What are your favorite work lunches?!

Right now I'm digging spinach salads with parmesan cheese, english cucumbers, a boiled egg, Italian dressing and some grilled chicken thigh--usually with a few crackers on the side.

Left over dinner

A simple sandwich and a piece of fruit. No refrigerator.

We do:
a protein source like chicken, tuna, beef
with veggies such as roasted peppers, sweet potato and red onion, broccoli, kale, spinach, corn, peas, courgette, squash, carrot, stir fry veg like pac choi and bean sprouts and water chesnuts
add a base such as rice, cous cous or potato
choose a flavour: either i will cook the chicken or beef in a seasoning or add a small amount of sweet chilli or hosin sauce to fish.

today i have chicken (plain) with cous cous mixed with tumeric and cumin powder. added rocket, spinach, sweet potato, pepper, mozzarella, sultanas and red onion.

Today I brought green beans, brown rice, curried chickpeas, and fruit. Some days I bring salad and crackers. I tend to prefer bringing leftover dinner. Occasionally I bring a PBJ on whole wheat, and fresh fruit.

I do the same as CarvedTones with the marinated grilled chicken, but I usually pair it with a grain and veggies. This week's grain is couscous, but I've done quinoa as well. You can marinate or dress it in practically anything and change up the flavor every time.

Arianera wrote: »

Cook a big pot of soup, stew, or chili on the weekend. Freeze in lunch-sized portions. Serve with a small salad (also prep'd several in advance) or bread depending on how filling the soup is.

Yes. I love doing this because soups, stews, and chilis actually improve in flavor over time. I have five chilis and a split pea soup in the freezer right now!

I give myself 20 minutes to cook and prep my salad in the morning as it tastes that much fresher. Normally I have something like:
- Rice or couscous
- hard boiled egg or grilled chicken
- Salad containing: salad leaves (depending on what I've bought, but normally a mix of lettuce, watercress, spinach & rocket), cucumber, spring onions, a tomato and green peppers. I normally dress the salad with a crack of salt and pepper, and sometimes a wee bit of balsamic vinegar for flavour. If I can spare the calories and I'm bored, I'll chuck in some seeds or nuts into the salad.

I also like to keep these parts in separate tubs before I eat them, so that they don't go soggy or anything like that.

I prep chicken breasts, too, on Sunday on the smoker. Then I use them different ways, on salad, in a wrap, with a baked potato, etc.

Tortilla and veggie burger wrap

I've been trying to incorporate protein, fat, fiber, and greens at each meal (Be Well By Kelly philosophy for turning off hunger hormones). My favorite, right now, is 1/4 cup black beans, mixed greens, seasoned chicken, tomatoes, 1/4 avocado, salsa & a dollop of full fat greek yogurt! My own makeshift Chipotle bowl

This week: sprouted grain tortilla, 3 oz tuna mixed with Primal Kitchen Avocado Mayo, Greens, Tomato & Cucumber. Super yummy and fills me up

Sandwich (Turkey Slice, Ham Slice, American Cheese Slice, Shiracha sauce), applesauce, a light salad, bag of 100 calorie popcorn for desert. Drink is usually a diet soda.

Cook burger patties in instant pot and place one,once cooked, on a bed of arugula and tomatoes. Drizzle honey mustard over it. It's my burger salad.
Takes care of a burger craving.

I eat turkey meatballs and some type of steamable veggies for most work day lunches but I don't have access to anything other than a microwave, so I can't get too creative haha

With summer here I have been making cold salads and eating them over a few days:

• https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/easy-quinoa-salad/
• https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/black-bean-and-corn-salad-recipe-1941686
• https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017656-citrus-rice-salad-with-parmesan
• https://www.skinnytaste.com/mediterranean-bean-salad/