Lunch recipes for work

[franzi1981]

Hi!

I'm interested in what you guys cook for work lunch? I'm in the US for the time being and there's no canteena or healthy food option near my work place. We do have a microwave at work, but that's it. Eating out every day is super unhealthy, but I also am very unimaginative when it comes to preparing food...

I'm trying to see if Paleo is doing anything for me, but I'm not religiously following the rules. Trying to cut down the unhealthy carbs (no pasta :(), though.

ANY suggestions are welcome though, so I can move beyond salad ;)

Comments

[highlander_ii]

I tend to look around on http://budgetbytes.com to see what she's come up with. A lot of things make enough for 2 or 3 meals and they're all fairly inexpensive - since that's the general idea of the site.

Things are grouped by protein or vegetarian and there's a search box if you're looking for something specific.

I haven't made anything from her site that I didn't like. (Tho, there are things I probably won't make a 2nd time b/c I didn't love them.)

oh - and Sriracha caramel corn is one of the best things ever, despite all the sugar. =)

[franzi1981]

I could never give up sugar (caramel!!) completely ;)

Thanks! This page looks useful!

[zdashamber]

That looks like a super great site! Thanks for pointing it out!

[monanotlisa]

Invest in a rice cooker, if you haven't already: You can make fantastic curries, stews, and assorted dishes in it that never burn, never fail, and NEVER NEED YOUR INPUT AFTER THROWING STUFF IN AND SWITCHING THE BUTTON.

I come home at 10pm after swimming, and I eat 1/2 or 1/3, and I take to work or freeze the rest.

For the starch/protein base, use lentils or beans or quinoa or cut potatoes; for extra protein use tofu or tempeh or of course meats or fish; top or mix with veggies -- carrots and broccoli, bok choi and bell peppers, and so on and so forth. Use a simmer sauce (I use the fancy organic ones from WF or the Berkeley Bowl) or curry or plenty of herbs and broth to set a base flavor -- or use coconut milk and some curry.


(Because I have to eat gluten-free, I don't use wheat and wheat by-products. ;)

[franzi1981]

I would love to! But I'm currently a few months here, a few months in Germany with no permanent residence here in the US. As soon as the Visa is sorted out and I'm here for more than 6-8 weeks at a time, a slow cooker is the first thing I'll buy! (well, after furniture ;)

6-8 weeks is just too long for unhealthy food and too short to justify buying all that kitchen equipment. I'm in a furnished apt, at least, so at least I can cook.

[monanotlisa]

Of course I know nothing about your finances, but if you do work and think you can spare 18 bucks -- this is my rice cooker:

http://www.amazon.com/Oster-Uncooked-Cooked-Cooker-Steaming/dp/B001KBY9M8/ref=sr_1_7?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1414282241&sr=1-7

[franzi1981]

Oh, the finances aren't the problem. Rather that I have no where to store it between my return to Germany and my next longer visit. The apt is only rented for the months I'm here and it could be a different complex each time.

Yes, this situation is as annoying as it sounds :P

[monanotlisa]

Urgh, bothersome. You're right.

I'm lazy but like to eat well. So I'd buy and toss, if need be. Storage could be an option too, of course.

[kshandra]

What you did there. I see it. ;-)

[monanotlisa]

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU MEAN.

(THE SHERIFF'S SECRET POLICE DOESN'T EITHER.)

[franzi1981]

We will never eat bread again! Bummer.

On 25 October 2014 20:17, monanotlisa - DW Comment dw_null@dreamwidth.org wrote:

[franzi1981]

ALL HAIL THE GLOW CLOUD

[branchandroot]

I also do the "make a big batch of something and freeze servings" and then I have things to take in to work and microwave for a week or two. So far, some of my stand-bys are:

Pasties (which I cheat and make with really thin pizza dough out of my bread-maker for the shell, and fill with whatever meat and root veggies I have in the fridge and freezer, pre-roasted); the original pocket-meal for the win.

A pot of curry or beef burgundy over rice or with beans added for body.

Enchilada pie, which is so much easier than rolling individual enchiladas--I layer tortillas, sauce, meat-and-onions, cheese, tortillas, sauce, and a last sprinkle of cheese over top. It's much easier to cut into you-size servings that way.

Egg salad or tuna salad, with a bit of lettuce on each side to keep the bread from getting soggy. You can do these as wraps, too, if you're trying to stay away from bread as well.

Frittata (loosely, mine usually winds up scrambled) with anything in the fridge (cheese, tomatoes, onions, peppers, etc.). With the egg just there to hold everything together, the texture doesn't get weird when you microwave it.

I've also invested in some Lock&Lock tupperware, because it freezes and thaws repeatedly without breaking, but if storage space is a concern, you might just have to go for the disposable stuff until you're settled in one place.

[franzi1981]

i have yet have to work up to pasties (and am lacking the "form"? mould? in this kitchen), but it's on my list of things to try and make because I love them!

Frittata! Of course! Why didn't I think of that!

And I love the lock&lock. Have a couple of them back in Germany (and I will move them with me when the long-term visa is settled) and they're awesome. Not even soup will escape them!

[branchandroot]

For pasties, all you need are baking sheets. If you pinch off balls of dough and roll them out into circles (more or less, in some cases), spoon filling onto half, fold the dough over, and pinch the edges, lo you have a sealed pocket. It does take a certain amount of counter space, to be sure. This is another reason I cheat with pizza dough, though; proper pie crust is a lot more difficult to fold without breaking, and I'm an impatient baker.

Lock&Lock is the most awesome. Oh yeah.

[st_aurafina]

I take soup - pea and ham, beef and kidney bean, pumpkin and lentil, chicken and barley are all lunchtime stalwarts for me. I do most of them on the stovetop, though I think the beef and kidney bean is more tender when I slow cook it in the oven in a cast iron pot. I do a big batch on the weekend, divide it up and freeze the portions. I usually have a mix of things in the freezer so I don't have to eat the same thing everyday unless I want to. I take the soup out the night before to defrost, pack a piece of fruit or a dinner roll or a granola bar with it, and I'm ready to go in the morning.

[franzi1981]

Me and soup have a complicated relationship ;) I make a mean improvised carrot soup (but am lacking a blender in the furnished kitchen over here)... but every other soup I tried to make so far was super bland, even though I followed the recipes.

I keep trying, though *G*

[jesse_the_k]

I've had good luck with various protein-heavy salads. My current win is

one large cuke: seeded, quartered the long way, then sliced thin
handful of something sweet, which has included raisins, froz corn or peas, grapes, cut-up apples
one can of good sardines in olive oil, plus their oil
~1/4 cup lime or lemon juice
dill (fresh if you can, dry if you must)

I put it in a plastic container and shake the dickens out of it. By noon it's created a poor person's mayonnaise. The frozen veg help keep it cool if you don't have a work fridge.

[franzi1981]

Mmh, I have to try that with the "poor person's mayonnaise" :)

[aquinasprime]

I like to make extra of whatever I'm having for dinner. Then I bring the leftovers for lunch. I also like doing salads for lunch. I'll throw some romaine, tomatoes, bell pepper, carrot, a little cheese, some slivered almonds and a protein of some kind (usually chicken) plus a balsamic dressing.

[franzi1981]

Where I come from, our main meal is lunch, so I essentially don't have anything substantial for dinner. Just yogurt and fruit, or a sandwich, or a salad. ;)

[peaceful_sands]

I have two easy to make/freeze soups that I make sometimes and save for taking to work.

The first is a basic vegetable soup - starts with an onion chopped and gently fried in the bottom of a pan, then add a tin of chopped tomatoes and any other vegetables that are lurking in the bottom of the fridge that need using up and a pint of stock. Leave to simmer until all vegetables are soft and then it's ready or can be run through a blender to make a smoother soup. To vary up the flavor a little, I sometimes add either garlic or chilli or something like that.

The other is a butternut squash soup. Take a whole butternut squash and roast it After roasting, remove seeds and skin, and mix with a stock and a little soy sauce in a pan. Simmer and blend.

I don't know how either of these fit with the paleo, but I tell myself they're healthy, because of the amount of veg in each of them and the lack of preservatives etc that go into mass production.

[franzi1981]

Veggie soup, so easy! For some reason, I never realised you can freeze soup. Thanks!

And vegetables are a staple of Paleo, so making them into soup should be, too. ;) I'm kinda relaxed about it, I basically just use it as a prompt to think twice about what I eat and how much and reduce the amount of processed food and sugar.

[yarngeek]

These are the things I was doing last winter as I experimented with protein-and-veggie meals. I really like the salsa chili--it's relatively cheap and easy, if I'm shopping right. Note: I tend to go for beef or shrimp over chicken; chicken does weird things to me. YMMV, and you can substitute as you like.

It looks like you're temporarily in the US, with limited kitchen resources--I've seen crockpots in every Goodwill/thrift store I've ever tried. If you return it when you go back, you can justify the cost as a rental. ;-)

Baked egg-and-cornmeal: http://yarngeek.dreamwidth.org/43930.html
Carnivorous quiche and something beefy: http://yarngeek.dreamwidth.org/44258.html
THE BEST lazy chili: http://yarngeek.dreamwidth.org/44461.html

Right now, I'm mainly eating 2-4 apples or a quart of grapes and a pre-cooked sausage (nuked at lunchtime), cheese, or natural peanut butter. If I'm hungry later, I top it off with a quart of milk.

[franzi1981]

Ooh, the quiche sounds and something beefy both sound awesome, thanks!

[rydra_wong]

Do you have a fridge at work where you can store things? Or does it need to be stuff that'll keep safely at room temperature?

[franzi1981]

I have a fridge at work. D'oh, should have mentioned that, thanks!

[rydra_wong]

Stuff I've done as a portable lunch that's worked well:

fritatta (as mentioned above) with lots of vegetables (I wrote up my basic recipe here: http://playeatsleep.dreamwidth.org/12462.html )

cold pasta salad (you can use something like buckwheat pasta if you want to avoid the wheat and wheat by-products ..) with pesto, frozen peas (chuck them in with the pasta when it's finished cooking, bring back to the boil and it's all done), and baby spinach or rocket

cooked meat and mashed sweet potatoes (usually if it's post-climbing and I need the carbs)

tinned fish salad -- much like jesse_the_k's recipe, tinned tuna (or other fish) in olive oil, salad leaves, optional tinned beans, tbsp of cider vinegar to mix with the oil and form its own dressing. You can also add chunks of hard-boiled egg and/or cooked potato/sweet potato.

If you're okay with fermented dairy, Greek-style yoghurt has a lot of protein -- add a handful of nuts or some berries, maybe cinnamon and a bit of honey ...

I've also done a lot of thick stews, like a slow-cooked lamb curry -- easy to re-heat.

[franzi1981]

Thanks! That gave me a few great ideas to add some variation! :)

On 31 October 2014 07:49, rydra_wong - DW Comment dw_null@dreamwidth.org wrote: