Thinking about lunch tomorrow or next week? Wondering what you're going to eat? Here are ten make-ahead grains, legumes, and other basics that can serve as the base for a great lunch. From brown rice to sweet potatoes, think about making one or two tonight to serve as your lunch tomorrow!
Each of these foods is very simple to make the night before, and each lasts well. Most of these are also fairly nutritious, and a lot of them are high in fiber and whole grain yumminess.
So start a batch of one of these before you eat dinner; it often involves nothing more than boiling water.
• 1. Brown Rice - This is my own personal favorite for lunches. Short-grain brown rice is so nutty and stays so soft and tender, even in the fridge. Warm it up with some sesame oil and almonds — delicious!
• 2. Quinoa - Nutritious and nutty. Top with some shredded chicken or a few tomato slices.
• 3. Lentils - Lentils make a great base for lunch. I especially like them topped with a poached egg or some bacon.
• 4. Sweet Potato - Roast a sweet potato and take it to work with some cooked greens and a dollop of yogurt.
• 5. Beans - Cook a batch of beans tonight and they'll last all week!
• 6. Butternut Squash - This is another really delicious yet often overlooked meal basic. If you roast a bunch of squash cubes, they make a great lunch base. Toss with greens, or some leftover pork.
• 7. White Rice - I don't like white rice as much as brown rice, but if you're making some rice anyway for dinner, make an extra cup and eat it for lunch!
• 8. Mashed Potatoes - Mashed potatoes are so delicious and comforting when reheated at work! Top with some extra melted cheese.
• 9. Polenta - Make a little extra polenta; it lasts well in the fridge. It needs a little stirring and extra liquid when you heat it up. You can also pour hot polenta into a baking sheet and let it cool. Slice and serve in squares; this makes for great lunches.
• 10. Oatmeal - Oatmeal? For lunch? Why yes! Steel cut oats are so filling and hearty, and they reheat splendidly. Make your morning batch a little larger, and eat them for lunch. Here's how to cook steel cut oats. .
Do you have any basics like this that you cook ahead for lunches?
Related: Brown Rice to Quinoa: 5 Staple Bases for Great Lunches
(Images: Faith Durand; Emily Ho; Faith Durand)
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I love making things on Sunday that can last the whole week. If I make one thing on Sunday that can give me 2-3 lunches during the week I am a happy camper! The other 2-3 days I simply eat leftovers and possibly grab a quick and cheap lunch with a coworker for 1 day. Great tips!
oh my god, so much carbs in this article, what do you do in this case if you are on a strict diet that won't let you eat that much starchy food as bases?
I'd appreciate suggestions for those of us who can't eat grains or legumes.
This afternoon I'm cooking up just a pile of chickpeas for dinner and for lunch (and maybe dinner again) tomorrow.
@gussiebuns - Lentils and quinoa are super high in protein, those might be good options for you.
Also, @slowcrafted - It helps if you mention what exactly the problem is: Allergy? Medical condition? Self-imposed dietary restriction? There are a couple options on the list that aren't either of those things - Potatoes, sweet potatoes and squash. You could do beets, turnips, or other tubers.
caseoftornados, I'm diabetic. A combination of medication and fewer than 50g of carbs a day keep me in check; turnips, green veg, and the rare sweet potato are about all I can tolerate.
Apart from my own dietary restrictions, most prep-ahead suggestions tend to be heavily weighted toward grains and legumes, so alternates interest me in terms of seeing what else is out there.
slowcrafted: I don't limit my carbs, but some easy meals I eat for lunch that are naturally lower in carbs are leftover boneless chicken thigh/breast (I like it cold) with cut up veggies and a piece of fruit, cottage cheese with sliced cucumbers, grape tomatoes and cracked black pepper and sea salt (admittedly, I often eat this with a few crackers or tortilla chips - I don't know if there are any low-carb options for these on the market), leftover stirfried veggies with a poached egg on top, and one of my favorites, homemade veggie soup with some chicken or turkey sausage. Hope this helps!
Mashed potatoes and corn is a great lunch.
@slowcrafted, have you seen crackers made from nuts? Probably at health food stores. I have a friend with celiac disease, and those are a lifesaver for her. Some pecan, some almond...all delicious.
2 cups water, 1/2 cup lentils, 1/2 cup brown rice, 1 tsp. salt, cooked together about 45 minutes. This makes 3 or 4 lunches for me. Each day I add a chopped tomato, and maybe some other leftover veggies, to that day's portion, add a spice--chili powder or za'atar are current faves--and nuke at lunchtime.
We always have the following cooked and frozen: brown rice, quinoa, chickpeas, beans, and steel cut oatmeal. Makes cooking for a busy house so much easier.
If you have brown rice, cooked sweet potatoes and cooked squash on hand, they are so great added to a green salad w/balsamic dressing.
SCHOOL LUNCH:
I pack warm lunch for my 9 year old every day, because school lunch is just foodlike substance. I bought a Ms Bento thermos for him that has 3 compartments and keeps his lunch warm enough (not hot). I freeze almost everything in small 12oz glass Pyrex containers that comes with a plastic lid, microwave the food in the AM in the glass , and fill the Bento (plastic)with it. We made a menu together that we don't stricktly follow, but gives me ideas. Here are a few things I have in my freezer for him in small portions:
Beef stew with rice, home made meaty spagetti sauce w pasta, hungarian bean gulyas, home made tomato soup, chicken paprikas with spatzle, minestrone soup, bison soup with veggies, red wine braised lamb shanks, spinach and cheese filled tortellini. Other things we pack: crepes with sweet cheese filling, leftover chinese, fresh cooked pasta with grated walnuts sweetened with vanilla sugar, stir fried chicken breast with whatever veggies are handy, cucumber salad with a sandwich, pulled pork with a bun on the side. He loves it and he gets a lot of attention at school. All it takes is keep saving food on the weekends. I am a doctor with a busy schedule, so if I can cook and pack, you can too.
@Johanna33 What yummy lunch ideas!
Great stuff Johanna33, your post really generates ideas in my head for my family.
When I used to cook for just me, pasta was always a staple. You can top it with different sauces, vegetables, or even add it to soup or beans.
slowcrafted, have you tried mashed cauliflower? It's super low-carb yet just as comforting as potatoes! Just steam a head of cauli with a clove or two of garlic and puree/mash with salt, pepper, and olive oil. It would probably keep for a few days in the fridge, or you could freeze individual portions and pull out one when you need it.
I like salads when hot...we usually have a big vegetable salad every day and especially big in summer when our garden is busy. As I am making that I just fill another serving size bowl for me and set that aside in fridge. Next morning I add tomato, feta, olives, eggs, what ever juicy things I don't put in salad ahead of time. Sometimes some tuna. un-bacon bits, sunflower seeds, chow mein noodles, all are good. I have bottles of dressing in the work refrigerator.
When the weather is cool I start making soup so I will bring in a couple quart containers of chili or minestrone or lentil etc and we have dishes in the lunchroom so any one wants a bowl can just heat in the microwave. We also always have bagels, crackers, peanut butter and jams, cream cheese, mustard and mayo etc. stocked in the fridge. We run a small business and employees can help themselves to what they want. Nice on days when we are extra busy.
I used to live close enough to work to go home and fix my lunch during my break. But now I don't, and I've been miserable at planning and taking the time to pack my lunches, even though I would prefer to for both budget and healths-sake. I've been spending too much money on food with no quality because of it. This article and the comments have inspired me! Tonight I am going to plan lunches for the rest of the week! Thanks all!