It’s summer. And with summer comes the 9-5 summer jobs and summer internships (paid and unpaid.) Eating out for lunch everyday does not agree well with our bank balances and the pesky “under $50.00” notifications are never fun to receive either. Behold, a compilation of quick and easy lunches you can make to bring to work. #mealprep. Everyone eating out will be jealous of you.
1. Lemon Basil Walnut Pesto
Photo by Jake Popescu
Pasta is one of the easiest lunches to pack: just throw it into a container and bring it with you. Instead of a normal pesto or tomato pasta, try this refreshing lemon basil pesto. It’s perfect for the summer weather, most of the ingredients you already probably have, and it only takes 20 minutes to make. Go do it!
2. Harvest Bowl
Photo by Stephanie Schoenster
This Harvest Bowl is your own DIY sweetgreen bowl. It’s healthy, filling, and you can save yourself the time and money by making it yourself. Although the total cook time is an hour and 15 minutes, don’t worry most of that is just your ingredients cooking. And a lot of the ingredients you can use for other lunches and dinners.
3. Chicken Cucumber Pita Pocket
Photo by Abigail Wilkins
This chicken cucumber pita pocket is a perfect, healthy, and quick (it takes only 5 minutes!) lunch. It’s packed with carbs and protein to keep you full all day, and it is delicious. It is super easy to throw into a small Tupperware or wax bag and grab an apple or some grapes on the side and you’re good to go.
4. Loaded Sweet Potato
Photo by Tess van Donkelaar
Sweet potatoes are amazing, and this simple recipe can pretty much be modified however you like to satisfy your cravings. But if you want ideas for what to stuff your sweet potatoes with, check it out. This Mexican style sweet potato filled with avocado, beans, cheese, and lime juice is a quick (25-30 minutes total time), cheap, and easy to pack lunch (you only need one container).
5. Kale and Watermelon Salad
Photo by Emily Nadler
Watermelon in salad is one of the best combinations to have ever been thought of. This 4 ingredient salad with kale, watermelon, feta, and salad dressing will have you wanting to make it every day. Everything in the salad perfectly complements the other ingredients, especially the watermelon and feta. It’s simple and it tastes delicious. You could even throw some grilled chicken on there for extra protein if you wanted to. (If you’re not a fan of kale, check out this Watermelon, Feta and Mint Summer Salad.)
6. Flatbread Veggie Pizza
Photo by Annalee Flaherty
In only 30 minutes you can make yourself a delicious personal sized pizza customizable with your favorite veggies that you probably already have sitting in your fridge. Save the money on a fancy pizza and make your own! If you need to warm it back up, just stick it on top of the toaster at work so it gets nice and toasty without making a mess. (You don’t want it to get soggy in the microwave.)
7. Mango-Curry Grilled Chicken Salad
Photo by Kate Foody
This Mango-Curry Grilled Chicken Salad is the perfect meal prep. Although it takes a little longer to make, it can be used in multiple ways. Throw it on a sandwich, into a pita, or on top of some grains or greens and you have multiple different meals. Step up from the normal chicken salad (that you will definitely find boring after trying this) and make this instead!
8. One-Pan Balsamic Chicken and Veggies
Photo by Jackie Kuczynski
You can’t go wrong with chicken and veggies. This recipe takes only 20 minutes and you only have to wash one dish.
9. Leonardo diCapreseo Panini
Photo by Tarika Narain
Panini’s are just better sandwiches. Take 10 minutes out of your morning and make this simple tomato, mozzarella, basil panini. Pop it in a sandwich bag and if you wanna warm it back up, use the same toaster trick that we used for the pizza.
10. Chicken Pesto Pasta Bake
Photo by Ellen Gibbs
This chicken pesto pasta bake takes normal mac n’ cheese to another level. Have you ever had cheesy pesto mac n’ cheese? Well now is your time to try it out. With 20 minutes of prep and 30 minutes of cook time (that’s enough time for a TV episode), you can do some super #mealprep for lunch and even dinner. All you have to do is throw it in a Tupperware, pop it in the microwave, and you’ve got the perfect lunch meal for work.