The Easy Lunch I’ve Been Eating Once a Week
Last year, I came to you with a humble plea: Help! What’s for lunch? I was feeling stuck, and CoJ commenters offered 500+ amazing ideas. To return the favor, I wanted to share a supremely easy lunch in my current rotation…
Welcome to the stage…bowl of steamed edamame. Unlike the vegetables in my fridge that are past their prime or need time in the oven, a bag of frozen, shelled edamame is always happily waiting in the freezer to be called up for a random weekday lunch.
Edamame is a great source of protein and fiber, so I’m not hungry again seven seconds later. While I’m boiling water and waiting for the edamame to steam, I’ll usually grab whatever I have in the fridge (cilantro, half a cucumber, carrots, leftover rice), plus a little soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil. But if I’m in a hurry, haven’t grocery shopped in forever, or find myself texting while the water boils, it’s also satisfying with just flaky salt and chili crunch oil. The perfect side: rice crackers.
Hetty Lui McKinnon once shared a simple recipe for ginger and cumin spiced edamame. “My freezer always contains two or three or maybe four bags of edamame beans, just in case the craving strikes,” she wrote. Joanna told me that for years she’s been making the extremely easy parmesan, mint, and edamame salad (#35) from Mark Bittman’s list of 101 picnic ideas. “Don’t forget the lemon,” she texted. Noted!
When it comes to easy lunches, I asked Adam Roberts what he’s been having. “Lately I’ve been making dip salads,” he said. “If I have a dinner party on Wednesday night and I make a beet dip with beets and yogurt, the next day I’ll schmear some of that dip on to plates and make a salad with beets, apples, pecans, and goat cheese and pile it on top of the dip. Same thing works with hummus and a tomato-onion-cucumber mix or a French onion dip and a wedge salad.”
I have to say, Adam’s salad looks like something I would happily pay way too much for at a restaurant. I like the “schmear + salad” template.
So, tell me, is there a standout in your lunch rotation? I’m also a fan of this can of lentils with fresh bread from the bakery near my house.
P.S. Three easy weekday lunches and Joanna’s current hyperfixation meal.
(Top photo from Lena Corwin’s home tour. Food photos by Adam and me.)
Tags: easy meals, lunches
Comments
150 commentsI had edamame the night before my water broke with my daughter. She’s a year and a half old now. I haven’t had it since. I oughta stock back up! It’s truly an easy peasy delicious food that doesn’t leave you feeling hungry after.
Ok well Adam Robert’s salad looks very fancy. (I would happily eat this for any meal, any day.) Mine is handful arugula, handful shaved fennel (always in the fridge for this particular salad), squeeze lemon, splash olive oil, sprinkle course salt. I love this so much. Start there and then add whatever might be in the fridge like left over chicken or the edamame above would be great too.
Edamame pods sautéed in some butter, scallions, lemon, garlic, and old bay seasoning. As you eat them you get to suck off all the delicious buttery goodness. One of my favorite secret single dinners!
My thing : i steam bake a bunch of vegetables frome the farmer’s market on sunday (these days it’s parsnip, leeks that i love, beetroots and broccoli… and still some aubergines). Then on weekdays, i pick a handful of those, any ones, and put them in the oven with olive oil and spices like zaatar or smoked paprika, curry on top. Boil a little bunch of soba noodles, add the grilled veggies, some peanuts in a bowl : done ! And a drop of sesame oil <3
Right now I’m having a slice of whole wheat toast with a thick slice of cheese and heaping serving of liver pâte. It was recommended on COJ years ago. Solid snack/meal. Tastes as good as a treat but healthy enough to be guilt free. Highly recommend.
It’s more effort than I usually expend on lunch, but I had some shredded cabbage to use up and today I made cabbage and scallion pancakes with a spicy mayo on top. So good, and I’m feeling very smug about using up the cabbage and scallions! I’ve also been doing a lot of cucumber cream cheese sandwiches lately. I’ve been very into these crunchy Persian cucumbers at TJs and always have some to use up. I have some fruit, chips, and a little trail mix on the side.
That can of lentils above, mixed with a can of the cumin parsley chickpeas. Add to greens (I like the shredded kale), add whatever cheese and nuts you have (I like feta and pistachios), and calabrian chiles. Don’t forget a wedge of lemon! This makes two affordable and healthy lunches for me.
Honestly? My current easy go to lunch is ordering a salad delivery (5 hearty salads) every two weeks. We’re in a busy season of life with a 3 year old, an almost 6 year old, demanding jobs, aging parents, and the delights of perimenopause body changes slowly but surely creeping their way in. Normally, I love cooking, and we cook easy dinners at home, make homemade lunches for the kiddos to take to daycare/school and I’ve just been left feeling “ugh” when it comes time for my own lunch (leftover toast crusts are rapidly losing appeal!) So, my lunch salad delivery is my treat to me, reminding me that I get to (and need to!) care for ME too. We decided on every second week, a. because cost, and b. so I really appreciate the weeks I get lunch. And since nobody else wants my salads they joyfully take their place in the fridge every second Sunday and are a welcome sight through the week when I open the door wondering “what’s for lunch”
Love this! Where do you order the salads from?
I’m in Canada and we order from a company called InspiredGo! (They’re awesome)
This is a summer one but my friend Katie roasts peaches and feta together and then just hits it with salt and pepper when it comes out! Unreal. So delicious.
My local market has little sushi grade salmon fillets. I mix yuzu and soy and drizzle it over the sliced fish, side of chopped cucumber with toasted sesame powder, optional sriracha mayo. It’s kept me from ordering expensive delivery sushi, and 15 bucks of fish is enough for me and my husband. Edamame or leftover broccoli are also great sides
my favorite easy lunch these days is what I call “Lazy Spicy Tuna Rolls”: – 1 can of tuna of your choice – Mayo – Chili crunch – Quinoa – Seaweed snacks Mix up the tuna with the mayo and chili crunch to whatever consistency and spice level you want. You don’t even have to use mayo or chili crunch, just really however you like your tuna! I use quick cook microwave quinoa but this works with leftover quinoa too. Or make a big batch to have around! For the rolls, I like to add a little soy sauce and rice vinegar, sort of making it like sushi rice. Take a seaweed snack, add a little quinoa, add a little tuna, roll/fold in half, then eat!
Egg in the basket with freshly grated parmesan on top. My dad made this for us all the time as a kid and it’s so nostalgic and delicious and easy. Also, I got this idea from an Alison Roman cookbook, but a kimchi cheddar omelette is also so yummy. Actually, I’m going to go make myself that omelette right now!
I’ve been a vegetarian since childhood and now in my early 40s I’ve been mulling over starting to eat meat. I’ve had increasing food intolerances (RIP dairy) and am feeling so fatigued and hungry on my involuntary vegan diet. Has anyone made the transition to eating meat after a lifetime of abstaining? I don’t actively want to eat meat but feel it would benefit my health
Not me but i wonder abour starting with chicken broths, and/or fish and shellfish. Probably most nutrient dense too.
Not me, but my sister. She started to eat meat again after 25 years of being a vegetarian at her doctor’s advice last year. It has been a slllloooooow journey for her but ultimately its been a huge improvement for her. She started with fish, because that was easiest for her mentally, and slowly worked her way into poultry and pork. She hasnt quite gotten to red meat yet, but it has only been 2 years of reintroduction, but she’ll get there!
I have been through this. In my twenties, I began eating chicken and fish at the suggestion of my doctor. It was not easy. I ate chicken for years, but it was always torture for me. I needed the chicken to be in small pieces and covered in sauce. Eventually, I just dropped it. These days the only meat I eat is fish. It’s a relief to me and I think a pescatarian diet is healthy anyway. Now at age 48, I find myself allergic to cow’s milk, but can tolerate sheep’s milk and and goat’s milk in smaller doses. Hard cheeses are easiest for to digest.
At least in my area, pollack numbers are thriving, it’s affordable, wild-caught, and easy on the nose and tummy. As an *infrequent* meat eater, I enjoy it! You never know what will work for you, too. I had a family friend who possessed one of my country’s Indigenous hunting licenses, and it was through him that I discovered that I liked the taste and texture of moose. I liked his lack of wastefulness, too. It can definitely be a strange feeling, having a vegetarian’s attitude and an omnivore’s diet, but we’ve got this!
I’m sure you’re familiar with Minimalist Baker, but if not take a look at her blog. She had to start eating animal protein for health reasons too so she has some good recipes on her blog. After years of being one of the THE vegan blogs she got a lot of flack at the time, but I don’t care about stuff like that and I find her recipes to always be delicious and easy.
I added seafood back into my diet when my health & hormones took a dive. Has definitely added vitality, but only eat a portion once a week or so.
I have transitioned from vegan to vegetarian to eating everything again. I was feeling that it was difficult to stay nourished and get all my nutrients, and I felt that the restriction was not good for me mentally. It helped a lot that my husband loves to cook and is an excellent cook. I started by introducing fish back into my diet. Whole, steamed white fish with rice and veggies, and then my husband makes fish soup with the leftover head. I couldn’t look at the head at first (eek!), but the soup it makes is so nutritious. We cook and eat a lot of Chinese food at home, which has many options for mainly veggie-based dishes with additions of meat here and there. Think about the meals you already enjoy and how you can add a small amount of fish or chicken to round it out. We still eat a lot of vegetarian meals and tofu is big in our house, but roasted chicken thighs are also on rotation. We always take the leftover bones and make broth. Soups are a great, flexible way of adding a bit of animal proteins and vitamins into your diet. I make a split pea soup that starts with bacon or a smoked turkey leg. Take it slow and don’t let anyone make you feel bad about it! Your health is important.
I was a vegetarian for 15 years after I traveled to SE Asia and participated in a silent mediation retreat. We only ate vegetarian during those 20ish days and thought it might have had something to do with why I felt so amazing afterwards. Fast forward after I had my second child it became too much to manage so many different meals for everyone and went back to eating meat. I might be the odd one out because I actually love meat, and also feel like it sustains me better than a vegetarian diet. I did have to slowly reintroduce it in because my stomach wasn’t used to digesting it. I would take it slow.
Not quite as dramatic a shift, but I’ve been vegetarian for 10+ years and am shifting a little more pescatarian to support specific training goals (not to say anyone has to, there are very successful vegan/vegetarian athletes, of course!). I would definitely recommend easing into it with small amounts to avoid stomach upset, etc. Canned fish is a great thing to add to things you’d normally be eating especially if you, like me, feel a little apprehensive about cooking it! (Also, if the thing that you’re avoid in dairy is lactose, you might have some luck with ultra filtered milk—Fairlife is a popular brand, but Aldi has a store brand version as well.) On the other hand, if you don’t want to be eating meat, there are probably other ways to address the same health outcomes! Some things I try to prioritize when eating few-to-no animals products are (in order of importance to my body, personally): (1) Eating enough! On average, animal products are more energy dense than plant based products, so I typically have to eat more volume to take in the same amount of energy. (I personally track the calories and macro nutrients I eat *some of the time* with the mentality that my goal numbers are a *minimum* and not a cap. For me it’s helpful information, to see how my body responds to certain inputs, but I totally get it’s an unhelpful headspace for many people—it’s absolutely possible to eat “more” without specific numbers attached to that.) (2) Specifically, eating enough fat! This is a big role dairy plays in my diet so when eating less of it, I find I need to be conscious of using more oils, nuts, and seeds to feel full + energized. (3) More protein, from varied sources. The amount of protein a given person needs is kind of hotly contested right now, and I think many plant based eaters are doing just fine, but increasing your intake is one dial you can try turning to see how your body responds. I try to mix it up between legume and non-legume sources for “complete” proteins, but I don’t stress about a perfect balance at every meal. Tracking is helpful to me here, too (lots of plant based foods thought of as “high in protein” have wildly different actual protein amounts). (4) I supplement a couple of vitamins/minerals. Probably best to have a conversation with a medical professional and/or blood work if possible, but could be worth looking at whether your vitamin D intake might have been impacted by dropping dairy (though plant based milks are often fortified with vit D too!). Sorry for the novel! Not an expert, but learning more about this stuff has helped me to feel like I have a lot of options—I can use animal products I feel comfortable with as efficient/easy ways to add certain nutrients but I don’t feel like I *have* to.
I know all are bodies are different, and I’m thankful Mine thrives (so far) on a mostly vegan (eggs from neighbor chickens in the summer!) for 30 years. I know that B12, and a few other supplements/herbs are key for me as well as looking into wether changing hormone levels might be a factor. Good luck!
I just have ! Sooooooo extremely tired (anaemia) i was given some ferritine (don’t know the word in english , sorry). My belly went upside down and i found myself now tired and torn by a bellyache. My pharmacist suggested i eat some bloack pudding right NOW, which i did, letting go of a many years long vegetarian diet. Believe me or not, i immediately felt WAY better. Like way way better ! So i decided on eating some meat thing once a week and see what’s happening…
Watched a vid from a pediatric dietician that combined hard boiled egg, avocado, & cottage cheese on toast, plus salt & pepper as mom on the go lunch. I added some sriracha when I made it! It was very filling & very easy!!
My current go to is tuna mixed with mayo, sesame oil and soy sauce on top of rice. It’s the best with kimchi and scallions, and whatever veggies I have in the fridge. It’s quick and easy to put together.
Current fave lunch: Coronation chicken salad! My daughter fell in love with it when we went to high tea in London, requested a high tea picnic for her birthday and I realized how easy it is to make and have been obsessed since! Chopped chicken, I like to add chopped apples for crunch, and a dressing of mayo/greek yogurt/apricot jam/squeeze of lemon/curry powder. It shouldn’t work but its so good. I usually scoop it up with pita crackers but if you put it in a croissant now you have a fancy lunch!
My kids LOVE edamame and the warmth and freshness at restaurants is so exciting. However, at home, the flavor doesn’t seem to hit in the same way. Is there a brand that is reliably good? Our lunches To Go- Chickpeas, tomato, cucumber, bell pepper, feta or fresh mozz, fresh herbs + lemony vinaigrette (or just lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, some cayene and cumin). Some pita chips on the side. At home- Lately, Trader Joe’s chili lime chicken chopped up over a southwestern salad mix with fresh herbs, grated cheese, and a dollop of greek yogurt mixed with lime juice and the packaged dressing. Some crushed up tortilla chips (Late July Jalapeno lime is it). Eat like a Chipotle bowl. For my 4 yo and 18 month old: quesadilla dippers (either rolled up, or cut into sticks) with sour cream/greek yogurt mix, guac, and mild salsa. A bowl of Wegman’s Caribbean black beans, drained, in the middle for snacking. If I need to eat with them, I add the beans and salsa to the inside of the quesadilla. I also have a frozen mix of hand grated colby jack, finely chopped spinach, onion, green onion, and chopped mushrooms in the freezer (its my favorite enchilada filling), and it makes a spectacular quesadilla or nacho topping. I come back to these lunch posts over and over again. My favorite is the one where chefs/food industry folks share what they make their kids for lunch. And Caroline’s $2 lunch is always our go to when we need to go easy on the budget.
So for at least a year and a half, I took edamame to work on my three (consecutive) in-office days. I would pour edamame in a bowl, microwave it, and then toss it in my thermos with some soy sauce, crumbled feta, and freshly ground pepper. It was great. Eventually I found out I need to cut feta, so that made it less good. And then I burnt out on it. But it was good for a surprisingly long time. A protein and a vegetable in one! And super quick to prepare. I loved having that as a lunch option. Maybe one day I’ll be ready to come back to it sporadically.
Dumpling bowls! Just a bowl of sushi rice, (usually reheated since I always have some kickin around in the fridge), pan fried dumplings (pork and chive are my fave, but any frozen ones from grocery store), then I chop some veg, usually include avocado, steamed brocc, scallion, and drizzle everything with teriyaki sauce. It’s comforting and easy!
My go to is always eggs. Scrambled egg fajitas, friend egg sandwiches, or omelets with random leftovers inside. My current favorite is an egg scramble mixed with Boursin cheese, smoked salmon, and fresh chopped herbs. Yum!
I love the organic edamame in shells from Costco. Steam an entire bag, then toss hot with olive oil and maldon salt. That’s it! The joy of eating each warm, salty pod, one by one, is super relaxing for me, especially as there is a virtually unlimited bowl before me.
My everyday non-fancy lunch is two fried eggs served over a bowl of rice with spicy chili crisp (I like Lao Gan Ma brand) and soy sauce. I’d add leftover chickpeas and chopped avocados if I have any in the fridge. My other go-to is a simple avocado & cream cheese sandwich made with a toasted Trader Joe’s ciabatta roll, sprinkled with everything but the bagel seasoning on top. I love these ciabatta rolls so much that I buy them in bulk, slice them in half and keep them in my freezer, even though I live only 7 minutes away from the closest store. To be entirely honest, my lunch options that make me happy dance while (re)heating is always the soups I made the night before. Kale with sausage and cauliflower gnocchi, broccoli feta with orzo, chickpea tomato and kale, etc. This encourages me to cook more, eat more vegetables, and waste less food, too!
Upvote for fried eggs over rice (but since I don’t work from home I’d more likely have it for breakfast or dinner). I add sliced scallions, a drizzle of sesame oil, a splash of soy sauce or tamari, and a punitive amount of Lao Gan Ma chili crisp.
I had really wanted this post to be more, but just edamame beans? I’m disappointed.
Funny, I was like THIS IS BRILLIANT. Hungry and running to freezer to defrost edamame right now. I think I might toss mine with arugula, pistachios, cilantro and then top with lemon, olive oil, and a dollop of everything bagel yogurt dip from TJ.
Presumably to accompany the beans: “While I’m boiling water and waiting for the edamame to steam, I’ll usually grab whatever I have in the fridge (cilantro, half a cucumber, carrots, leftover rice).” She also suggests a side of rice crackers :)
I agree & I usually love Alex’s food posts! Edamame with a rice cracker on the side has me cackling. That’s not a meal; that’s starvation by another name.
Some of you have never been a single girl living alone and it shows.
hahahaha, I was so excited to see an edamame recipe! My family are huge fans! It’s literally one of the few foods we can all agree on.
I agree, Pru
Trader Joe’s steamed lentils in the refrigerated section. Add a boiled egg or two, some oil and vinegar and oregano. Eat it hot or cold. Filling and healthy–and I bet I got this lunch idea right here on COJ!
Elizabeth, I’m curious about steamed lentils v canned ones. Is there a reason you prefer the former?
Another +1 to TJ’s steamed lentils! Alex, I’ve never actually tried canned lentils… I don’t know why, given that I eat all sorts of other canned beans? I like the TJ’s lentils because they have some spices/subtle flavoring to them. Current fave salad is lentils, 10 minute farro, spinach or kale, feta, pistachios and the key ingredients of copious amounts of dill and pickled beets. The best!
Lentils are so easy and quick to cook, I don’t get the canned or frozen. Take an extra 10 minutes, cook them and freeze in individual portions. You can season as you like while cooking or keep plain. I know people are busy but …
The TJs steamed lentils are more flavorful somehow than the canned ones in my experience. Lentils for some reason take 40 mins for me to cook (my stove sucks) so that’s why I love reaching for the pre-steamed ones.
I like to hard boil eggs (really they are steamed in a $12 contraption my mom gifted me). I peel 2 eggs, smash them up in a bowl as if I am going to make egg salad. INSTEAD I add chopped veggies (cherry tomatoes, onion, cucumber, leftover roasted potatoes or even shredded carrots) then toss the mixture with olive oil, a little vinegar or mustard and LOTS of salt/pepper. Maybe a slice of toast, pita, or crackers. It’s filling, pretty cheap, quick to make in between the gym and school pick ups. And it keeps me eating veggies midday.
This is making me laugh. The easy lunch is just… edamame? Not knocking it, I just kept scrolling and that was it. Lolol. I love a bowl of edamame like this (or frozen peas – equally good!) and then I add canned tuna, chili crisp and whatever random cheese I have. Parm, goat cheese and feta are all stand out and I’m genuinely not hungry for hours. All hail the random pantry/freezer lunch!
I love and have always loved random freezer/refrigerator food for lunch. I remember one time, when I was poor and young, I grabbed a bag of frozen peas to have for lunch at work. (Like, just peas. Not fancied like these edamame beans. Though I think we did have salt and pepper at work.) Anyway, I heated it up and was eating it when my boss walked by. He was appalled on my behalf and I remember thinking (while happily eating my peas), “Dude, you know my hourly rate. Help me out if you care that much.”
Another one on Glen’s writing. Rarely has a short piece drawn me in like that. You have a real gift there woman!!!!
Kimchi sardine bowl – scoop or two of kimchi, tin of sardines, cucumber, avocado, sesame seeds. Great flavor and texture and loaded with probiotics, protein, fiber, good fats. It’s delicious!
this sounds Delicious!
Massaged kale salads, or salads in general, are my work-from-home lunch go-tos! I find two things make it easy to have assemble salads quickly and actually eat them. 1) We have a crunchy-stuff bin in our pantry that I stock with nuts and dried fruit. Pick one or two and throw them on the greens! Sometimes I’ll make a batch of spiced nuts that will last for a few days and taste great on a salad. 2) I make a container of homemade dressing for the week. Usually caesar greek yogurt or right now, maple vinaigrette (both recipes from How Sweet Eats blog), so the dressing is just there waiting for whatever salad needs it. And any leftover roasted veg or protein bits from the night before can usually be added, OR hard-boiled eggs or tinned fish.
My doctor recently recommended I cut down on carbs and I’ve been forced to re look at how I eat to try and be healthier. My air fryer is now my daily go to. Chicken breast cooked in lemon juice and dried thyme served with either a simple salad or maybe some quinoa is bringing me daily joy.
how can people eat endame? tastes so terrible. my go to is an apple or a homemade bean burrito!!
Different strokes etc.
It’s a cultural food, whole nations grow up eating and liking it. Maybe you just didn’t? Maybe you haven’t had it prepared well? Who knows. One could ask the same of many prototypically “U.S.” foods and ingredients.
Don’t yuck my yum.
As I read this post, I realized I had leftover saffron rice in the fridge and some frozen edamame. So I made my lunch riffing on your idea above. Delish!
Love hearing that!
Simple food has been on rotation forever. This means foods that are accessible to most while being mindful about the environment. This food practice saves money, time, energy which can be used to help others.
You’re so wise Farhana. May we all be in the service of others.
Throw some herbed halloumi in a lightly oiled pan. Brown up both sides. Toss on top of some greens (baby arugula is good), handful of cherry tomatoes, splash with olive oil and a bit of balsamic. Soooo good. 5 min work.
we do a lot of halloumi on the grill in a pan and this sounds delicious for a quick lunch!
I haven’t bought halloumi in forever. Thanks for the reminder.
Neither had I! Forgot how good it is until this past summer. On weekly rotation now.
I am a big fan of all of Hetty Lui McKinnon’s recipes. She has a soup with sweet potatoes, mushrooms, rice noodles, coconut milk and lime, and it’s my favourite dinner.
I know exactly this recipe, it’s one of my favorites of hers!!!
Katie or Hannah, was that recipe from one of her books or from her newsletter, or where could I find it? I searched the recipes she shares on her website and it didn’t seem to be available there. It sounds so good!
I’m feeling like I’m the only one who still eats a ham sandwich for lunch, with chips and fruit. I have to take it to work every day and it’s easy. I will take leftovers if I have them. I do feel a bit superior to the people in my office that eat Lean Cuisines.
I think there’s plenty out there still doing pb and j! I feel like lunch doesn’t have to be Instagram influencer worthy. We have a zillion decisions to make every day, why not refuse to overthink at least one?
Hey, a ham sammie, chips, and fruit is a great lunch. You can make it like you want and it’s good comfort food for your midday break, which is what you need before the afternoon starts. I never understood the appeal of Lean Cuisine, anyway.
LOVE a classic ham & swiss!! With salt & vinegar chips!
The only reason I don’t eat that exact lunch (or a PB&J) every day is health issues that prevent it from being a good option. It is a perfect lunch.
You are not alone! PBJ or roast beef sandwich, apple, something sweet: lunch is packed.
Oh my gosh, me too! I’m not going to eat one more thing in this life that is supposed to be healthy that I do not enjoy. No edamame for me. I love the ham sandwich and chips and fruit. I upgrade with sourdough bread and choose fruit for fiber. My happy place!
Nothing wrong with a sammy. Here’s my best old school lunch with a twist: your favorite sandwich bread, pb, fig preserves, and a healthy drizzle of sriracha. If you’re at home and feeling fancy, grill it (yes, like a grilled cheese sandwich). No regrets.
I have to go into an office three days a week and I work with a guy who eats a big, hot pile of meat for lunch every day. In a tiny, shared, unventilated office space. It’s just as fun as it sounds.
My go to lunch almost everyday this summer (and continuing) – 1 slice toasted sourdough bread topped with 2 or 3 slices of prosciutto, fresh mozzarella torn apart. Finished with a drizzle of high quality olive oil and balsamic glaze. Maybe some Maldon sea salt sprinkled on top. Delish and satisfying!
that sounds great!
Mine is similar! I use flatbread and add cherry tomatoes. And some oregano on top :)
That’s a great one Alex! I am trying to be vegan & avoid soy – no estrogen in my food if anyone has ideas I friggin love cheese. That’s the toughie.
I am not vegan, but the First Mess food blog is — and her recipes are constantly 100% https://thefirstmess.com
Monkey and Me Kitchen Adventures has a ton of soy-free vegan recipes that make great leftovers for lunches. Also check out Vegan Richa, Forks Over Knives, and Plant Based RD
Can’t beat frozen falafel! Add them to a salad or just with a snacky lunch of hummus and carrots, olives, and fruit. Simple, filling, and super easy!
There is no sub for cheese. The vegan cheeze’s will raise your cholesterol almost as much as regular cheese. The only working sub I’ve found is to use ripe avocado anywhere you would normally put cheese. It’s your new best friend.
Cottage cheese, half an avocado, tomatoes, two over easy eggs and a healthy dash of everything but the bagel. All mixed up. Sounds weird, but so satisfying.
Whoa savory toppings for cottage cheese? I need to try this
Hannah you’ve never tried savory cottage cheese?!? I grew up eating cottage cheese with tomatoes and lawrys season salt every day. Absolute fav thing ever. So sad I’m now allergic to dairy. Not lactose intolerant, straight up allergic since getting pregnant with my second son. 😞
Savoury cottage cheese is the best! I grew up making it my baba’s favourite way – with very finely chopped cucumber, very finely chopped tomato, very finely chopped red onion, a pinch of salt and pepper. I now do it with just the tomato and cucumber, and add (homemade!) everything but the bagel seasoning. I have a big appetite so for me it’s a snack not a meal, but it’s so fresh and satisfying!
I only like cottage cheese with savory. I grew up being served it with fruit and didn’t like it, lol. Cracked black pepper is my favorite topping!
@Hannah yes, girl yes! Cottage cheese topped with sliced cherry tomatoes, scallions, and chili crisp is a brilliant lunch, snack, or breakfast!
Any leftover veg with two jammy eggs and some feta. It never gets old.
This quick and easy chickpea salad from Alexandra Stafford is so good: https://www.instagram.com/p/DK4SzZpu6ZE/?hl=de
As is her chickpea faux “tuna” salad sans bread.
lately i’ve been starting the week by roasting a bunch of sweet potatoes, then i make the 10-minute farro from trader joe’s and heat up some black beans. toss all that together with some arugula and feta, a little everything but the bagel seasoning and whatever dressing (or olive oil + balsamic) is in the fridge. it’s such a nice warm lunch and it makes so much that i can eat it all week long.
Oh! 10 minutes ago I was telling myself I need to meal prep potatoes for myself (the fact you put black beans in there is a bonus for me!), but add flavor. Thank you for this idea, Nicole!
Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it…roast sweet potato , natural yoghurt, tuna, sliced red onion (raw) and a good helping of lime juice. It’s really filling!
For lovers of roasted sweet potatoes – this is a bit more prep but so, so good and the leftovers are incredible. Just store everything separately in the fridge for maximum freshness (but you can definitely assemble it in the morning before work and eat it at lunch) https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/sweet-potato-bowls
Should have added – it’s also great warm or cold!
Rice and yogurt, with a side of Indian pickle (perfectly salty spicy sour ) and whatever leftover dishes are in the fridge/freezer. On the best days, there will be chips – something crunchy is a dream, but if that’s all used up – rice and yogurt with pickle. I have other food today, but writing this and having access to Lays sour cream and onion makes me want this exact meal at 1025 am :)
Rice and yogurt with a side of an Indian pickle like mango (avakai) is the best comfort food ever.
This!
For going into work I like a smear salad with quinoa, whatever veg I have on hand (always cukes and tomatoes), a little pickle or onion, and stracciatella with a little salt and pepper! I can make 4 at once with 1 box of quinoa. Add an apple or a few grapes and you are good to go! For at home I’m going full girl dinner with trader Joe’s everything but the bagel crackers, brie (or lately Vermont creamery’s Hopper), and a fruit like an apple with a side of a 40oz water bottle with a scoop of oath protein powder. I love the Pina colada flavor.
Love steamed pink salted edamame for lunch. Side of rice. And, replace peas in any dish often. I prefer unshelled to prevent drying out prior to use.
Chili. Crunch. Oil. Can’t stop, won’t stop, knowing full well that heartburn will be brutal. But it makes everything taste better.
My favourite lunch when I am at home is a toasted wrap with the following, avocado, fried egg, cheese, spinach, tomato with some chilli flakes. Delicious and really does not take too long at all. At work, I am very dull and quite often just have a baked potato (heated in the microwave), butter, tuna and cheese. Delicious
The dip salad reminds me of Martin Short in Only Murders.
It’s a bowl of two-minute noodles, but before you judge me — and honestly, judge away, I deserve it — let me describe the theatre of it. I use the cheap, palm-oil-scented bricks of instant noodles that taste profoundly of my 1980s childhood. But I commit what my mother would call “a real fucking crime” by throwing out the included flavour sachet. That dusty little packet of regret is not invited to this party. Instead, I deploy what my Vietnamese friends call ‘the mother sauce’ and what I call ‘the reason I have a pulse’: a personal arsenal of condiments. In goes a glug of fish sauce, a squeeze of lime stolen from a neighbour’s tree (kidding, mostly), a fat teaspoon of chili crisp with its seductive, oily rubble, and a microscopic grating of a truly sad-looking ginger nub I find at the back of the crisper. If I’m feeling opulent, a single, weeping spring onion from a pot on the balcony gets sacrificed. The result is a broth that is salty, sour, spicy and entirely mine. It’s the culinary equivalent of a panic attack, but in a good way. It’s the lunch I eat standing over the sink, slurping with a profound lack of dignity, while mentally drafting emails I will never send. It’s terrible. I have it three times a week. My sister saw me make it once and just said, “You live like a bachelor from a cautionary tale.” She’s not wrong. But it’s my cautionary tale, and it’s bloody delicious.
If you are not a professional writer, might I suggest a career change?
You should be drafting your first novel while slurping! Great piece of writing:)
I think this actually sounds amazing!
Not only does this sound delicious, but reads like poetry
Um, you need to write a cookbook or substack or something. This is hilarious and evocative.
Are you an author? Because I want to read the novel that this excerpt is from!
I think Glen needs to write for Cup of Jo. Nicely done.
Glen, this is poetry!
omg this comment. I want what Glen’s having.
Glen, this sounds marvelous.
Good God this is great writing
10/10 writing, no notes
Reading this comment brought SO much joy to my life on this dull mid-weekday morning. I’d read any and everything your write.
This is the best comment I have read in a long time. Also, I love your mom lol.
“The culinary equivalent of a panic attack” 😂😂😂
So much to relish in this comment, but “It’s terrible. I have it three times a week” might be the top for me.
I can hear and taste your comment, Glen. Beautiful!
Glen I’m just here to say what everyone else is saying, before I even read their comments. *Said in a loving voice* WRITE A FUCKING BOOK! Love you
Love this — we happily buy the crinkly packets of cheap ramen in bulk, even though we are in our 40s. They are the perfect fast, cheap carb base with whatever veg and sauces we’re in the mood for to make a weekly stir fry/ramen of some description! This week is shrimp, snow peas, spring onions and a spicy glaze (aka, 1/2 soy, 1/2 mae ploy!)
This has to be the featured comment on Friday. Omg this is amazing.
Gorgeous Glen. Want to read more from you.
Another vote for immediately hiring Glen to write for COJ!
GLEN. “A real fucking crime”. I’m cackling. Can you and your mom be my besties??
+1 to Glen being a COJ feature writer. “The cluinary equivalent of a panic attack”
Glen! You’re the best! I’d definitely read your substack/book/newsletter/posts on CoJ!
If you click on his name, it takes you to his website where it says he’s a writer (among other things).
OK kids, let’s show Glen Loveland some love and buy his book: https://www.amazon.com/Beijing-Bound-Foreigner-Discovers-China-ebook/dp/B0DT2742XJ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3JQ6KIH1OL8NX&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.9fe8ATFOqVRlw51gaEH0118BY-x8mxzuJ9cEadralq7bwsCeQAS52CIMcG_ccMLHJjnsFSdu7H_pB3CiIQQc9v2UwjPrshUend4XgHg-iLio2ldyblDefwTmWw1GaXqi5yIl0izQdil-o3-dGKZk7UGme4yMdDMRU_oTFgpqzZk936GogdDMcfRpEsUb1bfq4Us_HHRu2ydk76FdQqIBfhZ1FGsZF77ayt0Orl1HX8E.fP7ah5_N9zjrTV8Nzfd2_tBA6czjV-fIQoMV4HQjs_U&dib_tag=se&keywords=beijing+bound&qid=1761167483&sprefix=beijing+bound%2Caps%2C151&sr=8-1
https://www.authormagazine.org/articles/2025/3/loveland Found this when I searched Glen’s name
I agree with all the Glen love and will be looking for his comments under food posts (or any post). For a vegetarian (sans fish sauce), Indian (instead of Vietnamese flavor profile) version, try this one from The Chutney Life. Also quick and whimsical, full of flavor. Have had it with egg ribbons and green peas, as well. Soooo good. https://www.instagram.com/reel/C0R8AmKpemQ/
I feel this is the first potential cook book I would not only be gifted but actually read from the beginning to the end, also because the pictures would show a lived and cooked in kitchen and not the over curated insta version. So I will be waiting, Glen :)
These ideas are great – but many only if you’re at home for lunch. Any ideas for brown bagging to work? Love to hear.
This is my favorite topic that I spend WAY too much time thinking about. I’m a mom to teens who are in high school and I make them lunch PLUS I’m on a chicken/protein journey as a 40+ yr old woman who is weight lifting and completely changing her body! (and yes, I eat a a lot of yogurts, cheeses, eggs, lentils, and beans) but I also really enjoy how easily chicken takes on flavor. Salmon is expensive (THIS ECONOMY!!!) so it’s a rare meal enjoyed at home and I don’t want to bring it or tuna into the office b/c of stink and the teenagers would murder me if I packed such pungent lunch to school. Here are some go-tos. -salad – I assemble as I cook dinner the night before; so if we are having mexican I just collect a little bit of pico de gallo, corn, avocado, tortilla chips, add greens and chicken and voila; if it’s greek, I collect the feta, the pita chips, the cucumbers, tomatoes; add chicken and greens and viola… you get the idea? I don’t have it in me to create this at 6am but if you are already making the dinner – just set a bowl aside for your lunch and dump everything in there. Dressing on the side and I literally just often do balsamic and vinegar b/c everything else has so much flavor. -chicken wraps – similar to above but less liquids (like tomatoes) and more of “shmears” so tzatziki sauce for Greek wrap, or, hummus for some Mediterranean chicken wrap (again, lettuce, cucumbers, etc.) -chicken parm – it travels so easy and it’s not gross at room temperature -and like the post said about edemame; I do this with garabnzo beans; I roast multiple cans and besides olive oil I add various spices, chilli, ras el hanout, or even just some cumin and lime and that’s my lunch! -dates with peanut butter are supper filling -never underestimate a good cheese and veggie sandwich (what travels well: good bread from a bakery not grocery store, sprouts, and peppers, not tomatoes or cucumbers-again, watch for liquid content) -Trader Joe’s imitation crab or veggie sushi is filling, inexpensive and travels very well -teens love fast food so I recreate a lot of those flavors with wraps that have ranch, and Frank’s hot sauce but sneak in all the above ingredients. -also, it really does sound like I make only chicken. all the above can be recreated with grain and beans which I often do as well. My go to are quinoa or couscous, and white big beans mixed with black beans
Ugh another post about lunches. Yes, I brown bag too. I like to make a snack box with hardboiled eggs, a tuna packet, carrots and dip, fruit slices, a lunchmeat sandwich, a cut up wrap, protein bar or protein shake. Oftentimes I will not have time to stop.
Paula, these are great ideas. I don’t have it in me for assembling in the morning or prepping on Sunday! But salad or snack box (thanks to Joy) while I am making dinner anyway is a level of genius without being leftovers which I hate. And gets those veggies in me not the compost bin. Thanks for sharing! I hear you on the salmon but I’m in Canada so eggs in moderation are a go-to. Next week I shall have Paula-Celeste Lunches! But before I hit “post” – I want to buy Glen’s next book!
My go-to relies on a work kitchen. I keep sandwich ingredients on hand and just assemble my sammie on site! I keep sliced bread in the freezer, which I toast. Then I store lettuce, pickles, sliced cheese, and a spread in the fridge. I’ve inspired other coworkers to do the same because they were jealous of the freshly toasted sandwiches I bring to our weekly lunchtime meeting!
I sometimes do copycats of Starbucks bistro boxes
I hear you Celeste. I brown bag also. Often PBJ. Sometimes turkey and tomato. I have ZERO energy to do more and I’ll be damned if I’ll “prep on Sunday “. I won’t give it a minute of my precious time off. Since going back to work, full time yet, I have no time for anything. How do people do all this ? Rhetorical question. I don’t care to know !
Oh no, an ad started playing loudly (even though it “said” it was muted) as soon as this page loaded! I know you guys don’t have a ton of say in how ads display on your page but wanted to flag since that’s not a great user experience, thanks!
oh, crikey, we are on it! thank you for flagging!!