Ideas of what to bring to work for lunch

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nebulinda
nebulinda Posts: 120 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I'm getting pretty tired of sandwiches, so I'd like some other 200-400 calorie thing that I can eat. However, I don't have access to a fridge, so it should be something that won't be gross after sitting around for up to 5 hours. I also don't have access to a microwave. Basically I have no way of keeping my food cold or heating it up. I also only have about 30 minutes for lunch, so I don't have time to go out and buy something.

Any ideas? Thanks.

Replies

  • CasperO
    CasperO Posts: 2,913 Member
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    Think in terms of what you can make for dinner, that's also pretty decent at room temperature. I dunno,,, grilled chicken strips? Taco salad?

    I fix way too much dinner, and then she and I have sack lunches for days without too much extra effort, and you know exactly what's in tthere. Food for thought.
  • scottishdianne
    scottishdianne Posts: 1 Member
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    Im loving fruity pots of mandarins just now, and little tins of mackerel or kippers. I put in a couple of pieces of fresh fruit too. Easy. dx
  • eleanoreunson
    eleanoreunson Posts: 3
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    soup in a flask! still toasty warm after 5 hours
  • PlanetVelma
    PlanetVelma Posts: 1,231 Member
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    #1 - Invest in some ice packs. We have fridges here @ my place of employment, but your lunch is not safe there. sooooo....I keep mine in my lunchbox under my desk. With all the ice packs I use it keeps my food very cold. :)

    I would suggest salads, pitas, cut up veggies w/ ranch or hummus; yogurt; apples/banana; peanut butter; almonds; string cheese; sardines; oysters (in a can of course)....

    Your lunches are only limited to your imagination.
  • rebeccasedwards
    rebeccasedwards Posts: 208
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    Tuna lunch kits are pretty good if you get the right tuna.
  • eriemer
    eriemer Posts: 197
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    1st purchase a good insulated lunch bag and cold packs that you can keep in the freezer. Also purchase a thermos (go to thier website lots of choices) type bowl for hot foods. You don't need a fridge or a microwave to enjoy a real meal with the proper accesories. You can heated up food then put it into your thermos food container and it stays hot for a long time, that means soup to pasta dishes. With cold food fresh cut up fruit and yogurt mmmm! Salads are also good and you can buy special salad bowls that have a place for your dressing and fork. Hope that helps.
  • umachanxo
    umachanxo Posts: 926 Member
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    Chicken salad, any type of wrap, hard boiled eggs and some almonds, fruit salad, vegetables and hummus with a hard boiled egg... I'm not that great at coming up with ideas but I hope that helps. :happy:
  • laurenmc519
    laurenmc519 Posts: 1 Member
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    if you can bring a little lunchbox with ice packs, one of my favorite lunches is taboule salad. i bulk it up with green peppers, cucumber, red onion and also some feta crumbles. you don't even need dressing because the taboule liquid acts as it. you could also put it in a low calorie pita pocket or wrap. bean salad is also a good substitute.
  • PB312
    PB312 Posts: 3 Member
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    I generally take a tin of soup and some bread, but I have a microwave at work to heat it.
  • msbellzee
    msbellzee Posts: 69
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    Tuna and crackers
    Fresh tomato and crackers
    maybe you could have chicken and salad if you have a little chilly bin
  • Loislaine61
    Loislaine61 Posts: 49
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    Ahh . . well . . . this is a tough one for me, but it sounds like you need to look for some prepackaged foods like tuna and crackers, applesauce or fruit cocktail, fresh fruits, etc. Perhaps a trip to the grocery store when you have some time and walk the aisles. There must be nutritious prepackaged food you can get.

    You can also buy a thermos and put hot or cold food in it. They even come in wide mouth so you could eat soup right out of it.

    Hope this helps.
  • _Timmeh_
    _Timmeh_ Posts: 2,096 Member
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    Wow no fridge or microwave...dang! I like the tuna packs like someone suggested.
    Lunchbox with ice packs....pre make salads, wraps, pita sandwich, grilled cooked chicken I would eat that cold.
    Fruit salad!
  • bl00berry
    bl00berry Posts: 1
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    I do whole grain/wheat pita pockets with hummus, roasted red peppers (i roast myself), bring some mixed greens, packet of tuna lemon pepper, kalamata olives and red onion...good at room temp.

    pasta with pesto and veggies, pasta with roasted veggies, kalamata's and tomato sauce is still good at room temperature. Rice is also alright at room temp...with maybe stir fry veggies and tofu/tempeh.

    You could also just do a salad with cherry tomatoes, cut up ur cucumber at work and avocado, tin of mandarin oranges in juice, some pecans/slivered almonds and dressing, throw some canned salmon on there.

    I find that when i pack things separately or bring whole veggies and fruits then cut them up at work it's better at room temp cos they're still fresh. I only have 30 minutes break too :)
  • lmbtexas
    lmbtexas Posts: 5
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    I would suggest investing in a small soft sided cooler & some reusable cold packs. They are perfect for taking your lunch to work; you can pick one up at Wal-Mart, Target, or someplace similar.

    I take salad & 4 oz of baked chicken. You can either make your own ( the economical way), or you can get salad in a bad & some precooked chicken, or even go to you're gorcery store's salad bar.

    I hope this helps.

    Keep Fcused & Stay Strong!
  • nebulinda
    nebulinda Posts: 120 Member
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    Thanks for the ideas, everyone. A thermos is great, I will be picking one up. The reason I have no fridge or microwave is that I'm a substitute teacher. I work in a different place every day, and so can't store things at work either, or eat/prepare things that might make a mess.

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