Packable Work Lunches

A good packed lunch needs to survive a morning in a bag or office fridge and still taste like something you want to eat. These recipes were picked because their own storage notes say they keep for several days, travel well, or can be packed in separate parts and put together at the last minute. Cook one or two on the weekend and most of the week’s lunches are covered.

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  Sunday Meal Prep: 5 Organic Lunches from One Shopping Trip

  1 hr 30 min total · Serves 5

  A full plan rather than a single recipe: four components cooked in one session and mixed into five different lunch boxes.

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  Make-Ahead Burrito Bowls for the Week

  55 min total · Serves 4

  Rice, beans or chicken, corn salsa and crunchy vegetables, packed in separate compartments so nothing gets soggy.

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  Baked Falafel Wraps with Lemon-Tahini Sauce

  50 min total · Serves 4

  The falafel and tahini sauce taste good warm or at room temperature, and wrapped in flatbread they travel easily.

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  Quinoa Power Bowl with Tahini Lemon Dressing

  45 min total · Serves 4

  Keep the quinoa, roasted vegetables and dressing apart in the fridge and assemble a fresh bowl each morning in a few minutes.

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  Quinoa Stuffed Peppers with Black Beans

  1 hr 10 min total · Serves 4

  Bake a tray on Sunday; the peppers reheat well in the microwave or oven for lunches later in the week.

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  Lentil and Vegetable Soup That Freezes Well

  55 min total · Serves 6

  Pack it hot in an insulated food jar, or freeze single portions and move one to the fridge the night before.

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  Spinach and Chickpea Curry with Tomatoes

  35 min total · Serves 4

  Many curries taste even better the next day, and this one keeps for several days in the fridge. Pack rice in its own container.

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  Crispy Baked Tofu with Broccoli and Brown Rice

  50 min total · Serves 3

  Crisp baked tofu with broccoli and brown rice. Keep the rice in a separate container if you can.

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  Kale and Apple Salad with Toasted Walnuts

  25 min total · Serves 4

  Unlike most leafy salads, dressed kale holds up for a day, so you can make it the night before.

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  Black Bean and Corn Quesadillas

  25 min total · Serves 4

  Wrap cooked wedges in foil and pack the salsa separately so the tortilla stays crisp.

Packing tips

Divided containers keep wet and crunchy parts apart. Let cooked food cool before closing the lid, refrigerate it promptly, and keep packed lunches cold with an ice pack until you eat. Dressings and sauces are best carried in a small jar and added just before eating.