10 easy packed lunch ideas
Do you find that you keep reverting to the same old peanut butter sandwich for lunch? While, that’s a good, wholesome option, a bit of variety wouldn’t go amiss. With these 10 delicious plant-based lunch ideas, your friends and colleagues will be eyeing your food with envy! Easy to take with you as a packed lunch, these suggestions can also be enjoyed as a sit-down meal at home, or on a picnic with friends.
TOP 10 VEGAN PACKED LUNCHES
1. A well-filled wrap
A wrap is always a good idea. Take a wholewheat wrap, spread some hummus on it, then add a few pieces of grilled peppers, carrot strips, some leafy greens, chopped red onion, and a handful of kidney beans. Sprinkle some herbs and pepper, then roll up the wrap and cut it in half before putting it in an airtight lunch box. There are endless options with wraps: instead of hummus, try guacamole. And how about a few pieces of stir-fried pumpkin with falafel?
2. Potato Salad
A potato salad is one of the best comfort foods. Mix some vegan mayonnaise with cooked potatoes cut into quarters (leftover from dinner, perhaps), along with chopped red onions, peas, apple pieces, chopped celery, and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Veggie burger
A veggie burger will get all your colleagues drooling. Bake a vegan burger patty at home in the oven, let it cool down and wrap it in foil. Take a hamburger roll, lettuce, tomato slices, and some ketchup with you in a separate container. If necessary, heat the burger patty briefly in a toaster or oven, and fill the roll with the patty, lettuce, tomato, and some ketchup. You can buy ready-made vegan burger patties in the supermarket, or you could try these tasty homemade black bean burgers.
4. Salad-in-a-jar
This idea is very simple and surprisingly delicious. Put some salad dressing or vinaigrette in the bottom of a jar. Add some cooked or raw vegetables such as sweetcorn, cucumber pieces, cherry tomato halves, and steamed broccoli florets. Add some couscous (or another grain) and a handful of seeds, then fill the rest of the jar with leafy greens, and seal to make airtight. When you’re ready to eat, turn the jar over a plate, and enjoy a delicious fresh salad.
5. Soup
A favourite vegan lunch option, especially on cold winter days, is a heartwarming bowl of soup. When you make soup for dinner, cook a double batch so that you can have a nice lunch the next day. In the morning, before you leave, warm up the soup and pour it into a thermos to keep it warm until lunchtime. Bring some croutons or crackers along to eat with your soup. Quick, easy, and nutritious!
6. Peanut butter sandwich on a stick
Still want that peanut butter sandwich? Take four slices of bread and spread peanut butter onto them to make sandwiches, then cut each sandwich into eight squares. Thread the bread onto skewers, alternating with pieces of banana and apple. Sprinkle with cinnamon, and sprinkle the fruit with some lemon juice to prevent them from turning brown. Just like the wraps, these skewers keep best if you pack them in foil or in an airtight container.
7. Sandwich with avocado-chickpea spread
Take one avocado, a tablespoon of tahini, some lemon juice, and a can of chickpeas and place them in a bowl. Mash everything with a fork, then add half a diced cucumber, a chopped carrot, a sprinkling of dill, and a tablespoon of sunflower seeds. Mix well and season with salt and pepper. This spread is delicious on thickly-cut slices of sourdough or rye bread. Tip: don’t spread the bread until just before lunch – this will keep it nice and crispy.
8. Olive-nut bread with sun-dried tomato and rosemary
This is still bread, but completely different from a standard loaf! It is very filling and rich in nuts, seeds and vegetables. You’ll have to dive into the kitchen to make it from scratch, but it’s totally worth it. This delicious recipe comes from the book Fit Vega(n) Food by Nanneke Schreurs, but you can also find it here in our recipe database.
9. Sushi
Sushi is another one of those meals that you can easily make an extra batch of, and then the next day you’ll have a really tasty lunch! Take 100 grams of cooked brown rice and mix it with a tablespoon of rice vinegar, half a teaspoon of sugar and a pinch of salt. Put half of the rice on a sheet of nori, and add strips of avocado, marinated tempeh, strips of cucumber, carrot, paprika, and sesame seeds, then roll it up and cut into rounds. Enjoy!
10. Buy your lunch
No time to prepare one of these lunches in advance? Take the easy option and get a salad at the supermarket. Top it up with a crunchy bread roll spread with plant-based margarine, slices of avocado, and some salt, and accompany it with a delicious smoothie.
