Packed lunch help!

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Generally I like cooking etc but have just been going through our bank account and I need to start making packed lunches. Too much spent on school dinners and food from work cafe.
For me and DS15 with a huge appetite.
I need a plan - I am very busy in the week (two jobs) but don't work Friday, Saturday & Sunday so have time to get ahead.

Those of you who pack lunches consistently, how do you do it?

I know this might sound feeble!

Just to add - I have searched the boards but I can only seem to find threads about nursery/primary school packed lunches.

Leftovers
Pasta salad
Rice salad
Chicken bits, veg and wraps
Frittata
Pita bread, falafel, houmous

Can all be prepared easily in advance

Don't overthink it
For myself I tend to do a main and some snacks in case I'm more hungry
So a sandwich, salad or some form of leftovers
Then I have fruit, a choc bar, a yoghurt, dried fruit, crisps etc and keep a stash at work for days when I'm more hungry than usual

Make sure you have pickle, mayonnaise, ketchup etc
I buy three different types of bread roll to stop it getting dull

Chicken
Cheese
Home cooked ham - cheaper than shop bought
Left over beef or lamb from Sunday roast
Pork pies
Sausage rollsr
Pasties
Cold sliced pizza
Pasta salad with olives, tomatoes, radishes, spring onions, lettuce etc
Rice salad

Crisps
Cheesy cheddars
Hoola Hoops
Plums, apples, pears, satsumas, grapes
Cereal bars, jaffa cakes, malt loaf,

One I really like is a grated carrot and grated apple salad with sultanas, walnuts, olive oil. Dead easy to make, can be done the night be for and surprisingly filling.

Consider investing in a couple of food flasks. It expands the number of lunch options no end. Every time you cook something suitable for reheating and that goes well in the flask, make double and freeze the extra in individual or double (for you and ds) portions. Then defrost over night in the fridge then microwave in the morning and put in the (preheated with boiling water) food flask. Wet foods are ideal curries, stews, chillis, pasta with sauce etc, soups. If you need to add a carb, I usually use something bread based. So curry you could add chipati for example.

Otherwise cold options
Ploughman's bread, cheese, apple, pickles etc
Cheese and crackers
Tuna pasta salad
Moroccan cous cous salad
Mexican bean salad.
Chicken and bacon salad
Fritata
Pita with falafel and salad
Any kind of bread, wraps, baguettes, bagels, pita etc with filling eg. Cheddar cheese with salad and chutney, Brie and cranberry sauce, blt, tuna with peppers and sweetcorn, houmous with grated carrot, ham and tomato, cream cheese and cucumber, egg and watercress

Then fruit, veg (with dip if you want it hummus, guacamole, cream cheese).

Add additional snack items if required.

To keep variety whilst not wasting I keep different types of bread in the freezer so you don't get stuck having to eat pita bread for a week!

Also if your ds is 15 get him on board, find out what he wants and get him to do every other day with you.

I wfh now, but when I packed lunches, I tended to do one lunch repeated daily for the week. Then something different the next week. It is just faster to prep and more efficient for buying ingredients. I had 5 sets of all of my food containers so I could prep the lunches on Sunday and just grab them every morning. Mine tended to be meat for protein, a good serving of veggies of some kind, and then some weeks I included a starch and some weeks I did not. The variety comes in changing up the flavors and sauces.

Thank you, that sounds good. I think I have 9 boxes if I match up lids etc so it sound doable (5 for some, 4 for me).

Good point about getting DS to do it too. Suspect I will have to start it off to show him that packed lunches needn't be sad and paltry, but once we get going I reckon he will take responsibility.

Great ideas, thank you. I have a good flask somewhere...

Need to get motivated, your replies are helping, thank you

Great ideas, thank you

I have definitely been overthinking it! Thank you for the ideas.

Thanks for the ideas - has reminded me that DS likes the idea of cous cous for lunch

I have 3 plastic boxes on the sideboard,

1 with dry snacks like crisps, cereal bars etc
1 with fruit and 1 with veg in portion sizes so apples, bananas, oranges or a snack bag with cherry tomatoes, mini cucumber, grapes. I just split these up when I get home from the shops straight into little bags and it's done.

In the morning.
Make a sandwich or wrap
Grab 1 thing from each box
A yoghurt or cheesestring type thing from the fridge
Fill water bottle.

Lunch made.

Like it. Thank you

Do you have a way of re heating at work?

My DS likes hot lunches sometimes so might have chilli and rice from the night before, or curry, or soup and nan bread, or chicken and lettuce wrap, usually with one or more of yoghurt/fresh fruit/dried apricots/cheese cubes/chicken satay.