Quick Lunch Ideas For Work

If you’re currently in the workforce, you know just how time-consuming a job can be. Between the commute and the hours at the office, preparing food for lunch seems like an unnecessary chore for many.

This typically leaves employees reliant on the company’s cafeteria or local restaurants or food stores to provide them with lunch. Unfortunately, many times, this leaves options that are limited, costly, and sometimes even unhealthy.

However, lunch doesn’t need to be complicated or time-consuming. Workday work lunches can be prepared ahead, stored in the refrigerator, or even created in the morning or the evening before with some quick, easy, and delicious recipes.

These types of meals don’t only work for lunches, either. You can also use them for dinner, when you’re late coming home or when you don’t have the time or energy to cook a big meal.

Below, we’ll suggest 50 different quick lunch ideas for your workday that can either be prepared before you leave in the morning or prepared ahead of time for a grab-and-go lunch.

It’s a good idea to invest in a good lunchbox for transport as well as airtight containers that you can easily pack your food in. Most of these lunch ideas should take no longer than fifteen minutes to make.

Another tip is that no recipe is set in stone and you can add or omit ingredients as you see fit. For salads, it’s often a good idea to keep the dressings and toppings separate so that the greens don’t get soggy.

51 Quick Lunch Ideas for Work

1. Greek Orzo Salad from How Sweet Eats. This is a perfect, quick recipe. Since it doesn’t have any lettuce and the dressing sits at the bottom of the jar, your food won’t get soggy even if you prepare it ahead of time.

2. 10-minute Chickpea Curry from Gathering Dreams. Chickpea curry is a rich and creamy dish that only takes ten minutes to prepare. If you like it, it’s a great option for meal prep. The chickpeas give it a hearty serving of protein and best of all, it’s cheap to make.

3. Thai Tahini Veggie Noodle Bowl from No Spoon Necessary. This is a refreshing and light meal for lunch or dinner. Packed with flavor and nutrients, these are a great option to meal prep for easy grab-and-go meals.

4. Thai Chicken and Cucumber Salad from Foodiecrush. This dish is a great meal prep recipe option if you enjoy Thai food. The salad is light and fresh, perfect for summer lunches or even dinners.

5. Caprese with Garlic Toast Lunch Box from Kitchen@Hoskins’. This is a wonderfully crunchy lunch option. With fresh basil and tomatoes, you can’t go wrong with this dish.

6. Prosciutto Arugula Egg Cups from Meal Prep on Fleek. This dish is a keto-friendly option that is high in protein and can work for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

7. Spicy Chicken Meal Prep with Rice and Beans from Pinch of Yum. This meal is a wonderful recipe that’s sure to fill you up during your lunch hour. Drizzled with a cilantro sauce, this one will inspire your taste buds and give you lots of nutrition for a productive afternoon.

8. Buddha Bowls from Delish. These are grain bowls that can be customized with just about any vegetable or protein. Paired with a peanut butter dressing, this is a delicious lunch option.

9. Chicken Brussel Sprouts Salad from Almond Eater’s. This salad is a great option that’s quick to make, however instead of a poached egg, perhaps opt for a hard-boiled egg for work.

10. Mediterranean Chicken Wraps with Hummus from The Forked Spoon. This meal is a classic Mediterranean salad in a wrap. This is a great cold lunch option that can be prepared ahead or even assembled at the office.

11. Sesame Noodle Bowls from Pinch of Yum. This is an easy Asian-inspired dish. The sauce is simply shaken in a jar and the noodles can cook in under 2 minutes. All-in-all this recipe takes ten minutes or less and travels well.

12. The Ultimate Veggie Sandwich from ‘I Am a Food Blog.’ This is a sandwich stacked full of veggie goodness. Preparing the vegetables is the most time-consuming part of this entire recipe and should only take a few minutes. Throw the sandwich together, and you’re done.

13. Garden Vegetable Pasta Salad from One Little Project. This pasta salad is a versatile recipe that can be easily customized based on your vegetable preferences. Feel free to switch out pasta for another grain as well.

14. Slow Cooker Tuscan Sausage and Kale Soup by The Girl on Bloor. This is a great soup option that’s hearty and filled with vegetables. Perfect for the wintertime, it can be made ahead of time in a crockpot.

15. Roasted Broccoli and Farro Bowls from Gimme Some Oven. This bowl is another versatile recipe that can be served hot or cold. The vegetables are topped with a garlic-lemon tahini dressing, making this incredibly delicious dish a must-try.

16. Taco Bowls from Chelsea’s Messy April. These are easy recipes to meal prep and can also be customized to feature your favorite protein or vegetables.

17. Chicken and Rice Salad with Ginger-Sesame Dressing from Kristine Kitchen. This is a dish that can be served at room temperature or cold. The ginger-sesame dressing is simply delicious.

18. Big Mac Salad Jars from The Girl on Bloor. This salad jar will satisfy your cheeseburger craving without having to order it from a fast-food joint. Since it’s low-carb there will be no guilt over this lunch meal.

19. Avocado Turkey Hummus Wrap from Sweet Pea Chef. This is straightforward, easy to make, and travels well. If you’re running short on time, wraps are great options to make in the office.

20. Panzanella in a Jar from Gathering Dreams. This jar is a wonderful option if you have leftover tomatoes and bread. Originally a recipe from central Italy, Panzanella is delicious, colorful, and healthy.

21. Vegetarian Quinoa Burrito Bowls by Simply Quinoa. This bowl is another great recipe for meal prep and can be used for lunch or dinner. It has a ton of nutrients and tastes great.

22. Vegetable Couscous Salad from Sugar and Charm. This salad is packed with flavor and color. Since it’s made with fresh vegetables it’s great for you and topped with cumin curry dressing, it’s also delicious.

23. Cranberry Turkey Pinwheels from This Silly Girl’s Kitchen. This is a great option because it doesn’t require the addition of lettuce like some other wraps out there. The recipe kicks this traditional wrap-up a notch with cajun turkey and green onion.

24. Spicy Chickpea Quinoa Bowls from Eat Yourself Skinny. This bowl is a gluten-free, dairy-free, healthy meal that’s easy to assemble and tastes great.

25. Rainbow Couscous and Tzatziki Chicken from Zested Lemon. This is a beautifully colorful dish that’s also healthy. The recipe provides tips on how to pack this up for an individual lunch.

26. Chicken Cobb Mason Jar Salad from A Sweet Pea Chef. This is a quick meal to make ahead of time for an easy grab-and-go mason jar salad.

27. Vietnamese Banh Mi Sandwich with Cold Cuts from Happy Food Tube. This is a great work lunch that features both vegetables, herbs, and cold cuts of your choosing.

28. Broccoli Bacon Salad from Garnish and Glaze. This salad is an incredible dish to take to work. Filled with nutrients and flavor, it’s a recipe you’ll keep going back to time and time again.

29. Fresh Sushi Spring Rolls from Vibrant Plate. This seems like it would be a time-consuming meal, but it’s fairly simple to make. Paired with an avocado dipping sauce, this recipe is a must-try.

30. Mermaid Veggie Bowl from Brit + Co. This bowl is similar to a poke bowl with freshly chopped vegetables. It can be easily customized for a delicious lunch option.

31. Cold Beet Salad with Goat Cheese, Arugula, and Pear from Yummy Addiction. This is a perfect salad to take to work. Beets are packed with nutrients and pair perfectly with goat cheese, arugula, and juicy pear.

32. Greek Chicken Meal Prep Bowls from Damn Delicious. This bowl takes a bit of prep work, but the result is well worth it. If you’re into meal prepping, this is a good option to try.

33. Healthy Spring Roll Recipes from A Sweet Pea Chef. These recipes feature five different types of spring rolls with special dipping sauce for both. They are fun and easy to make.

34. Spiralized Zucchini Chicken Noodle Soup Jars by The Girl on Bloor. This is a low-carb soup that’s easy to pack in a mason jar. Add boiling water at work or use the microwave, and enjoy.

35. Mexican Bean Salad from The Forked Spoon. This is an incredible bean salad recipe that’s packed with flavor. You can also add an extra protein like chicken or steak for a different element.

36. Cold Sesame Peanut Noodles by Gimme Some Oven. This is exactly what it sounds like. The peanut dressing is to die for, paired with fresh vegetables. Add chicken, beef, or other protein to finish this dish.

37. Greek Salad Hummus Sandwich from Saving Room for Dessert. This recipe is a greek salad packed into a sandwich, paired with hummus. Delicious and hearty for the perfect lunch.

38. Chicken Salad Lettuce Wraps by Brit + Co. This wrap is a keto-friendly chicken salad that tastes great and is healthy for you.

39. Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta Salad from Kitchen @ Hoskins. This is the perfect pasta salad. It’s easily customizable so that you can swap or omit ingredients to your liking.

40. Winter Purple Cauliflower Salad from Vibrant Plate. This salad is likely the prettiest dish on here. This winter salad is spinach-based and tastes great. Plus, it’s packed full of nutrients with all kinds of different vegetables.

41. Dynamite Shrimp Sushi Jars from The Girl on Bloor. This is a great grab-and-go lunch that has all the ingredients of your favorite sushi rolls without needing to spend extra money on take-out.

42. Spicy Turmeric Lentil Wraps by Beauty Bite. This wrap is a nice vegetarian option for work lunches. Lentils are easy to cook and this can keep well in the fridge for the week.

43. Green Grain Summer Salad from The Zested Lemon. This salad has a ton of healthy and delicious ingredients topped with a lemon garlic cashew sauce.

44. Italian Pasta Salad from Kristine’s Kitchen. Italian pasta salad is a great meal prep option because the ingredients taste even better the longer they get to marinate.

45. The Ultimate Snack Lunch from Project Meal Plans. Buy some crackers, cheese, meat, fruit, and veggies to create the perfect little snack lunch to make quickly.

46. Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad from Damn Delicious. This is an effort-free, delicious chicken salad with grapes, apples, and cranberries.

47. Sweet Potato Tostadas by She Likes Food. This tostada is an amazing lunch that can be made with store-bought tostadas with refried beans and taco toppings. This recipe uses sweet potatoes, but it can be customized to meet your preferences.

48. Asian Chicken Salad by Damn Delicious. This salad can be easily made with a store-bought rotisserie chicken and other ingredients. Meal-prep ahead of time to enjoy all week.

49. Mason Jar Ramen by Brit + Co. Mason ramen is an easy recipe to make with pre-cooked protein and vegetables. Making it yourself ensures it’s as healthy and delicious as you want it to be.

50. Shrimp Avocado Salad by Pinch of Yum. This features shrimp, avocado, cucumber, and fresh herbs for a delicious salad.

51. Watermelon Radish Salad by Brit + Co. This salad is exactly what it sounds like, made with pink watermelon radishes, paired with a balsamic vinaigrette.

Author

Caitlin Mazur

Caitlin Mazur is a freelance writer at Zippia. Caitlin is passionate about helping Zippia’s readers land the jobs of their dreams by offering content that discusses job-seeking advice based on experience and extensive research. Caitlin holds a degree in English from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, PA.