Healthy Lunch Ideas For Work No Microwave

The best healthy lunch ideas for work no microwave to make. These lunches are convenient and will keep you from spending your hard-earned money at the local deli or coffee shop.

If you ever have trouble getting creative with your lunch ideas in your office, I am going to show you how to make some great, healthy meals that don’t require a microwave. This article is loaded with delicious workday lunch ideas that will not only impress your friends and co-workers, but it’s also easy on the budget.

Looking for healthy lunch ideas that don’t take long to make and don’t require a microwave? This one-pot peanut noodles recipe is easy to prep ahead of time (before you leave for the day) and will satisfy your hunger.

Healthy Lunch Ideas For Work No Microwave

While you might have the ability to eat a hot lunch each day, knowing some no-heat lunch recipes that you can make is super important. After all, a girl’s gotta eat. Whether you don’t have a microwave at work or would simply prefer not to use it (sometimes they get gross!), having some recipes in your back pocket that taste great cold or room temperature is a must. Opting for the same old super basic salad or sandwich can get boring quickly, however. What you need is a bit of inspiration.

Yes, of course, plenty of more exciting salads or sandwiches are on the table, but you have many more options than just that. There are meat, fish, and veggie dishes that can all work just as well at room temperature as they do when newly out of the oven or off the stove. And those are absolutely the perfect thing for you to bring for lunch. Honestly, even if you do have access to a microwave or toaster oven, who has the desire to put forth the effort to heat up lunch each day anyway?

These no-heat lunches will get you out of your lunchtime rut, without sacrificing flavor or adding pre-lunch preparation. What’s not to like about that?

This 20 minute, one pot Greek pasta is loaded with veggies and all your favorite Mediterranean flavors of olive oil, fresh dill and feta cheese.

You’ll Love This

• It cooks in one pot! I’m all about saving times and washing less dishes, so one pot dinners are my jam on a busy weeknight!
• It takes just 20 minutes to make! It’s easy to reach for convenient fast food when you’re short on time. But when a hearty, healthy dinner takes just 20 minutes to make and tastes way better than take out, it’s an easy choice – one pot pasta will be better than greasy take out any day of the week!
• The ingredient list is short and sweet! Chances are good you might even have most of these ingredients in your fridge and pantry right now.
• It’s also a great “clean out your fridge” recipe. Have some leftover zucchini? Dice it up and throw it in! Got a few sun dried tomatoes hanging around? Toss them in too! Customize this recipe to use up any leftover veggies and switch up the flavor!

“One Pot” Pasta

One pot pasta is just what the name implies – it’s a pasta dish that’s made entirely in one pot. Which means that the uncooked pasta noodles go right into the pot and cook along with the other ingredients.

This means:

1. You won’t have to wait for water to boil.
2. You wont’t need to dirty a separate pot for the noodles.
3. You won’t have to strain the noodles or dirty yet another dish.

This also means:

1. You will have dinner on the table in about 20 minutes.
2. You will save time and energy by only washing 1 dish instead of 3.
3. You will be able to serve you family a healthy, wholesome meal without spending tons of time in the kitchen.

Instructions

Combine uncooked pasta with vegetable broth, onion, garlic, olives, tomatoes and artichoke hearts. Simmer for 10-12 minutes or until the noodles are al dente.

Stir in crumbled feta cheese and fresh dill. The feta will combine with the starch from the pasta and the remaining vegetable broth to create the lightest, most delicious sauce.

Pasta

• Use whatever you have on hand, just make sure you use 16 oz. of uncooked dry pasta.
• Penne or bowties would be great in this dish too. I’ve also made it with bucatini which is one of my all-time favorite noodles.
• I would caution you that fresh (or refrigerated) pasta will not work as well in this recipe as it’s designed to be made with dry pasta. Fresh pasta will cook too quickly so the liquid will not reduce sufficiently. I’m all for fresh pasta, but dry is the better choice for this recipe!

Keywords: Mediterranean pasta salad, one pot pasta, Greek pasta, vegetarian pasta

Chicken Bacon Pressed Picnic Sandwiches With Raspberry Honey Mustard

Ingredients

Scale

• 2 loaves sesame semolina, unsliced
• 1/2 cup honey mustard
• 1/2 cup raspberry preserves
• 1.5 to 2 pounds shredded rotisserie chicken
• 1 pound bacon, cooked
• 1 pound sliced extra-sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/2 small red onion, sliced
• 4 large handfuls of baby spinach

Instructions

1. Using a bread knife, cut the very top of the loaves off. You don’t want the bread pieces to be even halves– you only want to take the very tops off of the loaves so you can hollow out the bottom pieces and fill them with your sandwich ingredients.
2. Cut around the inside of the bottom halves, making sure not to cut all the way through. Remove the majority of the tender bread in the center.
3. Whisk together the honey mustard and the preserves. spread a generous amount in the bottom bread pieces. Reserve the rest of the raspberry honey mustard for later.
4. Press the chicken over the raspberry honey mustard. Then layer with the bacon, cheddar cheese, red onion, and baby spinach, in that order. Press down as you go so that you can fit as much filling as possible.
5. Cover the sandwiches with the top bread piece and wrap them very, very tightly with plastic wrap all over. Place the sandwiches in the refrigerator and top them with heavy objects to press them down– cast iron skillets, heavy books, and weights balanced on baking sheets all work well. You want to have about 30 pounds of total pressure on them, if possible, but less will still work.
6. Allow the sandwiches to press and the flavors to marry overnight, or for at least 4 hours.
7. Remove the sandwiches from the refrigerator, unwrap, and slice into small servings, about 8 pieces per loaf. Allow the picnic sandwiches to come to room temperature and serve with the remaining raspberry mustard

Avocado Tuna Salad

This Mexican Avocado Tuna Salad combines healthy fat from avocados and lean protein from tuna for a quick and easy mayo-free lunch or snack! It’s also gluten free, low carb and paleo. Ready in only 10 minutes!

Instructions

• Place all ingredients in a large bowl. Toss to combine.
• Taste and season with more salt and pepper as necessary.

Avocado Tuna Salad Add-Ins And Variations

• chopped hard-boiled eggs
• dijon mustard
• plain Greek yogurt for mayo “look”
• chopped pickles
• a touch of chili or chipotle powder
• smoked paprika

How Long Will This Avocado Tuna Salad Last In The Fridge?

A couple of days, about 2 to 5 depending on how it’s being stored. I recommend spritzing a little more lemon juice on top and then covering it with plastic wrap so that the plastic wrap is actually touching the salad and the sides of the storage container. You want to try to create a seal. This helps prevent any oxygen from getting in and turning the avocado brown. Then close the container with it’s regular top and place it in the fridge.