Ideas for cheap packed lunch ideas

Sarahlou_2

big5 wrote: »

My husband likes a bagel or panini with cheese and ham or cheese and chorizo warmed up in the microwave so the cheese melts.

I've been having a cup-a-soup with a roll or sandwich recently - I was having salads, but it's getting a bit cold now, so I like the soup to warm me up.

I'd advise against anything that's likely to stink out the office microwave though unless you want to be unpopular!

I'll second that, a girl at work constantly eats fish pie.......good god it stinks. Not good when you've to bring candidates through the office afterwards!

BitterAndTwisted

twilighter09 wrote: »

Thank you so much for the great ideas. I never thought about stews or soups before, and with the weather being so cold they would be perfect.

I was given a slow cooker for christmas last and it has never been used, that maybe come in handy to make some nice stews and take them to work.

A slow-cooker! Wow, you've got the potential for oodles of lovely meals right there. Better yet, you can make use of the very cheapest cuts of meat and cook them till they're melt-in-the-mouth tender, so very MSE. You can make delicious soups as well. Lucky you!

Get thee hence to the Old Style forum, they're slow-cooker mad over there, there's a huge long thread dedicated to it and there are so many recipes posted up

carolinosourus

Courgette wrote: »

Can I join in?! I'm stuck for lunch ideas too but to add a slightly more tricky dimension to the problem I'm veggie, we have no access to anything to heat things up with except a kettle and I have a major, and totally irrational, issue with soups in flasks or anything you drink out of (that'll be cups then :rolleyes:) so can't take in warmed soup (the very idea makes me feel physically sick, no idea what that's about). I eat salads in the summer but need something more substantial now - I'm getting a bit sick of cheese sandwiches!

Could you take the soup or stew in a flask then keep your own bowl and cutlery in your desk and just pour the soup in the bowl at lunch time? Or is that a no-no? Could you suggest to your management that they provide the office with a microwave?

pelirocco

Courgette wrote: »

Can I join in?! I'm stuck for lunch ideas too but to add a slightly more tricky dimension to the problem I'm veggie, we have no access to anything to heat things up with except a kettle and I have a major, and totally irrational, issue with soups in flasks or anything you drink out of (that'll be cups then :rolleyes:) so can't take in warmed soup (the very idea makes me feel physically sick, no idea what that's about). I eat salads in the summer but need something more substantial now - I'm getting a bit sick of cheese sandwiches!

I cant ' drink 'soups either , I know exactly how you feel

elainew

what about quiche with some salad ?

nichart20

I take home made soup in a flask at the moment as got a bit board with sandwiches I make it on the sunday split into batches of 5 and take it out of the freezer for the next day, but I pour it into a round tupperware like a bowl and take a spoon that I keep in my draw as I don't like drinking it, I got most of my soup ideas from here and recommend the carrott and coriander
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/search.do;jsessionid=E419B357AD01738D3C31EACCC40CEC6D?keywords=soup&filterItem=&filterItem=&filterItem=&filterItem=&filterItem=&filterItem=&filterItem=&filterItem=&filterItem=&filterItem=&x=29&y=12

Penny-Pincher!!

Leftovers heated in MW
Jacket Spud with cottage cheese or beans or HM chilli etc
Pitta breads toasted with cheese and olives
Veggie sticks and houmous
Pasta or rice salads
Soup & roll
Ploughmans
Sarnie & Soup
Sausage Rolls
Quiche & salad
HM Potatoe salad or coleslaw
Fruit & Yogurt
Fruit & Cheese
Cheese and crackers
Cereal
MW Pizza

HTH

PP
xx

Rince

Hi, I always take in left overs from the night befores evening meal. I purposely make abit more so that I can put some in some tupperware and take to work. All the people at work always comment on how good my lunch smells compared to their butties ! So heres a few things I do....

Pasta with dead easy tomato sauce
Fry off onion and garlic, add chopped tomatoes, simmer. Add balsamic vinegar and a spoon full of sugar and some chilli flakes. Dead easy. If you want to add abit more, then I sometimes add some sliced pepperoni or salami.
To bulk it out abit I sometimes add chopped peppers, chopped courgette and some black olives.

Left over shepherds pie, spagetti bol, chilli con carni with rice.

Mmm feeling hungry now !

ben500

How about "gypsy bread" or eggy bread as most people refer to it, this can be cooked up and spread with almost anything cold, chutney's sauces or eaten with cold snacks or even as an accompaniment to your hot stew, just to add a little variation.

With stews you can vary the flavour of the same pot of stew thus, once cooked remove a couple of portions for freezing, then leave the remaining stew cooking but add a chilli, take off a few more portions then add some different herbs and another chilli and cook for another 30 mins or so, three totally different flavoured stews all from the one base.

Also cheese toasties could be made the night before, another excellent use for any leftover chutney which again will vary the end product with little or no effort, simply spread the inside of the toastie with chutney or sauce of your liking instead of butter, add your cheese and seal, now very lightly spread the outside of the toastie with butter before cooking, if you have toastie bags these are ideal you could make them up as sandwiches and take the bag with you to work to use in their toaster if they have one. Even fill them with bolognese or chilli con carne.

How about a chilli fresh fruit salad it's awesome, chop up chunks of any fresh fruit you have to hand, take about 1/4pt of water and add 1tbls of sugar and 1/4tsp cinnammon and one chilli, add water sugar and spices to pan and bring to boil, reduce to half its volume then put fruit in tuppaware type container and pour the liqor over it after straining off spices, I know it doesn't look like a lot but it's enough, place lid on container and give a good shake, leave in fridge overnight giving occasional shake if and when you visit fridge.

fernliebee

I would take whatever I had for tea the day before, in a tub. Mostly I wouldn't bother to re-heat just eat cold (but I'm weird like that!) I also love cold pizza, cold wraps, pasties (HM veggie ones yum!)

If there is a microwave then you can take a cooked baked potato with any filling to reheat quickly, yummy!

pasta, rice salad, risotto, cauli cheese etc can all be pre made and either zapped at lunchtime, or get a 'food' thermos (a wide necked flask) and transfer to a bowl when you go on your lunch.

Pretty much anything can be made/ taken in in this way.