Post Punk Kitchen Forum

assuming i have no access to a microwave, but i do have access to a fridge.... what are some heartier things i can take for lunch? i'm getting very weary of my tomato, lettuce, cucumber sandwiches (they were awesome and filling/satisfying in the summer but now that tomatoes are going out of season the tomatoes are not so tasty anymore).

i was thinking of some kind of hearty, cold pasta salad. (or cold noodle bowls??) anyone have any ideas for me?? (i am allergic to all nuts)

Cous cous salad/tebouli is a good one - I tend to pour hot water (+ a smidge of olive oil) over cous cous or bulgar wheat grains while making my morning cup of tea, then chop herbs and vegetables into confetti and mix them in after it cools down. Adding chickpeas/grains/beans can make it heartier, too.

Not a pasta salad, but I really love this layered salad from OSG, and I usually top it with a bit of hummus or some chopped avocado for creaminess. What works best for me is making it all up on the weekend and then just grabbing a jar in the morning when I leave.

I like wraps when I get tired of salads, and you don't even have to put them in the fridge!

And yes, I agree grain salads are great at room temperature. Cous cous salads are great. Here is one of my favorites that I eat at room temperature, made with quinoa.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Quinoa-and-Black-Beans/

Also, I have found that if I bring leftover chicken tenders (either the TJ or Gariden kind) cooked the night before, put in fridge overnight, then in my lunchbag all day at my desk, they taste AWESOME at room temperature!

Additionally, don't count out some items like mild curries, and bean dishes. They can be good room temperature too. Often I refridgerate leftovers overnight, then bring to work, and by lunchtime, they are perfect room temperature.

If you have AFR I would definitely recommend the bowl recipes in the back of the book, or the lentil bowl on the ppk website with tahini miso dressing. Bring a mason jar for the week with your sauce/dressing of choice and then bring your bowls each day. Leave them out for an hour or two before eating and they are perfectly filling and delicious!

A thermos for soup, maybe?

The cold udon noodle salad from VWAV makes a TON of food and is very cheap. Made the recipe several times.

Yay, I just bought that cookbook! I need to make time to really sit down with it and dog ear some recipes to try.


thanks for that idea! A thermos sounds so old-fashioned and cozy! Do you use a thermos?


--thanks for the other suggestions, too!

You could roast a whole bunch of stuff that you like at the beginning of the week to have on hand for lunch, and that way you wouldn't really need to keep cold or warm up your lunch. Something like a selection of whatever vegetables are on hand and in season that you like, and filling ones like sweet potatoes, broccoli, carrots, parsnips, beets, and so on.

For a more filling cold sandwich variation you could start making yours on baugette or other crusty bread. When I make a sandwich it normally either has avocado or hummus, plus whatever I have as far as vegetables (shred some carrots, spinach, kale, sprouts, radishes, beets, celery, onions, cabbage, peppers...) and some vinegary elements like olives, pickled okra, pickles, banana peppers, and the like. The main point is to have a fatty/creamy base or sauce like hummus to tie it together, something with some juices such as pickles that kind of act as a salad dressing, and then the greens and vegetables. Then you have a different sandwich every day no matter if you have tomatoes or not. The crusty bread makes it so refrigeration and toasting is not necessary, and you can make your own if you get ambitious at the beginning of the week.

Have you ever taken a big burrito for lunch? This is another thing that is easy to do if you prep your ingredients for the week in a large batch so that you can just pull out your tortilla (get one of those packages of them that are 14 in. diameter so you can wrap it up without bursting the sides from too much good fillings), add rice, beans, tvp if you want, sautéed onions/peppers/mushrooms, cactus, avocado, corn relish, salsa, or whatever else. I used to take a burito for lunch every day when I worked in San fransisco to reduce temptation to buy burritos on the way home when I was starving after work, and its not too hard to make a taqueria quality one at home with some practice. Find some jalepenos pickled with carrots too if you want some really tasty stuff to add.

You said you normally make dinner and have leftovers for another dinner or freezing, why don't you just take those in on days when you don't have another idea? No reason to heat up leftovers in most cases, they taste better warm or cold the second day after their flavours meld.

You can also put any kind of beans/grains/starches/cooked things, on a bed of raw vegetables and top with salad dressing or hummus for a more filling but still full of nutrients salad.

I have an old Hello Kitty thermos I use to pack in high school. It doesn't keep things piping hot, but it may just be cheap.

Potato salad holds up well in the fridge! Pair it was some crackers or a sandwich!

I've used a thermos in the past, but it's a little sketchy as I don't always know when I'll be able to eat lunch. I don't think food packed at 6am is necessarily safe at 2pm (and it certainly isn't still hot). It works best if you preheat the thermos with boiling water before filling with boiling hot food.

For the most part I bring cold food these days as I don't have access to a microwave most of the time. I love sandwiches with tofurkey, maybe with some hummus or greens. Pasta salad with whole wheat pasta and roasted veggies is really good. Any variety of grain and bean salad works well too - I do wild rice and lentils a lot because they take about the same amount of time to cook in the pressure cooker. I also like green salads, with some beans, cubed tofu or fake chicken tenders on top and maybe bread on the side.

MASALA NOODLES!

or cold pad thai

Hannah's cold sesame noodles are great!

raw kale salads are one of my favorites (especially with avocado, pine nuts, olives, sun dried tomatoes and lots of lemon juice 'n sea salt). gazpacho in the summertime, and i adore making a meatless loaf for the week and enjoying cold slices on sammies with fix'ns.

oh, and tofurkey + cranberry sauce + lettuce (and even a tiny schmear o' vegenaise) = the bee's knees for a cold sammie.

i happen to think cold pizza is pretty rad as well ;)

uno mas: zucchini noodles + halved cherry tomatoes + arugula + nooch + avocado + garlic salt = mmmmm!

peanut noodle salad!
quinoa with lentils!

I like zucchini or corn fritters served at room temp, & chickpea omelettes too - they're good with salad. I've made this noodle salad a few times, but if I was eating it later, I'd probably combine the dressing with the other ingredients at the last minute. http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012 ... ecipe.html

also, a common lunch for me when i'm trying to avoid pasta is shredded collard greens or kale topped with cooked and flavored beans- could be chili, brazilian garlic, gallo pinto beans, whatever.

Tofu hoagies <333

Chickpea Salad <333

I don't think anyone has mentioned tofu-veggie quiche yet. You can make a big casserole dish full of it, store it in the fridge and dump a square into your lunchbox every morning. Tastes great at room temp.

This works for other types of casseroles too. Yesterday we had pumpkin baked ziti from V'con and this afternoon, my partner enjoyed the cold leftovers for lunch.

wow, thank y'all so much for all these great ideas!!!!!!!!

I bring Vietnamese rice noodle salads with tofu, use leftovers from the night before (a protein, veggies, a grain) to make bowls, make rice paper rolls the night before (they aren't as great as fresh, but they are fine), and well, I also eat chips. Sandwiches can be exciting too! Experiment with different breads (wraps, ciabatta, focaccia, whatever your local bakery has that's good), spreads (hummus, guac, olive tapenade, brushetta, peanut sauce, garlic "butter", tahini sauce) and veggies (roasted zucchini or eggplant, sprouts, all sorts of greens, banana peppers, artichoke hearts, sauteed mushrooms and garlic...) etc!