Never buy lunch again, make it yourself with these great ideas

I tend to loathe canteens as after a couple months, everything smells and tastes the same. Yes, it is an option and in most cases subsidised so not costing too much, BUT I find that it is all prepared without love and you can taste it. 

I have never eaten in a canteen where the diners had a smile on their faces and thoroughly enjoyed their meal. Don’t get me wrong it is food and cheap and there is no effort required on your part but this is no reason to have bland foods.  

I used to end up eating the same small salad every day as even the soup of the day wasn’t exiting anymore (and just watery). For breakfast I stayed well away from the fry up options, cheap sausages, soggy bacon, no thanks. I went for porridge until that came out of both ears.

If you add the expense of 2 meals a day together, even in a subsidised canteen, that can add up. I mean I went for the dish of the day and that will set you still back for about £5. I refuse to pay for those meals any longer, the only thing I ever so often have is fish and chips on a Friday as I hate the smell of grease in my house and so I get it there. My local fish and chip shop is still better though.

For years I didn’t take my lunches to work but suffered in silence. The thing is, mediocre food is never going to bring out the best in you, pure and simple. You need great food to be great.

My other half used to buy sandwiches and lunches every day and sometimes ended up spending up to £20 just on crappy food.

That’s when I made the decision, that I rather go on holiday or on a good night out with the money we save, than throwing it at the high street supermarkets. It is to say that some little independent sandwich shops are good but I am very particular as to that makes a good sandwich or salad and most of them do not live up to my expectations. Keep an eye out for my "The perfect sandwich" post, it's coming soon.

I started to make my other half's lunches every day and I must have made thousands of sandwiches for him, his apprentice and my friends. I am still playing with the idea of a little food Tuktuk.

Well, what am I doing different? What makes a good work lunch?

The first rule of a work lunch has to be that it can be make quickly but still taste amazing!

To be honest I am blessed as my other half eats everything and so I throw them together with whatever I have in the fridge or leftover from the day before. When I go shopping now I spend only £20 for a whole week of his lunches! That is a great difference and I am super happy to be saving this much money.

The first step is to get some sort of routine together. My other half works really early and I am not waking up for 4:30am to make his sandwiches, but fill his lunch box the night before so he just has to grab it out of the fridge in the morning.

For guys I usually make a bigger lunch box than just for myself, they have a physically demanding job and need more calories. I am happy with a good salad and some fruit for the day. The “man” lunch box has the sandwich or salad, 2 pieces of fruit, 2 little biscuit bars and a small packet of crisps.

Now have a look at some of the ideas below. Some need a bit of prep the night before but nothing will make you slave in the kitchen! Yesterday I made a Sunday chicken roast and kept some chicken aside. Today this is used for lunch. 

I have a good selection of condiments in my fridge but don’t spend money on readymade dressings, sauces etc. You can make most of it yourself in just a few minutes and save £££. Neither buy grated cheese, it is a rip off and you can make it really quick with just minimal effort.

To mix it up I also use half/half wraps. I am a master in wrapping but it took time, so give it a few tries before you put it in your lunchbox. The last thing you want is for the wrap to spill out at the back end and all over your work clothes. With my luck that happened just before I went into an important meeting. Imagine me trying to clean my dress in the ladies toilet under the hand dryer, a total disaster ☺

Sandwiches or wraps:

Ham, mustard, sweet peppers

Coronation chicken

Chicken salad (with a mustardaise twist)

Corned beef with pickle

Cheese and picallily or Srirachia sauce

Mozzarella, tomato, balsamic glaze

Cheese and onion

Tuna and sweetcorn

Spicy beef with sour cream and avocado

Breakfast wrap

Avocado, cheese, balsamic glaze

Extra mature cheddar and apricot chutney

Chicken BBQ and sweet peppers

Cucumber and cream cheese

Salads:

Ajvar pasta salad with chicken, jalapenos, onions, tomatoes, cucumber

Greek salad with Feta

Chicken, bacon, avocado, salsa

Water melon, mint, feta

Goat’s cheese and honey mustard dressing

Roasted pepper salad

Anti pasti salad

Sweet potato,spring onions, feta cheese

Asian Vermicelli noodle salad

Green papaya salad

Spicy beef (Sucuk) orzo

Caprese salad

Smoked salmon and lemon caper salad

Classic chicken Caesar salad
Couscous salads
Quino salads

Breakfast bowls:

Homemade granola with yoghurt and almonds

Finnish porridge with butter and salt

Fruit bowl with fresh and dried fruit, nuts

Orange oatmeal with vanilla yoghurt

Other:

Extra mature cheddar & jalapenos savoury muffins

Egg and bacon cups

Homemade vermicelli Miso cup-a-soup

As you can see there are a lot of ideas and the possibilities are endless, I am sure I have made more varieties than that and they will slowly be added to my recipes and linked in. In most cases, I try to give a classic a twist by either using different condiments or adding different spices that take the lunch out of boring and into amazing.

I hope to have inspired you and wish you good luck with pimping your work lunch. Any questions just leave a comment or send me an email.