25 Big-Batch Recipes to Make for Lunch

Kelli Foster
Kelli FosterCulinary Producer at The Kitchn
I'm a recipe developer, food writer, stylist, and video producer (and The Kitchn's Dinner Therapist), with more than 10 years professional experience. Since graduating from The French Culinary Institute, I've authored 3 cookbooks: Buddha Bowls, Plant-Based Buddha Bowls, and The Probiotic Kitchen.
updated Jul 5, 2023
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Credit: Shelly Westerhausen/Kitchn

Whether you’re feeding yourself or a family, figuring out what to make for lunch day after day can be a real pain point. It is for me. And that’s exactly why I turned to bulk lunch recipes that yield enough to get me through the week, if not longer.

I’m a strong believer that big-batch cooking is one of the best gifts you can give your future self, for lunchtime and beyond. And it’s more than just the food. The beauty of batch cooking is that when you put in all the time and effort upfront in a single meal prep session, you only dirty and clean the dishes once.

Through time and experience, I’ve learned that some types of lunches lend themselves to batch cooking much better than others. For starters, you’ll want to stick with meals that are built to last and will keep well for at least several days without wilting or getting soggy, stale, or dull. Things like grain salads, hearty slaws, and rice bowls all fit the bill. It can also be helpful to stick with options that can be scaled up, as well as ones that can be frozen, like soup and savory muffins.

Here are 25 of our favorite big-batch recipes that help make lunchtime easier.

Rice and Grain Bowls

1 / 5
Peanut Chicken Power Bowls
These nourishing peanut chicken bowls are packed with quinoa, a rainbow of veggies, and finished with a creamy peanut sauce.
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2 / 5
One-Pot BBQ Chicken Burrito Bowls
Burrito bowls filled with tender spiced rice, beans, corn, and tangy barbecue chicken.
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3 / 5
Greek Chicken Grain Bowls
These Greek chicken grain bowls are inspired by classic Greek salad and lemon-herb chicken, and topped with a tangy, 3-ingredient feta sauce.
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4 / 5
Spicy Thai Chicken and Brown Rice Bowls
These vibrant Thai chicken and brown rice bowls are topped with a rainbow of crunchy vegetables and drizzled with curried peanut sauce.
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5 / 5
Moroccan-Spiced Chickpea Bowls
These saucy, spiced chickpea bowls with kale, avocado, and a runny-yolked egg are all the proof you need that comfort food can also be healthy.
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Grain Salads

1 / 5
Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
An easy, make-ahead recipe for quinoa salad filled with fresh vegetables, herbs, and cheese that's perfect for a packable lunch.
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2 / 5
Mediterranean-Style Chopped Salad with Oregano Vinaigrette
This vegetarian chopped salad — packed with farro, chickpeas, and plenty of fresh veggies— gets even better as it sits.
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3 / 5
Tex-Mex Quinoa Salad
Mixed with quinoa, beans, and vibrant fresh veggies, and topped with a zippy chili-lime vinaigrette, this is a potluck salad that everyone can eat.
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4 / 5
Farro Salad with Roasted Eggplant, Caramelized Onion, and Pine Nuts

The salad is fabulous next to any grilled meat, such as steak, chicken, or lamb. Vegetarians can top it with crumbled ricotta salata or feta.

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5 / 5
Warm Beet and Farro Salad

This recipe has a lot of parts, but if you do them in the right order, it all comes together by the time the beets are roasted.

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Slaws and Hearty Salads

1 / 5
Kale & Quinoa Salad with Dates, Almonds & Citrus Dressing

Kale and quinoa are two of the trendiest pieces of the modern stereotypically healthy diet, but that really isn’t their fault.

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2 / 5
Kale Slaw
An easy slaw using shredded cruciferous vegetables, almonds, and dried cherries in a tangy honey-mustard dressing.
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3 / 5
Sesame Ginger Slaw
If you want a potluck dish that's a total crowd-pleaser, there is no better choice than this sesame ginger slaw.
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4 / 5
Cabbage and Apple Slaw with Honey-Lime Dressing

This one, full of sweet and crisp apples and dressed with honey and lime, is familiar yet not run-of-the-mill.

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5 / 5
Sesame Chicken Celery Root Salad

I gave the usual noodles the boot in this sesame ginger chicken salad. Instead I tossed shredded celery root (also known as celeriac) with a simple sesame seed ginger vinaigrette made with toasted sesame oil, maple, and tamari. A handful of chopped fresh basil is added for even more flavor.

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Soups to Double

1 / 6
Slow Cooker Easy Lentil Soup
Wholesome and satisfying, this vegetarian lentil soup is how to reboot after a season of overindulgence.
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2 / 6
Split Pea Soup
An easy recipe for classic split pea soup flavored with thyme and a smoked ham hock, with the option to make it vegetarian.
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3 / 6
Vegan Sweet Potato Chowder

This vegan sweet potato chowder delivers everything you want in a warm fall soup.

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4 / 6
Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup
A warm bowl of chicken enchilada soup, made in the slow cooker, tastes like you're eating an enchilada with a spoon.
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5 / 6
Red Lentil Soup
This quick and easy recipe for lentil soup puts a hearty vegetarian dinner on the table in just about 30 minutes.
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6 / 6
Slow Cooker Corn Chowder
Summery slow cooker corn chowder is finished with just a dash of heavy cream and topped with a bright and fresh relish.
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Freezer-Friendly Lunches

1 / 4
Chickpea and Cheddar Quesadillas
To make these quesadillas desk-lunch-friendly, we ditched the wedge cut for a technique that keeps the chickpeas and cheese nestled in a closed tortilla.
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2 / 4
Ham and Cheddar Lunch Box Muffins
These hearty muffins are mixed with cornmeal for extra heft and texture, and loaded with thick-cut chunks of ham, sharp cheddar, and a pinch of chives.
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3 / 4
Roasted Sweet Potato Wraps with Caramelized Onions and Pesto
These savory vegetarian wraps are made in a big batch so you can store them in the freezer for easy lunches.
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4 / 4
Scrambled Chickpea and Spinach Pitas

For a vegan breakfast sandwich that will power you through the morning, look to this pita pocket stuffed with a blend of spiced chickpeas and sautéed veggies.

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