good luck!!!

freetobeme3

I struggled with this when I worked the over night shifts. Now I am swing shift and still have issues. But what about some finger foods like chicken breast and raw veggies. I also used to keep some protein bars when I couldn't think of anything to make. My daughter loves cucumber stufed with tuna and light mayo. Hope these ideas help

nicolaturner1986

thanks for this - quiche is a great idea, may do the slimming world pastry free version and pack it out with lots of veggies for a change.

It just gets a bit boring having the same old sandwich at night, when i'm not watching what i'm eating I bring alsorts of ready meals and unhealthy goodies in - trying to get my butt back in gear lol x

nicolaturner1986

I'll give a breakfast burrito a go :-) we do have a fridge, we're only not allowed the toaster because some numpty set the smoke alarms off and we got charged for the fire service turning up :-(

ooh - never tried stuffing a cucumber before, I bet it's quite nice may have to give that one a go :-) x

ktaylormusic

this might not be best if it's going to get cold, but cheap and quick and easy and yummy (I think)

I leave a couple of tins of (condensed) tomato soup to have on hand at work, and then:

In the morning that you're planning to have the soup, put 2 or 3 balls of chopped frozen spinach, half a cup of tinned black beans, a tsp of pesto, and if you like, an ounce of cheddar into a jar or bag or whatever. At mealtime, mix up your soup with water and add this stuff and microwave the whole lot together for a couple of minutes. I love it.

lkm111

I found this on a link someone posted here, and I have used it many times:

1 whole wheat tortilla
1 cup baby spinach leaves
3 oz. turkey
Dijon or brown mustard
1 small cucumber, sliced (I use baby cukes)
1 tomato, sliced
Splash of red wine vinegar

Layer, roll, wrap in plastic, chill, eat! Turkey bacon and avocado would be good swaps if you need a change.

msbohemian

Lettuce wraps: filled with anything low fat: lean meats, low fat waldorf salad, grilled meats, leftovers, vegetable salad,
quinoa salad.

SapiensPisces

You can make all sorts of soups on the cheap that both pack and freeze well. You can make a huge batch, freeze half, and have the other half for your lunches.

Debbiebert

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/01/healthy-recipes-quick-low-calorie-lunches_n_1638315.html try this web site see if you can find any good ideas ...good luck

brighteyes124

I'm currently obsessed with rice bowls, My current favorite is brown rice, black beans, broccoli, avocado and hot sauce. Easy, cheap and you can mix up the combination of rice/veg/protein/fat to keep it interesting

littlelou374

Chicken tacos. Bring small tortillas, chicken and cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes, whatever. Yummy cold and can assemble fast before eating.

cathipa

You can make all sorts of soups on the cheap that both pack and freeze well. You can make a huge batch, freeze half, and have the other half for your lunches.

Agree! I make soup in the crockpot on Sunday and have plenty for the week. There are plenty of sites out there like skinny ms.
Check out this recipe. I made it this week and is awesome!
http://skinnyms.com/skinny-slow-cooker-savory-superfood-soup/

Aqua1813

I've had success making low-calorie cabbage rolls. You cal always take one or two to work in a Tupperware.

But my go-go lunch is (drum roll please...) an uncooked sweet potato.

I know... I know... you think I'm crazy. But they have numerous merits: sweet potatoes are portable, low-mess, 4 minutes to cook in the microwave, do not need to be refrigerated, I can keep multiple at work due to a long shelf-life, can be purchased at nearly any grocery store, inexpensive, relatively low calorie, nutritious and (in addition) are a lovely conversation piece on my desk. I usually pair it with some firm tofu I keep in our work fridge.

Before I go to work in the morning, I weigh it so I know what the calories are. If necessary, I'll trim it, but I haven't had to yet.

lycarroll

I buy a large container of mixed greens 50% spinach, 1 red pepper, cucumber, in bulk buy cranberries (add1tbsp), and slivered almonds (1tbsp), goat cheese (1onze), make my own balsamic dressing. I get about 5 salads out of it. Its soo good, I have not gotten sick of it yet. I keep all ingredients in a fridge at work and make my salad fresh every day. Takes about 5 min.

Turkey Chili is another idea, as it freezes well and full of vegetables and protein! Very cheap to make when you portion it out and freeze it.

thefewsteps

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/9e/b8/0b/9eb80b225c287ace060d2f10167ead8f.jpg
http://zaggoragirl.com/2012/11/15/lunch-quest-2-more-quick-and-tasty-meals-to-share/
http://ohsheglows.com/2011/09/11/5-make-ahead-vegan-and-gluten-free-lunches-part-1/

Pinterest is great for this stuff. It all comes down to prep, really.
You can make a big batches of quinoa, rice, frozen veggies, lentils, beans, grilled veggies, hard boiled eggs on the weekends and mix and match throughout the week. Try different seasonings. Try a casserole. Buy a couple pieces of fruit per week, cut them up, and make snack bags. Buy a low sodium can of tomatoes or tomato paste and use throughout the week. Try a giant lettuce salad but each day spice it up. Maybe one day do something mexican-y, another a summer salad with berries, another with nuts and a spicy dressing. Buy a can of NSA green beans for 50 cents and split it up over a day or two. Yogurt cups are fairly cheap as well (although healthier greek is a little more expensive). Pretzels, popcorn, nuts, homemade crackers/pita chips/tortilla chips, salsa, etc. All options. Burritos or wraps are easy to make, store in the freezer, and grab day by day.

rlmassman84

I buy a large container of mixed greens 50% spinach, 1 red pepper, cucumber, in bulk buy cranberries (add1tbsp), and slivered almonds (1tbsp), goat cheese (1onze), make my own balsamic dressing. I get about 5 salads out of it. Its soo good, I have not gotten sick of it yet. I keep all ingredients in a fridge at work and make my salad fresh every day. Takes about 5 min.

I do this too, but instead of mixed greens I will buy a bag of broccoli salad mix. I find that the crunchiness of the broccoli helps to satisfy me in a way that salad greens do not.

kent4j

bump

barb106

My go to cheap and healthy meal is lentils and rice. Cook up the lentils with some carrots and onion and your choice of broth, serve over rice. Brown basmati goes well.

Thanks everyone for sharing, I'm off to try the spinch/cranberry/almond salad!

Kidostud

Love all the ideas! I get so bored with my whole wheat tomato and ham sandwich!

bnsnwldwmn

I pack lunches regularly for my job as well, and I'm on a very tight budget myself. I typically cycle through the same things over and over, and I often eat the same thing for lunch for about a week because it means I have to buy less groceries.

I like half sandwiches with veggies and a low-cal dip, like hummus or veggie dip made with greek yogurt, and a fruit cup or serving of fresh fruit.

If I get tired of plain veggies, I'll switch to a a veggie wrap or sandwich that I sort of copied from a popular smoothie restaurant and a handful of whole-grain crackers and some kind of fruit. My favorite are Wheat Thins Fiber Selects or Triscuits.

If you're interested in the veggie sandwich, spread hummus on a bread or wrap of your choice, add a cheese of your choice (provolone is my favorite with this, although I sometimes use veggie cheese), then layer lettuce and/or spinach, sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, diced peppers, diced onions, and matchstick carrots. The only thing is it's sometimes hard to get enough protein in this meal.

Half sandwiches and soup or salad are another combo I like, or sometimes I'll pack soup and salad with fruit. This is easy to vary to keep yourself from getting bored because you can get lots of different soup, salad, and dressing varieties.

(The half sandwiches mean less prep overall and they keep the calories in check, because I love bread, but it can quickly add calories and not-as-filling carbs.)

I like to keep lunch simple and quick to prepare, but I love to cook and try new recipes for dinner, so if I'm tired of all of this stuff, I'll just pack leftovers from the night before.

In general, I try to make sure my lunch has a balance of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and a lean protein, or at least 3 out of 4.

Hope this helps! It probably sounds boring for some, but it works well for time and budget constraints.

bnsnwldwmn

I forgot to mention that one thing I do to keep the overall cost down is buy whole fruits and veggies and prep and cut them myself. I usually do it all the day I go grocery shopping or just any time I can set aside a chunk of time to do it all at once, that way it's grab-and-go during the week.

cupcakecutie1985

I tried out a new recipe today for portobello pizzas! Hallow out 2 large or 6 small portobellos, then fill w pizza sauce, skim milk mozz. cheese and I cut up turkey pepperettes(2, one each mushroom) to sprinkle on top! Since you don't have an oven at work, just pop em in the oven at home either 350 for like 20 mins or broil on hi for a bit less! and they reheat nicely at work! I used a serving and a half of cheese grated and the cals came out to about 350 for the 2 large, felt pretty satisfied after as well!

htimpaired

This week I baked a large spaghetti squash and sectioned it off into four servings. Each morning I take one and measure out some veggie pasta sauce, and then pack it with some cut up cukes and tomatoes. I guess it's a low-protein lunch, but I eat hummus and carrots as a snack, so I have fuel to go the gym at the end of the day. I am LOVING the spaghetti squash. I suppose I could add some meatballs....

underthemidnightsun

I like to take a sweet potato and microwave it for about 6 minutes. Then I take 1/2 cup black beans and some salsa and put over it baked potato style. It's really filling and cheap.

Always_Smiling_D

brown rice w chicken or tilapia - if you meal prep on Sunday the brown rice keeps very well for up to 7 days and I usually under cook the chicken a bit so when I heat it in the microwave it doesn't dry out same with the tilapia...

midwestmixtape

I eat anywhere from a half to a whole pound of broccoli and almost a pound of chicken thigh every day at lunch. Costs about two bucks, I make it at home, you can cook broccoli and chicken so many different ways too and it's about 600 calories - tons of protein and good carbs & fats. I buy the food at an asian grocery store in town which may make it cheaper than if you go somewhere else.

wordpainter09

I forgot to mention that one thing I do to keep the overall cost down is buy whole fruits and veggies and prep and cut them myself. I usually do it all the day I go grocery shopping or just any time I can set aside a chunk of time to do it all at once, that way it's grab-and-go during the week.

I definitely do this. Also make my own beans/rice/salsa bowls. I eat a lot of really basic foods. Slices of cheese (real not the diet kind), containers of cottage cheese or plain yogurt and fruit to give flavor, sometimes a veggie burger or something. For flavor, I use salsas, sour cream, salt etc.

The basic stuff is not only cheaper, it usually turns out to be lower cal and has fewer additives.

nicolaturner1986

Thanks for all the replies guys! There are some great ideas i'm definitely going to try! :-) x

AlyssaLoflin

I was looking for the same thing today and came across this awesome website that has 90 great ideas: http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2012/09/90-healthy-no-heat-lunches-for-work.html