What to eat for lunch
Posted by kathryn in Shopping Basket and A Balanced Diet
I was in the City today during lunch-time, which is a rare event now. I used to work in the City and struggle through the hordes of people every lunch-time. It reminded me of something I often used to think – while there are hundreds of places to buy food in the Sydney, there’s very little choice.
Every food hall now contains the same vendors: a pasta place, kebab shop, generic Asian, a chicken shop, salad place, somewhere to buy coffee and cakes, a sandwich bar, a salad and juice place, plus sushi.
It sounds like quite a lot, but I can well remember trawling round food halls trying to find something that was both healthy and tasty. Lots of places give the image of health, but as soon as you look a bit more closely, you realise this is just a veneer. I was invariably disappointed when my “healthy” lunch turned out, on closer inspection, to be a not very well made meal that was high in both fat and kilojoules and contained very few vegetables.
For most people breakfast is easy, dinner a bit more challenging, but it’s the midday meal which can really make or break a good diet. The wrong thing at lunch can leave you either sluggish and tired and looking for that afternoon cup of coffee to pick you up, or with an energy slump at 3 o’clock and desperately raiding the biscuit barrel and vending machine. Neither of which are the best thing for good health.
Taking lunch from home is the obvious answer – for both health and financial wellbeing – although many people struggle with this. However I do think with a bit of planning and imagination, it’s possible to put together an easy lunch on most days.
- Wraps: lavash bread wraps are a really good option for a DIY lunch. Take a packet of wraps to work and put them in the freezer or fridge (if you have one). Then each day you can take in a different mixture of fillings and put together a fresh wrap. Avocado or hummous, combined with handfuls of salad and some meat, fish or little falafels are really good combinations.
- Leftovers: while there’s only two of us at home, we’ll often make four servings of a meal. There’s very little difference, in terms of prep and cooking time, between making something for two and cooking for four, so we’ll cook the larger amount and have the leftovers for lunch the next day.
- Leftover pasta: why not oomph up last night’s pasta by re-heating in the microwave at work and then stirring through a handful of English spinach, a few sliced mushrooms and some fresh ricotta.
- DIY Salad: rather than doing lots of vegie washing and chopping before work, take a bag of mixed leaves, some cherry tomatoes, a cucumber, a small tin of mixed beans, a tin of beetroot and some olives to work. If you also take in some tins of fish, or a tub of hummous and some vita-weats, this should give you enough for two or three days.
- Burgers or fritters: on the weekend make up a batch of burgers or fritters and take them to work with a bag of salad, a bread roll and some sauce.
- Soup: make up a big batch of hearty soup with beans or lentils or barley and take this in to work.
If you also pack a yoghurt, some fruit and maybe a small handful of nuts, this should be all you need during the day.
Doing this five days a week is probably a big ask and also you may enjoy eating out, or having lunch with friends. However, even if you only manage to do this two days a week, it’s a LOT healthier than buying every day. Plus, you will have eaten a better meal and saved yourself quite a bit of money.
What’s your favourite lunch-time option?
Photograph by flakyredhead under the terms of a creative commons license.
13 June, 2007
Comments
Excellent suggestions Kathryn.
I realise i’m about to sound really strange… but i’m a huge fan of bringing frozen vegies for lunch, either warmed up with some sauce or diced tomatoes and herbs. It’s a pretty reliable, nutritious meal that’s quick, easy and filling.
I almost never buy lunch when I am at work. I find the food I bring from home is much cheaper and healthier than any options I have at the terrible work cafeteria. Luckily for me, I don’t get bored too easily so I am happy to make up a big dish on Sunday and eat it for lunch all week. This week I have a vegetarian shepherd’s pie, other favourites include vegetable lasange or a pasta bake with lots of veg. I am trying to increase the amount of vegetable I eat so a lunch packed with them makes things a lot easier and is impossible to buy around here.
I have a question for next Thursday’s Q&A – how much soy is too much?
Thanks Lucy, glad the suggestions were helpful.
Jodie, while it’s an unusual thing to do, frozen vegies are most definitely a good source of nutrition. Just make sure you’re having some protein in there as well and you’ve got a great lunch.
0, sounds like you have the bringing lunch from home well sorted out. Your options all sound like good freeze-able meals, so if you did get bored, you could always freeze some and then mix it up during the week. Getting a good dose of vegies at lunch does make the daily quota a lot easier to achieve. Good question re soy, I’ll add that to next week’s Q & A Thursday. In the meantime you might like to check out my post: what’s the deal with soy?
great article Kathryn! the lunch dilemma is a big one. this year i’ve really improved on making lunches in advance. like you, i’ve found the easiest way is to simply make double amounts at dinner time and then take leftovers for lunch (usually stirfries, curries, bean dishes, pastas, etc, which all seem to keep well for the next day).
in summer i like to make salads too.
my favourite bought lunches are sushi or wonton soup (lots of bok choy, garlic and spring onions!).
Well done Lindsey, it’s such a good routine to get into and as I said before, cooking extra doesn’t add a lot of time to your meal preparation. All of your dishes make great leftovers – and I find some of the bean ones and curries even get better the next day.
I’m planning a follow-up post on what to buy if you’re out and about – sushi and Asian soups will definitely be on the list.
[...] I posted a few days ago about the benefits of taking your lunch to work. It does require a little extra planning, but it’s good for both your health and your wallet. [...]
I have always tried to bring my lunch from home as a cost saving as well as a health thing I try to make up a big batch of food on a Sunday to serve us lunches for a few days. This week, it is beef masala stew on rice. I try to bulk out all my lunches with fresh veggies to be heated up at lunchtime following the 50/25/25 ratio.
I think the key to it is knowing your weakness and combatting it…I find once I am in the kitchen, its easier for me make double batches and two or three meals at once. Whereas I find cooking every weeknight too much of an effort. So I cook lots on Sunday and only once again during the week. Simple things like pre-washing salad leaves, having a supply of snacks at work and pantry staples like tins o’tomato and pasta work in your favour.
Hi there Sue, sounds like you’re in a good lunch-time routine. My enthusiasm for cooking during the week tends to wax and wane. Sometimes I really enjoy it as a way of unwinding from work, but if I get home late or have had a busy day, it’s the last thing I want to do. Having a stockpile of dishes in the freezer deals with the latter.
We also keep our pantry well stocked – buying trays of tins of tomatoes (which works out cheaper), and always having rice, pasta, tofu, eggs and different types of beans on hand.
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