Filling but cost effective lunch

arielgirl

Some things I do is
Cook a pizza the night before cut into 4 slices and take two slices each day. You take it all. I eat it cold. I buy the £1 peperoni or plain cheese so a cheap lunch 
I make loads of stuffed baked potatoes, freeze them in batches of 2 and on morning of work take out of freezer and then defrost by lunch time. Put what ever you want in the potato I like variation of cheese tuna tomato. Quiet a cheap lunch especially last few weeks with 19p Christmas potatoes
Similar to pizza I also make and freeze own using part baked rolls, then freeze until I need them. 
I might also take left overs. 

Emily_Joy

Rosa_Damascena said:

Emily_Joy said:

If you can be flexible with timing, take a look at too good to go, where you can get a fresh meal for £4. I do it every time I am in the city. 

That was to be my suggestion. Places like Pret, Costa and Paul get rid of a lot of stuff after 5pm - so take something for the day, and reserve something from your TGTG bag for the next day.

My favourites are a little on a healthier side; I really like places like Abocado, Pure, Island Poke, Coco di Mama, etc, that do proper meals. Hush-Hush chefs are fantastic, but have two or three locations... and of course a little French bistro in Covent Garden whenever I am in the area around lunch time.

Florafauna

Homemade soup, protein - eggs, cheese, fish, avocado and salad to follow. Handful of nuts.
Carbs will make your energy crash and trigger cravings

Moorviews

Personally, I would be ravenous by 10pm whatever I had had for lunch and would need a late afternoon meal on a long day like that. 

If your preference is for sandwiches then make sure that it is a substantial bread that you can slice thickly and fill generously. Either homemade or a good bakery loaf. Butter and fill with lettuce and two proteins, for example, ham and cheese, chicken and bacon, bacon/ sausage, sardine, tuna and egg. Mashed sardine/mackerel/tuna also work well with cream cheese. Lining with lettuce helps to prevent the sandwich becoming soggy. A separate pot of a fork salad with added protein: halved cherry tomatoes, cubed cucumber and peppers with feta, cheddar or ham. I used to use one of the cold gel salad pots for this to keep it fresh. You could also put all of this into a wrap with hummus. For dessert or a snack, an individual full fat Greek Yoghourt with fruit, or a homemade flapjack with nuts and dried fruit in it. 

gwynlas

You can make up containers of layered salad ingredients with whatever proteins you like meat fish eggs cheese beans or nuts add pasta or cold potato if you want bulk.Think salad bar. Will last a couple of days in the fridge so prep twice a week. Keep a bottle of dressing in desk drawer or locker. Instant noodles and cup a soups if you want something hot again can add proteins to either. The length of time between meals is important re insulin spikes so you might want to look at guidelines for diabetics which can apply to anyone.

twopenny

I used to have avacado with cottage cheese.
Cold pizza (45p) with whole leaf salad + bits.
Pasta too... They do some great pots in the supermarket. 
All easier than making sandwiches.
Fruit is filling. A homemade fruit salad, jelly with tinned fruit can all be made at the weekend for the week.
Bananas and yoghurt of course.
A good flavoured natural yoghurt with banana, vanilla essence and honey is like the best ice cream but with protein, vitamins etc and low calorie.
Fruit to taste.
But yes, if you are going until 10 a proper lunch would be better for you. If you can pre order same place for a week and it turns up ready perfect.
I used to do long days and I'd do this. Sitting in a fresh environment to eat is refreshing.

greyteam1959

Get yourself a food flask then you can have all sorts of hot foods at minimal cost.
Used one for years.
https://www.argos.co.uk/browse/sports-and-leisure/camping-and-caravanning/flasks/c:30512/type:food-flasks/

Longwalker

Hubby eats his lunch outside as well
For him I make up soup - pea and bacon , vegetable broth, broccoli and stilton, curried parsnip, leek and potato. I make a big pot , put half in the fridge and freeze the other half, mid week the frozen one is brought out to defrost to use 

I make him up a salad box, couscous, pasta or rice, salad veg, and protein, usually chicken drumsticks, hard boiled eggs and cheese 

He also takes fruit and a bar of something 

Sometimes he has to take sandwiches. Wholemeal bread spread with low fat dairy lea, then stacked with protein - ham, chicken and egg and stuffed with rocket and tomato

A sandwich and a packet of crisp is not healthy, not every day. Its also not enough food. You need to up the protein.

So if you want to keep with the sandwich, think about a flask of soup as well and add some cheese sticks ( cut from a block ) hardboiled eggs, walnuts , almonds , fruit - even dried - apricots are good 

catz4m8z

I swapped out my sandwich a while ago for roasted chickpeas, I found it kept me fuller longer.
Just a tin of chickpeas drained, covered in smoked paprika and Everything bagel seasoning then roasted. Just half a tin was enough for me.
Its also a good option for a mid afternoon/morning snack.

Rosa_Damascena

Mark_Glasses said:

When I first started working my mum would make me a packed lunch. It consisted of 4 croissants, a chocolate bar, a packet of crisps, a cereal bar, a cake bar, a rice krispie square, a yoghurt and a pot of jelly. 

Looking at this list again, I'm finding it difficult to believe - and believe me I could happily eat bakery products and sweets all day. I could just about stretch my imagination to breakfast, lunch and an evening snack to cover a 12hr+ shift but seriously, nothing fresh in there?