Ready to start your healthy lunch routine?

“What’s for lunch? Where to eat?” Do you hear this in the office every day? Depending on your budget, we’re all spoiled for choices, from the mamak to Chinese, western and fast food. But if you’re looking for a cheaper and healthier option, how about bringing your own lunch from home?

Bringing lunch from home is a great way to ensure that you get lots of healthy nutrients from your meals to keep you energised for the rest of the day. Of course, this means you need to invest in a little time to prep your food at night or in the morning. However, meal preps can be easy once you get the hang of it.

Lunch needs to be easy to make

Prep your food overnight (so you can catch extra zzz’s), in the morning or prep for the whole week for rice dishes and freeze. Then just bring it to office and microwave it up. Or you can use the slow cooker or pressure cooker to cook your food overnight and pack in a thermos for a hot lunch.

Lunch needs to be exciting?

It doesn’t need to be a gourmet meal. So long as the meal is appealing to you and you are not stuck eating the same old chicken sandwich every day, anything that’s fast to prep and healthy is ok.

Don’t go overboard with spending

There are recipes out there that don’t cost a bomb but still taste great. Get a few basic ingredients that can be used in most of your meal preps so the ingredients won’t go to waste.

Easy and healthy lunch ideas to get you started:

1. Chicken salad sandwich –Use any leftover roast chicken, add some mayo, mustard, cranberries (for the extra tangy sweetness) and veggies of your choice for added crunch. Sandwich it with your favourite sliced bread, wrap or croissant.

2. Asian noodle salad – Mix an equal amount of soy sauce, honey and sesame oil together with boiled spaghetti or soba noodles. Top with veggies of your choice and some shredded chicken meat (if veggies make you green) and mix well. Top with some roasted sesame seeds for a nutty taste. You get a healthy and fast lunch in just a few minutes.

3. Stir fried pasta – Do a quick stir fry with your favourite boiled pasta, veggies and sausages for a warm lunch.

4. Fried rice – Overnight rice works perfectly for this dish. Just fry the rice with seasoning, your choice of veggies and meat and you have a wholesome meal that’s fast and cheap too.

Give it a try and see how awesome and easy to make your own lunch. Even if you’re whipping these up in the morning, it shouldn’t take more than a few minutes to put it together. Have fun prepping!