This article gives you tips for how to make tasty, nutritional lunches with minimal fuss.

Prepping and Planning Tips
Planning is the secret to making homemade lunches quick and easy. Dedicate a few minutes each weekend to planning what your lunches for the coming week will include. Use the following tips to save time and money:

Do it yourself. Avoid buying commercially made, pre-packed lunches and snacks. While convenient, these items are expensive and can contain large amounts of fat, calories, salt and sugar.

Know where you’re going. Find out what’s available in your workplace in terms of refrigerator space for lunches, microwave access, stove and kettle use and storage space for staff members to keep a few non-perishable food items. Knowing what is possible in terms of storing and reheating your lunch will help you know what foods you should put in your lunch.

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Use Canada’s Food Guide. A healthy lunch should contain foods from all of the four foods groups as per Canada’s Food Guide. Fortunately, there are multitudes of easy-to-prepare, portable foods that meet this guideline.

Make the most of leftovers. Keep lunch preparation as simple as possible by bringing dinner leftovers to work. To avoid repetition, consider freezing leftovers in portable containers that can be popped into your lunch for reheating.

Protect your assets and the environment. Plan to keep your lunch foods safe and tasty by packing them in a reusable, insulated lunch bag. Use frozen containers of juice, water or milk to help keep foods cold. Use insulated containers to keep foods like soup or stew piping hot. Purchase a supply of inexpensive, reusable containers to carry cut-up fruit, sandwiches and salads.

Think Outside the Lunch Box!
Overcome the boredom that is sometimes associated with homemade lunches by varying your choices each day. Keep in mind that lunch does not have to be limited to sandwiches. Here are some ideas for varying your food choices and keeping lunch tasty and enjoyable.

Spice it up. Top a leftover baked potato with salsa, kidney beans and grated cheese for lunch with a Mexican flare. Dice leftover cooked chicken and mix with curry powder, celery, raisins and plain yogurt. Serve in a whole grain pita. 

Have breakfast for lunch. Pack your favourite cereal and a container of milk. Round out this lunch with a piece of fruit and a hard-boiled egg.

Go green. Salads are wonderful homemade lunch items. Save time by washing your salad ingredients in advance and preparing enough salad greens to last you several days. Pack vegetables such as cucumbers or sliced tomatoes in portable containers, and add them to your salad just before eating. Use leftover meats, canned fish, hard-boiled eggs, grated cheese or beans to top things off.

Brainstorm alternatives. Tired of bread? Why not serve your sandwich as a wrap or a pita? Enjoy tuna or salmon salad on whole-grain crackers. Top canned baked beans with leftover chunks of ham for a hearty alternative to a ham sandwich. 

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Create a Stash
Storing a few healthy foods in your desk, locker, or in a cupboard in your lunch room can help you avoid hassles. A small “stash” of nutritious foods can also help to tide you over on days when you forget your lunch.

Examples of stash foods include:

• single serving cans of tuna, salmon or baked beans
• hot or cold cereals (look for cereals that provide at least four grams of fibre per serving)
• dried fruits such as raisins, apples, apricots and cranberries
• peanut butter or pea butter
• single serving canned fruit (look for fruits that are packed in water or fruit juice and contain no added sugar)

Making your lunch is a quick, inexpensive way to bring healthy eating to work. With a bit of planning, and by thinking outside the box, you can make a lunch you’ll be happy to break for.

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Learn More
Brown Bag it to Work
EatRight Ontario offers some practical ideas for eating homemade while on the job.

Canada’s Food Guide
Canada’s Food Guide is a quick, easy map of what you should eat and how much.

Take Your Lunch, Take the Stairs
The Heart and Stroke Foundation provides easy solutions for eating well and being active on the job.