Tips to keep you on track
Being organised is the key to success - so your good intentions don’t get hijacked (and ruin your plans for those savings!)
Be prepared
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Plan your lunches for the week – and write a shopping list so you have everything you need. Make sure you plan different lunches to use up all the ingredients on your shopping list, so nothing is going to waste.
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Invest in a lunchbox – pack it the night before and put it in the fridge. That way you minimise time needed in the morning.
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Portion out healthy snacks in small containers – this could include nuts, dip and vegetables such as cherry tomatoes, baby corn, snack cucumbers and carrot sticks.
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Try making a stack of rolls, such as ham/ham and cheese on weekends and freeze them. Then all you have to do is pack a small salad separately to turn it into a healthy lunch option.
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Make salads in snaplock bags to grab and go.
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Assemble a salad in a mason jar but make sure to put the dressing on the bottom so it doesn’t make the ingredients go soggy. Then, when you tip it into a bowl, the dressing will be on top.
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Fill small containers with your favourite salad dressings so you can grab whatever you fancy on a salad when you leave in the morning.
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Make overnight oats – who said they had to be for brekky?
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Make a couple of different soups and freeze in portions. You could do the same with batches of chilli, or casseroles.
Or try some of these lunch ideas:
Eggs and ham
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Eggs, sliced ham, chopped tomato and capsicum.
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Put a slice of ham in each section of a muffin tray. Add chopped tomatoes and capsicum (or whatever you fancy), crack an egg into each section and bake until the egg is cooked.
Chicken and pesto wrap
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Tortilla, cooked chicken, basil pesto, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes.
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Spread pesto on the tortilla, add chicken, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes, then roll up.
BBQ chicken wrap/salad
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Tortilla, cooked chicken, BBQ sauce, coleslaw mix.
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Mix chicken with BBQ sauce, add coleslaw, and wrap.
Teriyaki chicken bowl
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Cooked chicken, teriyaki sauce, rice, broccoli, carrots.
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Toss chicken with teriyaki sauce, serve over rice with steamed veggies.
Veggie sushi rolls
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Nori sheets, sushi rice, cucumber, avocado, carrot, soy sauce.
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Roll veggies in nori with sushi rice, slice, and serve with soy sauce.
Mediterranean pasta salad
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Cooked pasta, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, olives, feta, red onion, tzatziki.
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Mix all ingredients and toss with tzatziki sauce.
Mediterranean quinoa bowl
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Cooked quinoa, chickpeas, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, olives, feta, tzatziki.
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Combine all ingredients in a bowl and top with tzatziki.
Pesto pasta with roasted veggies
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Cooked pasta, roasted zucchini, red capsicum, cherry tomatoes, basil pesto.
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Toss pasta and veggies with pesto.
Hearty soups
Leftovers reinvented
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Use leftover rice and veggies to make a quick stir-fry with soy sauce and sesame oil.
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Pack leftover chilli with a side of rice or nachos.
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Make a veggie frittata with leftover vegetables.
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Pack a variety of small items like sliced chicken, cheese, crackers, fruit, and veggies.
Tips to avoid waste
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Mix and match: Use up ingredients in different recipes.
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Store properly: Keep perishable items in airtight containers.
- Batch cook: Prepare larger quantities and portion out for the week.
You could also try these grab and go breakfast ideas and our Recipes for quick, easy and delicious lunch ideas.
