The quick, basic & healthy lunch challenge!

[lurcherlieber]

ok so im a crap cook and unimaginative with food. i love to eat it but cant be arsed to make it. if tea was up to me then id just have a sandwich every night so there were no dishes to wash.

however im on maternity leave and due back at work soon and want to change my eating ways! i dont mind eating something that i like everyday and until recently had buttery toast for breakfast and lunch every day. now i have porridge for breakfast hurrah

but what to do about lunch! i really dont want to just take butties into work every day!

could anyone please suggest just one recipe that they know which is:
basic or few ingredients;
healthy (not sure i include pasta with that);
filling;
can be made night before or even several days before and served hot or cold:
TASTY

thanks in advance. i find lunch the hardest habit to change. it really shouldnt be about fannying about in the kitchen for ages for a 2 minute chomp. please help

[TotallyEggFlipped]

I cook a load of skinless chicken in baking bags (sainsburys sell them) with different seasonings (herbs/BBQ seasoning/smoked paprika/tikka powder). No need to add any oil, really simple, stays really juicy, hardly any washing up. That way there's a few days worth of chicken ready to eat.
I roast a whole load of veggies in one go too. They're great reheated. Or ratatouille. Or a load of stir fry vegetables. Or serve with salad.
It means there's always something tasty ready to dish up.

[LoveSewingBee]

Tabbouleh - mix soaked and drained bulgur wheat with orange juice, chopped tomatoes, cucumber, spring onions, fresh coriander, little gem lettuce. You can prepare it the evening before, leave overnight in fridge and it will taste even better!

[sharond101]

Since returning to work from maternity leave I have taken the very easy option and always have a packet of sesame ryvita in my bag. That way all I need to pack is a topping (peanut butter, banana, cheese etc) and so it takes almost no prep at all.

[Lookslikerain]

A store cupboard option that I enjoy is:

1 tin tuna, flake into bowl
1 tin beans (whatever you like, kidney, cannelini, borlotti etc; not baked in tomato sauce!) drain, rinse and into bowl with tuna
Finely chopped red onion (however much you like)

Toss together and dress with lemon juice and nice olive oil. Serve!

You can tart it up with whatever else you have to hand (cherry toms, peppers, celery, parsley etc) but it's good as it.

[lurcherlieber]

Thank you for these ideas. I really like the chicken one. I might have a go of that taboulleh this week its not something ive tried before!

Ah im a hater of beans so the tuna wouldnt stretch very far. I also cant eat tuna without half a jar of salad cream so it would no longer be healthy!

Im now thinking of tikka chicken cooked a la totallyeggflipped On a pitta bread with roasted veg cous cous and a bit of mint yog and a few crunchy veggies on the side to nibble on mmm

Excited! Thank you all!

[pregnantpause]

Soups are a regular for me. Veg, carrot and coriander, lentil and chickpea, Thai squash and coconut, split pea, leek and potato, broccoli and Stilton, spicy crab and tomato, I make them the night before in portions that serve four, one each for dh and I and DC on work days.
I also eat a lot of bulgar wheat/cous cous and quinoa salads, with chopped tomatoes, cucumber, spring onion, coriander, mint etc..
wild rice and mixed mushrooms and chopped leeks in the autumn.
Have you thought about leftovers? when making a curry, or chilli etc., make extra and freeze in portions of one to take to work when you need it.

[ivykaty44]

I used to cooke up a packed of ten chicken drumsticks for d's packed lunch. I would marinade the chicken in honey and redcurrent jelly, or you could buy a marinade to make the chicken more interesting.

Then put the drumsticks in twos into a sandwich bag and pop in the fridge.

i would cut a melon up into five portions an also put in sandwich bag and I got a packet of those large rice crackers in different flavours.

Then made banana loaf with left overs www.mumsnet.com/Talk/food/a381382-banana-loaf-cake-recipe-please#7760029 I do it in the food processor which means it is a two minute job and then in the oven. It freezes well so I used to but it up and pop in freezer bags.

Dd used to then grab her lunch when going to school and there was no making anything in the week for either of us as it was ready.

[JassyRadlett]

My great standby is veggie couscous:

Sauté chopped courgette and red onion with some cumin. While that's cooking pour boiling water into plain couscous (equal parts water and couscous) and cover bowl with clingfilm and leave for a few minutes. Then fluff couscous with a fork, fold in veg and a generous squirt of lemon juice and cover up again for another four minutes or so. Season to taste, including some chopped coriander if you fancy it - great hot or cold.

[RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie]

I take virtually the same thing every day nowadays:
oatcakes
cheese (I do vary this)
celery
radishes
little packet of nuts and raisins

[LoveSewingBee]

You can also add (goat's) cheese to tabbouleh. You can do something similar with cous cous which is also very quick to prepare. Be careful with any cooked rice if it stays more than several hours out of the fridge as in some cases it causes food poisoning. See NHS website.

[MinimalistMommi]

Sorry to be thick, but do i cook bulger wheat?

[pregnantpause]

No it's like cous cous, pour hot water over and leave for a while to swell. It's also incredibly low calorie, if you're thinking about that