Lunchboxs and meals at school - your biggest gripe?

[StationeryNerd]

those of us on a budget, what's the one thing you wish you could change when it comes to school meals and the packed lunch? What's your bug bear as a mum?

Me: ideas, especially by midweek. I just draw a blank.
My mate: the school telling us what we can and can't have, like they're monitoring us

Do your DC want variety?

I swear my DD had the same packed lunch throughout primary school. Cheese sandwich, yoghurt and a small chocolate bar piece of fruit.

As a former dinner lady... no yoghurt in a plastic tube... biggest mess maker ever! And no "easy peelers" unless they are really fresh or have already been peeled.

(We were responsible for getting 90 kids - for each dinner lady - through packed lunch in 2 sittings in 40 minutes...)

I wish that we could take advantage of the free school meals but we can’t because they can’t safely cater my son’s allergies.

@BeaBachinasec my son seems to think he's some kind of gourmet, he'd ideally want a range of freshly homemade hot dishes in his packed lunch everyday. He's not getting that, but it does put the pressure on somewhat not to give him the same sandwich every day.

If someone could tell me how to do noodles in a flask that don't go floppy by lunch I'd be very grateful.

They ALWAYS want noodles and I can't make it happen.

Either give them the same thing every single day (I do this the kids don’t want variety)
or work out a week or 2 week rotating meal plan and do that. So Mondays ham wrap and a banana, Tuesdays cheese sandwich and a bag of crisps etc. Then you don’t have to think

Noodles/ pasta need to be al dente when they go in the flask. If you put pasta in boiling water and turn the heat off it will still cook, although it takes a while. The same thing is happening in the flask so that perfect pasta is over cooked by lunchtime.

Pick 5 'mains', 5 snacks, 5 fruit and tick them off through the week, so some weeks the cheese sandwich goes with crisps and an orange, next week it'll be with brownie and an apple. That's enough variety!

My issue with school meals is that parents here pay £2.60 for them and most go in the bin. It's such a a waste of food and money. I know people are time poor but a lunch that children will eat can be made for less than £2.60 and maybe that would mean less children wanting a snack as soon as they get picked up

My dd (17) has has noodles or pasta in a flask every school day since she started and she's never complained about floppiness and she's not backwards at complaining!

I batch cook the pasta and take one out the night before and it goes in the microwave in the morning.

For the noodles one of us does a tiny stir fry. Frozen edamame beans and frozen peppers, and a chicken tender. (I think that's what they are called - I buy a packet and I freeze them spaced out on a chopping board then when they are frozen put them in a bag).

I use those straight to wok noodles from Aldi and I make teriyaki sauce from the Wagamama cookbook. Not every time! I make double all at once and then keep it in a jar.