In terms of eating healthily and saving money, packed lunches make sense. So why don't more of us take our lunch to work with us? Well, when you're rushing around first thing in the morning, making a sandwich that, come 1pm, is likely to be ever so slightly soggy, isn't a particularly appealing prospect.
But provided you are willing to put a bit of planning into your midday meal, it is actually very easy to prepare something quick, healthy and delicious. Try to get into the habit of making your lunch the night before. This will prevent you from abandoning your good intentions in the morning and mean that you can incorporate any dinner leftovers (roasted vegetables, rice, cooked new potatoes or fish, for example) into tomorrow's lunch.
Before you go shopping, plan your lunches for the week and write a list of the ingredients you need. That way, you won't end up wasting food or money - there are few things worse than being left with a pile of withered vegetables, after all.
It also makes sense to invest in a selection of different-sized plastic containers; that way you can ensure your food stays as fresh as possible is not at risk of leaking in transit. As well as buying larger containers, pick up a couple of small, airtight pots that can hold a salad dressing - drizzle this over your lunch just before you eat and limp lettuce will no longer be an issue. A last-minute squeeze of lemon perks up vegetables and salad leaves no end, and a handful of nuts or toasted breadcrumbs can add an interesting crunch to your meal.
The following recipes are all easy to prepare and use plenty of fresh, natural ingredients. They will fill you up, but because they are not particularly carb-heavy, they won't leave you feeling sleepy and sluggish by mid-afternoon.
All recipes serve 2, but can easily be halved or doubled.
Prawn noodle salad
For the salad
100g thin rice noodles
2 carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1/4 cucumber, cut into matchsticks
1 courgette, cut into matchsticks
3 spring onions, thinly sliced
1/4 Chinese cabbage, finely shredded
150g cooked king prawns
1 small bunch coriander, leaves chopped
For the dressing
2cm piece ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 lime, zest and juice
1 long red chilli, deseeded and thinly sliced
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp caster sugar
Pour 500ml of water into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the noodles and remove the pan from the heat. Leave to stand for 4 minutes or until tender. Drain and place in a large mixing bowl.
Add the carrots, cucumber, courgette, spring onions, cabbage, prawns and coriander and mix well. Store in the fridge in an airtight container.
Whisk all the ingredients for the dressing together until the sugar dissolves. Pour into a small, airtight container. Just before you are ready to eat, give the container a good shake and drizzle over the salad.
Chilli roasted butternut squash with labneh and walnuts
1/2 butternut squash
1 small aubergine
4 tomatoes
2 tbsps olive oil
1 tsp chilli flakes
30g almonds
1/2 lemon
100g labneh
salt and black pepper
Preheat the oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas mark 5. Peel the butternut squash, scoop out the seeds and fibres and cut into slices about 4cm long and 2cm wide. Slice the ends off the aubergine and cut into pieces about 2cm thick. Slice the tomatoes in half lengthways. Tip the vegetables into a large bowl.
Whisk the olive oil and chilli flakes together and pour over the vegetables, mixing well to ensure that they are well coated. Spread the vegetables out in a single layer on a large baking tray and season with salt and black pepper. Cook for 30 minutes or until tender and slightly caramelised. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
While the vegetables are cooking, place a frying pan over a medium heat, add the almonds and dry roast for a couple of minutes. Roughly chop the nuts and scatter them over the vegetables. Put into an airtight container with a wedge of lemon. Store the labneh in a separate small container. Just before you are ready to eat, squeeze the lemon over the vegetables and dot bits of labneh over the salad.
Greek salad with millet grain
Millet is an excellent, healthy wholegrain, but if you prefer the taste of couscous or bulgur wheat, then they also work well in this recipe.
100g millet grain
2 tomatoes, diced
1/2 red onion, peeled and diced
1/2 cucumber, diced
12 kalamata olives, stoned and chopped
100g feta cheese, crumbled
handful flat leaf parsley, leaves roughly chopped
handful mint, leaves roughly chopped
juice of half a lemon
2 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
salt and black pepper
Cook the millet grain according to the packet instructions. Drain well, run a fork through the grains to separate them and tip into a large bowl.
Add the tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, olives, feta cheese, parsley and mint. Whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil and pour over the salad. Season with salt and black pepper (you won't need much salt as the feta and olives are both salty) and mix well. Store in the fridge in an airtight container.
Chicken and mango brown rice salad
This is a good option if you're going out after work and know you won't be eating until later than usual. The brown rice will keep you feeling full, so you won't be tempted to snack and the chicken provides a dose of low-fat protein.
150g brown basmati rice
50g sultanas
3 tbsps olive oil
1 skinless chicken breast
1 lemon
1 tbsp mild curry powder
50g walnuts
1 mango, peeled and diced
1 small bunch coriander, leaves chopped
salt and pepper
Pour the rice into a sieve and rinse well. Cook according to the packet instructions, adding the sultanas to the pan with the water. Drain well, tip into a large bowl and run a fork through the rice to separate the grains. Leave to cool.
While the rice is cooking, put the chicken breast in a bowl and pour over half the lemon juice. Sprinkle the curry powder on to a plate, press the chicken breast into the spice, then turn over to coat the other side. Shake off any excess curry powder. Pour one tablespoon of olive oil into a non-stick frying pan and place over a medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for 6-8 minutes on each side, until golden on the outside and cooked through. Leave to cool slightly, then cut into pieces.
Place a dry frying pan over a medium heat, add the walnuts and toast until golden
Once the rice has cooled, stir in the walnuts, mango, chopped coriander and chicken and mix well. Whisk together the remaining olive oil and lemon juice, season with salt and pepper and tip into a separate small container. Store in the fridge and pour the dressing over the rice just before you are ready to eat.
Tortilla chips and dips
Baked tortilla chips are much better for you than crisps and are very quick and easy to prepare. If you want to add a bit of extra spice to your chips, mix a teaspoon of chilli powder into the olive oil.
If you are short on time, just make one or two of the dips and jazz up shop-bought hummus with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkling of toasted cumin seeds or chilli flakes.
Tortilla chips
2 tbsps olive oil
4 flour tortillas
Spiced butter bean dip
1 x 400g tin butter beans, drained
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
50ml natural yoghurt
1 tbsp lemon juice
handful parsley, leaves picked
Guacamole
2 ripe avocados
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
1 lime, zest and juice
handful coriander, leaves chopped
Salsa
125g red and/or yellow cherry tomatoes
1/2 red onion, peeled and finely chopped
handful basil, leaves roughly chopped
2 tbsps olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
tsp caster sugar
salt and black pepper
Preheat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas mark 6. Brush both sides of the tortillas with olive oil. Stack the wraps on top of each other and cut into eight wedges. Spread out on a baking tray in a single layer, season with salt and black pepper and cook for 6-8 minutes or until crispy and golden. Remove from the oven and leave to cool, before storing in an airtight container.
To make the butterbean dip, heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the spices and cook until they begin to smell aromatic. Tip the drained butterbeans into a food processor. Add the yoghurt, lemon juice and spices and blend to a purée. Season with salt and black pepper, stir in the chopped parsley and transfer to a small airtight container.
For the guacamole, halve the avocados, then remove the stones and skin. Roughly dice the flesh, tip into a bowl and pour over the lime juice and zest. Use a fork to mash the avocado to a course purée. Stir in the chilli and season with salt and black pepper. Transfer to an airtight container and press a layer of cling film on to the surface of the dip - this should prevent the avocado from browning. Secure the lid as usual.
To make the salsa, cut the cherry tomatoes into eighths and tip into a bowl. Add the red onion and basil leaves. Whisk together the oil, balsamic vinegar and sugar, season with salt and black pepper and pour over the tomatoes. Mix well and store in an airtight container.
