Ideas for packed lunches on a budget

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  • bnsnwldwmn
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    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
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    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
    cupcakecutie1985 Posts: 110 Member
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    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
    htimpaired Posts: 1,404 Member
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    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
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    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
    Always_Smiling_D Posts: 118 Member
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    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
    midwestmixtape Posts: 66 Member
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    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
    wordpainter09 Posts: 472 Member
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    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
    nicolaturner1986 Posts: 45 Member
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    Thanks for all the replies guys! There are some great ideas i'm definitely going to try! :-) x
  • AlyssaLoflin
    AlyssaLoflin Posts: 27 Member
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    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
  • VelveteenArabian
    VelveteenArabian Posts: 758 Member
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    Crockpots and casseroles are your friend for this. I can cook one big soup or stew on a Sunday and portion it out into Tupperware and just grab and go everyday. Same with casseroles.
  • FattyFeast
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    I usually do a cous cous salad type lunch. You can chuck almost anything in it, with a bit of vinegar (red wine or balsamic) and a tiny bit of olive oil on the top, possibly some oregano or other herbs!

    Usually I do cous cous with chopped up tomatoes, a red onion (packs in the flavour), cucumber and oregano. You could put almost any veg in the salad though and it's super cheap. You can also stick in meat (for instance a tin of tuna is only about 120 calories) and I find that it's satisfying, flavoursome and relatively enjoyable.

    Only downside is that it's cold but hey, there's no microwave where I am anyway.
  • jessykab74
    jessykab74 Posts: 167 Member
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    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 do this as well. I also buy a big bag of chicken and throw it all on the George Forman grill while I am cutting up all the veg and fruits for most of the week. Make sure you put it in separate containers (it tends to last longer) I use the chicken for several meals (mainly lunches (salads, wraps, chicken tacos) I also eat left overs a lot for lunch. This is what works for me.
  • Laquetia
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    happyI love this ideal . I was woundering about soup beacuse I know i will need to sub some meals for soup plus I work two job and go to school so cookin isn't much of an option.:happy: