Practical Lunch Recipes for Every Day

Guide

Which lunch fits your everyday life?

A lunch at home has different requirements than a meal for the office or on the go. In the home office something may come fresh from a pan or pot, while transported dishes remain stable, can be packaged well and should taste cold or warmed up.

Therefore, decide first after time and place: Do you want to cook in 20 to 30 minutes, use leftovers from the previous day or prepare several portions? After that, the choice between pasta, bowl, soup, salad, pan dish or oven recipe is much easier.

Fast hot lunch

Pasta, gnocchi pans, fried rice, omelet, curry and fast soups are suitable for a short lunch break. While cooking noodles or rice, vegetables and sauce can be prepared in parallel. Recipes with a few steps are often more practical than dishes with a very short overall time, but many individual components.

The Fast Dinner You'll find a lot of dishes that work just as well at noon. One-pot dishes save extra washing up and are especially suitable for home office or family kitchen.

Cold lunch: salads, bowls and sandwiches

A cold lunch can be transported well and does not need a kitchen on site. To make salad or bowl work as a meal, you add vegetables to a basis such as potatoes, couscous, rice, pasta or bread and a filling component such as beans, lentils, egg, tofu, cheese, fish or chicken.

Dressings, herbs and crispy toppings remain separate until they are eaten. So lettuce, bread and roasted ingredients are not soft. In the case of sandwiches and wraps, a solid layer of salad, cheese or spread protects the bread from very moist fillings.

Meal Prep for office and home office

Meal Prep does not have to mean cooking five identical portions. It is often enough to prepare individual blocks: cooked rice, oven vegetables, a sauce, boiled eggs or washed salad can be combined differently on several days.

• easy to prepare in advance: Curries, soups, stews, casseroles, rice dishes and many pasta sauces.
• Separate packaging: Add dressing, herbs, cheese and crispy ingredients just before eating.
• Safe planning of transport: Liquid dishes and sauces belong in dense containers.
• When warming up, adjust: Rice and pasta absorb liquid; some water or broth makes it looser again.

Combine filling, fresh or savoury

How strong a lunch should be depends on the daily routine and personal appetite. A helpful structure is the combination of a base, vegetables and a protein source. Thus, both light salads and warm pan dishes become complete meals.

• Basis: Noodles, Rice, Potatoes, bread, couscous or cereals.
• Vegetables and freshness: raw vegetables, oven vegetables, salad, herbs or seasonal ingredients.
• Protein: Legumes, eggs, tofu, cheese, fish or meat.
• Taste: Dressing, sauce, spices, acidity and a crispy topping.

Lunch for the family

For families, dishes that can be adjusted at the table are particularly good. Pasta, bowls, wraps, oven potatoes and mild curries can be served with various toppings. Spicy, herbs, cheese and sauces are added separately, so that there are not several main dishes required.

In addition, dishes made from oven, pot or large pan can be cooked more easily in larger quantities. Plan an additional portion consciously when a quick lunch is needed the next day.

Use leftovers usefully for lunch

Boiled potatoes are used for frying potatoes, frittata or potato salad. Rice is suitable for a fast vegetable pan or bowl, other pasta for pasta salad or casserole. Cooked vegetables can be used in soup, curry, omelet or wrap.

Start planning with what already exists. About the category Recipes by ingredients You will find suitable ideas without buying completely new ones for each lunch.