Here’s some inspiration and ideas for a make-ahead lunch that you can enjoy at work or even an average day, should you feel like it. These ideas cover several foods and categories, because thoughtful lunch shouldn’t just be a salad quickly thrown together.
1. Burger Bowl Salad With Thousand Island Dressing
This burger bowl salad is a hit in presentation, taste, and nourishment. It’s gluten-free and the packing makes it easy to take to work for lunch. Plus, it’s easy to eat as well, so there’s no mess, no fuss, and you get a great meal.
One great thing about this style is that it’s extremely versatile. You can add or remove ingredients in the food and replace them with what tickles your imagination and taste buds. After all, salads are very versatile and can work with many taste preferences.
2. A Nourishing Buddha Bowl
Entirely vegan and filled with plant-based food, this Buddha bowl has quite the charisma. The layering makes it look all the more appetizing. I mean, even the garbanzo beans look pretty photogenic here, and that’s a tough task to accomplish!
Also, as we see the layering of this salad, it becomes rather clear that it’s well-distributed and balanced. There are plenty of nutrients and nourishing foods in this mix, making it a complete and filling lunch. Equally important, the salad is delicious! Once properly mixed in, the textures get balanced and the lunch is truly enjoyable.
3. Pecan Butternut Squash Chicken and Wild Rice
The bento-style packing and aesthetics make this recipe stand out. Thankfully, it is as delicious and nourishing as it’s picturesque! The combination of the carefully arranged and compartmentalized eggs, pecan nuts, and the rice and chicken combo makes quite an impression.
This combination is gluten-free and full of flavor. And yes, some skill does go into making it look as photogenic as that picture. Simply plonking food in the bent box won’t do, you have to place it carefully with an eye out for proper arrangement.
4. A Salmon Salad
This wonderfully crafted salmon salad makes the effort put into the make ahead lunch well worth it. It’s packed in a bento-style box for a full lunch feel. As an effect of this approach, it is easy to carry with you to work and it stays organized. The salmon in the bread, plus the accompanying fresh fruits and veggies make this a wholesome meal.
The recipe prefers fresh salmon over canned salmon for the sake of flavor and texture. However, for most places, it’s not easy to get hold of fresh salmon, so frozen fish or similar options will have to do!
5. Ham And Cheese Sliders
These little sliders look so appetizing! These ham and cheese sliders are a welcome sight any day of the week. And they’re absolutely a treat for lunch. Also, if you’re so inclined, they can even work as a quick weeknight meal.
Once you’ve prepped these tiny sandwiches, you can keep them in the freezer for a couple of weeks easily. Make sure they’re packed right and ready for the freezer.
Then, when it’s time for your meal, simply take them out of the freezer, let them thaw, and use the oven to prepare your meal. Once cooked, the sliders are good for a day and can be enjoyed at your preferred time.
6. A Mediterranean Pasta Salad
Wonderfully textured and full of flavor, this Mediterranean-style pasta is a good pick for a make ahead lunch. Cavatappi with some cheese and veggies is a good combo for flavor and texture. It’s also relatively easy to prepare, so you can have your lunch ready in a jiffy.
For a healthier meal, I’d recommend adding more veggies to the mix, or perhaps a meat of your choice. Going by the image, the pasta surely does look good, but it would be a much better meal with some more nourishing ingredients added into the mix.
7. This Stylish Snack Box
This lunch box is an excellent example of healthy snacking and a filling meal. It’s got fresh fruits, veggies, yogurt, nuts, and even eggs. It looks very well balanced, doesn’t cost much, is easy to prepare, and works wonderfully as a make ahead lunch. This is far from a gourmet meal, but is clearly a thoughtful lunch with plenty of goodness.
I’m more a fan of the bento box approach with every passing day. It brings styling and organization to packed food. We’ve been carrying meals for lunch or travel for decades, perhaps centuries. Delicious as that meal might be, this style of packaging adds a visual element that’s worth loving and backing.
8. A Lunchbox With Style
Here’s another carefully crafted with nuts, fresh fruit, eggs, and pasta. That little sandwich by the side is a nice touch and adds another style of texture and deliciousness to this mix.
This is a lovely lunch box meal for kids, or even adults, for that matter. The styling and the ingredients are very well managed, and it’s a nourishing and balanced meal.
One suggestion from the photographer is to let the sandwiches/sliders cool down to room temperature before putting them in the box, so they don’t get soggy. And that’s a good suggestion for other ingredients and situations like these. Even if packed hot, the food isn’t going to be even warm after a few hours. Yet, the whole box and its ingredients will certainly turn soggy.
Adding a tissue during packing to absorb some of the moisture is also a good idea.
9. Peppers, Chips, And Guac
This is an interesting combination of foods, each very likable on its own, and they get even better as a combination! The stuffed peppers, chips, and guacamole are convenient to prepare and make good companions for lunch.
Also, it might be a good idea to let the stuffed bread cool before you add it to the lunch box. Covering the top with a tissue might help as well. You could perhaps consider wrapping the bread in tissues, but removing soggy tissues is often a mood killer.
10. BBQ Chicken Flatbreads
Here’s a quick, high-protein lunch idea that’s nourishing and provides a fulfilling lunch. The recipe involves mini focaccia breads topped with chicken breast, cheese, peppers, or to be simple – whatever floats your boat for toppings! It’s a versatile recipe with a lot of potential and the right mix of flavor and taste.
The key ingredients here are flat bread, chicken breasts, sliced capsicum, red onion, and shredded cheese. You can also add herbs, spices, and condiments of your choice. The recipe calls for cumin, BBQ sauce, extra virgin olive oil, coriander (cilantro leaves), and lemon juice.
11. Caesar Salad With Blue Cheese And Bacon
Salads are the quintessential food for lunch or make-ahead lunch. But no one said they have to be bland! This wonderful recipe has Caesar salad accompanied with blue cheese, bacon, and eggs. To randomly (and poorly) reference Jerry Maguire, you had me at salad, and at blue cheese, and at bacon!