Making the time to have a lunch that’s packed with flavour and nutrients is really important, even when you’re working from home. Downing tools and heading to the kitchen will give you a much-needed break and a delicious meal can bring a bit of excitement to your 9 to 5.
From wraps and baps to salads and soups, these workday lunches are fresh, fast, and make the most of what you’ve got. Here are some brilliant working-from-home lunch ideas to get you inspired.
Baps And wraps
Sandwiches are a regular on the lunchtime scene – they’re super-easy to make and the possibilities for incredible fillings are endless when the contents of your fridge are ripe for the picking! Try mixing it up with a Mexican-inspired bean wrap, or rustle up a quick bap with marinated chicken and a quick homemade coleslaw. Quesadillas are an amazing vehicle for leftovers – crispy on the outside and oozy on the inside, they’re always a winner.
Best Lunch You Need To Try Out
1. Veggie quesadillas
Nutrition Per Serving
Ingredients
- 3 leeks
- 3 peppers
- 1 large carrot
- 140 g Cheddar or Red Leicester cheese
- a few sprigs of fresh soft herbs, such as parsley, mint, coriander , optional
- 8 large flour tortillas
- 200 g tub of houmous
- extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lemon or lime
- 1 fresh chilli , optional
- 120 g natural yoghurt
- chipotle chilli sauce , optional
Method
- Peel off the outer layers of the leeks, leaving the tender inner part (save the outsides for stew or soup, or even stock or gravy), then finely chop.
- Deseed and finely chop the peppers. Wash and coarsely grate the carrot.
- Put all the veg in a bowl, coarsely grate in the cheese, adding more if you have it, then mix it all together. If you’ve got fresh herbs, add some roughly chopped leaves.
- To assemble, scatter the veg and cheese mixture across four tortillas, then top with the remaining tortillas.
- Put a large non-stick frying pan on a medium heat.
- One at a time, dry fry the quesadillas for 5 minutes, or until golden and crisp on the outside, and the cheese has melted in the middle, turning halfway.
- Meanwhile, jazz up your houmous. Add half a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and a squeeze of lemon or lime juice to the houmous tub, and mix together. You can add some fresh herbs here if you have any.
- Let each quesadilla cool for at least a minute before slicing into wedges. Finely slice the chilli, if using. Serve with the jazzed-up houmous and yoghurt for dunking, topped with chilli sauce and the sliced fresh chilli to add a bit of heat, if you like. Great with a fresh, crunchy salad on the side.
Tips
EASY SWAPS
– I’ve used leeks because I didn’t have spring onions or onions, so use whatever you’ve got.
– Any colour of peppers would be delicious here, and if you don’t have fresh, jarred peppers would also work a treat.
– If you haven’t got any houmous, how about serving with guacamole or a simple tomato salsa? Even better, make your own houmous using tinned chickpeas.
2. Wicked chicken with coleslaw
Nutrition Per Serving
Ingredients
- 4 higher-welfare chicken thighs
- 1 lemon
- 1 red chilli , halved, deseeded and thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic , crushed
- sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 4 fresh rolls , halved
- For the coleslaw
- 2 carrots
- 1 small white cabbage , outer leaves torn off, cut into 4 wedges
- 1 small onion , peeled and very finely sliced
- 2 tablespoons fat-free natural yoghurt
- 1 tablespoon grainy mustard
- sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 1 handful rocket
Method
- Homemade coleslaw knocks the socks off shop-bought stuff and is great with these chicken baps.
- Preheat your oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas 6. Mix the chicken with the zest and juice of the lemon, the sliced chilli and the garlic, and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover and leave to marinate for half an hour.
- Peel the carrots, throw away the peel and then keep stripping until you get a pile of carrot ribbons. Slice the cabbage as finely as you can with a sharp knife. Place the carrot and cabbage in a bowl with the sliced onion, the yoghurt and the mustard. Mix well and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Place the chicken thighs on a tray, skin side up, and bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until the skin is crispy and the meat’s cooked through.
- Take the chicken thighs out of the oven, leave to cool slightly until you can handle them and then pull the bone out of the middle (you might need a little knife to do this). Toast the halved rolls under a hot grill or in the oven, and fill with rocket salad and a chicken thigh. Serve with the coleslaw and tuck in!
- Tip: If you don’t like the idea of cutting out the bone, buy your chicken thighs ready boned.
3. Garlic Mushroom Burgers
Nutrition Per Serving
Ingredients
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 sprigs of fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 35 g butter , (at room temperature)
- 2 large mushrooms
- 2 burger buns or ciabatta
- English mustard
- 1 lemon
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200ºC/gas 6, or fire up your barbecue.
- Peel and finely grate the garlic, then pick and chop the parsley leaves. Combine with the softened butter.
- Clean the mushrooms and fill them with the butter. Wrap in tin foil and bake in the oven or place on the barbecue for 15 minutes, or till the mushrooms are soft and cooked.
- Split the burger buns or ciabatta, then unwrap the mushrooms and pour the the juices onto the bread. Smear with mustard and top with a mushroom, a squeeze of lemon juice and some rocket.
4. Rainbow Salad Wrap
Nutrition Per Serving
Ingredients
- 2 small raw beetroots , different colours if possible (roughly 150g)
- 2 carrots
- 150 g white cabbage
- 1 pear , firm
- ½ a bunch of fresh mint , (15g)
- ½ a bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley , (15g)
- 6 small wholemeal tortilla wraps
- 50 g feta cheese
- Dressing:
- 5 tablespoons natural yogurt
- ½ teaspoon English mustard
- 3 teaspoons cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Steps
- Wash the beetroots and carrots under cold running water, scrubbing with a scrubber to get rid of any dirt (there’s no need to peel them).
- Pick off and discard the wispy ends from the beetroots.
- Hold a box grater steady on a chopping board, then gripping the root end, coarsely grate the carrots, stopping before your fingers or knuckles get too close to the grater. Place the grated carrots into a large bowl.
- Coarsely grate or finely slice the cabbage, then discard the core and add to the bowl.
- Remove the stalk from the pear, coarsely grate (core and all), then place it into the bowl.
- Finally, hold the root end of the beetroots and coarsely grate (you may want to wear rubber gloves for this), then add to the bowl.
- Pick the mint and parsley leaves, then discard the stalks. Tear or finely chop the leaves on a board and add to the bowl.
- Add all the dressing ingredients to a jam jar.
- Put the lid securely on the jar and shake well.
- Have a taste and see whether you think it needs a bit more yoghurt, vinegar or oil – you want it to be slightly too acidic, so that it’s still nice and zingy once you’ve dressed your rainbow salad.
- Drizzle most of the dressing over the salad – just remember you can always add more but you can’t take it away, so be cautious.
- Divide the salad between the tortilla wraps, then crumble a little feta over each.
- Roll up the wraps, tucking them in at the sides as you go, then serve.
Tips
This is a great recipe to make with kids, but remember that box graters are very sharp so need to be used carefully. Show kids how to hold hard fruit and vegetables with a firm grip and use nice big chunks so that their hands are safely out of the way.
5. Halloumi With Griddled Vegetables
Nutrition Per Serving
Ingredients
- 100 g frozen broad beans
- 225 g halloumi cheese
- 1 small bunch of asparagus
- 2 courgettes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 shallots
- 200 g ripe cherry tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon capers
- ½ a bunch of fresh sweet marjoram or oregano
- ½ a bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley
- Dressing
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp cider vinegar
Procedures
- Put all the dressing ingredients in a clean jam jar and shake to combine. Set aside.
- Cook the broad beans in boiling water for 5 minutes, or until tender. Drain and cool in cold water, then remove and discard the thick, white outer skins.
- Cut the halloumi into slices, trim and slice the asparagus, then finely slice the courgettes lengthways. Toss in the olive oil, then season.
- Heat a griddle pan over a high heat, then add the asparagus, courgettes and halloumi. Cook until nicely charred, remove and set aside.
- Finely slice the shallots into rings, halve the tomatoes, then layer up on a platter with the asparagus, courgettes, halloumi, broad beans and capers.
- Chop and scatter over the fresh herbs and finish with a drizzling of the dressing.