Having a healthy lunch for university students can be hard. From the lack of time to create a full meal, to everything being unhealthy at the campus cafeteria, we all have trouble adjusting to our student lifestyle. But thanks to these lunch ideas for college students, anyone can enjoy fresh, appealing food that will keep you away from tired candy bars and microwave meals.
When you’re a college student on a budget, it can be tricky to put together healthy meals. Here are some healthy meals for students on a budget to help stretch their meal-plan dollars and keep their nutritional needs in mind. This article also includes the benefits of a healthy school lunch.
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Healthy Lunch Ideas For University Students
Are you looking for cheap and healthy lunch ideas for university students? Are you a student who is very busy and don’t want to waste their time in the cafeteria line? Or you are an office worker who wants a great salad bowl or sandwich recipe for your desk lunch?
Finding healthy lunch options for university students on a budget can be difficult. With the pressure of tight budgets, plus the temptation of cheap fast food, it’s easy to fall into bad habits that lead to an unhealthy lifestyle. It’s hard to focus on your studies when you aren’t eating healthy and getting the nutrients you need.
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Put the supermarket sandwiches aside and make your own healthy and easy student lunches.
These healthy student lunch ideas and recipes are great for either taking to University with you or for sat eating at home.
1. Cajun Chicken & Avocado Salad Wrap-Healthy Lunch Ideas For University Students
These delicious chicken and avocado salad wraps are super delicious and easy to make.
2. Turkey Avocado and Sweetcorn Salad
This easy Cajun turkey (or chicken) salad makes for a healthy meal that is far from boring.
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3. The Ultimate Tuna Salad-Healthy Lunch Ideas For University Students
This is the ultimate recipe for a quick, filling, and most importantly (to me and you) tasty tuna salad with chickpeas and sweetcorn.
4. Lime and chili chicken with baked sweet potato
Think healthy meals are boring? This beautiful summer dish will change your mind.
5. Delicious Vegan ‘Tuna’ Melt-Healthy Lunch Ideas For University Students
A vegan ‘tuna’ melt makes for a delicious and easy meal.
6. Healthy Salmon, Avocado, and Egg Salad
This Healthy Salmon, Avocado, and Egg Salad make for an awesome lunch or light dinner recipe.
7. Naked Turkey and Avocado Burgers
These super healthy turkey burgers will be ready in just 15 minutes and taste delicious with avocado.
8. Simple and quick Turkey and Avocado sandwich
A delicious, healthy, and quick-open sandwich with turkey, tomato, and avocado.
9. Chicken and Halloumi Salad
This Low Carb Filling Chicken and Halloumi Salad is an awesome healthy student recipe and easy to make too.
10. Quick Tasty Halloumi Salad
Tasty Halloumi Salad: A quick healthy halloumi salad using simple ingredients, it can be made in no time.
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11. Vegan Hummus and Veggie Wrap
This quick and simple wrap recipe makes for a great vegan lunch idea.
12. Tuna, Egg, Broccoli, and Avocado Salad Box
This Tuna, Egg, Broccoli, and Avocado Salad make for a super healthy student recipe.
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Lunch Ideas for College Students
This budget-busting sharing platter of slow-cooked chipotle chicken is perfect for feeding a crowd – and won’t break a student budget, either
Pasta e Fagioli
Make this vegan soup in the slow cooker for a super-easy, healthy supper. Packed with veg, pasta, and beans, it’s a satisfying soup for winter
Butter bean, mushroom & bacon pot pies
Top these mushroom, bacon, kale, and tarragon pies with butter bean smash to make a healthy main meal that’s big on flavor but light on calories
Aubergine & chickpea stew
Dig out the slow cooker to make this stew. Topped with toasted pine nuts and served with flatbreads, it makes a healthy and nutritious vegan meal
Tuna & sweetcorn fish cakes-Healthy Lunch Ideas For University Students
Tinned fish and sweetcorn are a lifesaver when you need to rustle up some simple potato patties for a healthy, budget-friendly supper
Chicken biryani pilau
Easy and cheap to recreate at home, students won’t need to order takeaways ever again!
Spiced lentil & butternut squash soup
Cook a big batch of this filling spiced lentil and squash soup and freeze the leftovers for a speedy supper another day. It’s healthy and low in fat
Miso noodles with fried eggs-Healthy Lunch Ideas For University Students
This quick and healthy veggie dinner has a base of whole meal noodles for a filling, fiber-rich supper. It’s packed with 4 of your 5-a-day, plus vitamin C and iron too
Big-batch Bolognese
Whip up a huge batch of Bolognese that’s fit to feed a hungry crowd, or freeze half for a speedy midweek meal
Linguine with avocado, tomato & lime
Use guacamole ingredients to make this low-calorie vegan linguine which can also be served cold as a pasta salad. It delivers on flavor and it’s healthy.
Homemade muesli with oats, dates & berries
star rating of 4.6 out of 5.13 ratings picked with oats, pecans, seeds, dates, puffed wheat, and berries, this delicious breakfast muesli will help you to start your day the right way
Black beans & avocado on toast
A vibrant Mexican-style breakfast with fresh avocado and black beans. Give yourself a healthy start with our easy vegan beans on toast with a twist
Burrito bowl with chipotle black beans
This healthy burrito bowl is chock full of veggies and greens, perfect for a filling lunch. This is one vegetarian meal that tastes just as good as it looks
Mexican-style bean soup with shredded chicken & lime
Use leftover chicken breast in this substantial healthy soup. Alternatively, make the recipe vegetarian by topping it with chunky, fresh guacamole
Masala frittata with avocado salsa
A spicy twist on a simple frittata recipe, with Masala paste, coriander, and plump cherry tomatoes. Pair it with our avocado salsa for a light and budget-friendly supper
Bircher muesli with apple & banana
Soaking oats and seeds overnight make them easier to digest, and the muesli will be extra creamy. Great for a quick breakfast straight from the fridge
Veggie wholewheat pot noodle
This cleverly packed lunch is super healthy, with crisp vegetables, wholewheat noodles, and a spicy, zingy dressing
Thai prawn & ginger noodles
This seafood stir-fry, with fiery ginger and crunchy veg, is as healthy as it is delicious – a low-fat and low-calorie weeknight dinner
Stir-fry with broccoli & brown rice
Combine ready-to-cook vegetarian, chicken-style pieces with super-healthy broccoli, ginger, and garlic for a quick, veggie dinner.
Spicy chicken & avocado wraps
Pan-fry lean chicken breast with lime, chili, and garlic, then pile onto seeded tortilla wraps. Cool before assembling if packing for lunch
Egg & rocket pizzas
Use seeded tortillas as pizza bases for a quick and healthy lunch – crack an egg in the center and bake to boost protein intake
Fruit & nut breakfast bowl
Top cheap and healthy porridge oats with chopped fresh oranges, Greek yogurt, and a sprinkling of dried fruit, nuts, and seeds.
Red lentil & carrot soup
This warming and budget-friendly vegetarian soup are perfectly packed in a flask for lunch. It’s also easy to double the quantities and freeze half for later
Courgette tortilla with toppings
Transform everyday eggs into a flavor-packed dish with hummus, peppers, and olives – a great healthy vegetarian lunch
Healthy Meals for Students on A Budget
Are you a college student looking for healthy meals for college students on a budget, but don’t want to spend a ton of money on food? Having been a poor college student myself, I know how much it sucks to have to limit yourself in the grocery aisle. I also know how difficult it is to eat healthily, lose weight, and be your best self when you’re counting every last penny — that’s why I’m going to share some tips and strategies for saving money on healthy foods.
Forget those supermarket sandwiches and make your lunch for university with these cheap and easy student lunch ideas.
They’re great for either a quick bite at home or something to take in advance and take with you to classes or just out and about.
Vegan Hummus and Veggie Wrap
This quick and simple wrap recipe makes for a great vegan lunch idea.
Turkey Avocado and Sweetcorn Salad
This easy Cajun turkey (or chicken) salad makes for a healthy meal that is far from boring.
Tasty Chicken Burrito Rice
Make the evening before lunch the next day. Great on its own or you can enjoy it in a burrito.
The Ultimate Tuna Salad
This is the ultimate recipe for a quick, filling, and most importantly (to me and you) tasty tuna salad with chickpeas and sweetcorn.
Cajun Chicken & Avocado Salad Wrap
These delicious chicken and avocado salad wraps are super delicious and easy to make.
Loaded Bacon, Lettuce & Tomato Baked Potato
Combine two all-time favorites with this loaded BLT baked potato.
Delicious Vegan ‘Tuna’ Melt
A vegan ‘tuna’ melt makes for a delicious and easy meal.
Vegan roasted vegetables
Cook these roasted veggies in advance and enjoy for lunch with hummus, sliced avocado, fresh parsley, or a drizzle of tahini.
Quick Tasty Halloumi Salad
Tasty Halloumi Salad: A quick healthy halloumi salad using simple ingredients, it can be made in no time.
Chicken and Spinach Ciabatta Pizzas
These Chicken and Spinach Ciabatta Pizzas make for taking just minutes and make for a quick and tasty snack.
Chicken and cheese quesadillas
A yummy quick meal that will make use of leftover chicken
Strawberry and Chicken Salad
A healthy summery salad with chicken, bacon, avocado, blue cheese, and strawberries.
Scrummy Bacon Salad
Here’s a super quick salad recipe that’s almost completely healthy.
Healthy Turkey Chilli
An easy one-pan Spicy and healthy turkey chili that will last for days and makes for a tasty lunch. Get the recipe here.
Simple and quick Turkey and Avocado sandwich
A delicious, healthy, and quick-open sandwich with turkey, tomato, and avocado.
Delicious Vegan ‘Tuna’ Melt
A vegan ‘tuna’ melt makes for a delicious and easy meal.
Tuna, Egg, Broccoli, and Avocado Salad Box
This Tuna, Egg, Broccoli, and Avocado Salad make for a super healthy student recipe.
‘Walking taco’
This easy Mexican style-feast is trivial to make, requires no cleaning up, and makes for a great lunchtime meal.
Healthy Crispy Chicken and Avocado Wraps
These toasted chicken and avocado wraps are not only healthy, but they also take just 10 minutes.
Chicken rice and veg
This rice with chicken and vegetables can be cooked in less than 2 minutes in the microwave. Add in some cheese if you like and take it with you Uni.
Fully loaded veggie burrito
You can cook up his packed egg and veggie burrito in the morning for lunch later.
Southern Fried Chicken Salad
This Southern Fried Chicken Salad is yummy and all so simple to make. Get the full recipe here: > Southern Fried Chicken Salad
Benefits of a Healthy School Lunch
1. Academic achievement.
Kids attend school for half of their waking hours in most cases and consume a good portion of their calories while there. As seen in this infographic, there’s a direct correlation to kids eating healthy foods and achieving better grades. And while not directly associated with just lunch, this fact sheet from the CDC illustrates the relationship with grades achieved when directly compared with behaviors such as eating breakfast, drinking juice and/or soda, eating vegetables, and more. The bottom line—kids academic abilities can be affected by what they eat. So why not send them something healthy for lunch?
2. Enforcing healthy eating habits.
I’m a big believer that parents and teachers are partners in many aspects of shaping and educating their children. Often, when my child does something silly, like get up and start dancing while we’re eating dinner, I’ll ask, “Can you do this at school?” Consistency is key, in my opinion, and if you aim to eat well at home, you should continue that effort with their school lunch. Plus, think about it, if all of us parents work together and send healthy foods, it might become the “cool thing” to have healthy lunches. Hey, a mom can dream, right?!
3. Aiming to stay healthy with proper nutrition.
While eating healthfully is not a guarantee of a clean bill of health, it certainly can help provide necessary vitamins, minerals, and nutrients. When combined with physical activity, your diet can help you to reach and maintain a healthy weight, reduce your risk of chronic diseases, and promote your overall health. These benefits start from the day that we are born! And on the flip side—with 1 in 5 kids aged 6 to 19 being obese, it makes smarter eating habits even more necessary.
4. Optimal athletic performance.
Many kids stay after school for sports and activities or are driven directly there. With this being said, and the fact that nutrition directly affects performance on and off the field, it’s essential that they have well-balanced meals that can fuel them for productivity. I’ve personally been going through this with my 13-year-old daughter who does competitive dance. She will be at the studio for 6 hours, and if I don’t pack her a lunch, she’ll take (her own) money and go to the nearby pizza place and get a slice of pizza and garlic knots—that’s it. I try to explain how her nutrition is going to affect her performance. If kids want to do well in their sports, sometimes having them fully understand the whole piece is helpful. And packing a healthy lunch, whether you or them do it, is also helpful! This one daughter is a work in progress