Cold packed lunches: simple ideas and how to pack them

Not every lunch can be reheated: a worksite may have no microwave, an outing no kitchen, and some days the office queue is simply too long. A good cold packed lunch is a skill of its own. Here are meals that taste good cold and ways to pack them for lunchtime.

Meals that work well cold

Grain salads: couscous, barley or cooled pasta with roasted vegetables and a tangy dressing. Frittata: cooked egg bake cut into pieces, with a separately packed dip. Cooked meatballs or chicken: familiar options when cooled promptly and kept chilled. Sandwiches: sturdy sourdough slices travel well when packed properly. Bean dips and hummus can bring the meal together, with their own chilled-storage requirements.

Packing makes the difference

1. 1
   Wet food in a sealed container

   Dressed salads, dips and anything that may leak belong in a container with a suitable seal, such as glass or steel. See lunch boxes without plastic.

2. 2
   Dry food in a beeswax wrap

   Wrap bread, a roll for soup or a plain cinnamon bun separately. The sheet helps protect the food without taking up the space of another rigid box.

3. 3
   Dressing on the side

   A small lidded jar keeps salad leaves from sitting in dressing all morning. Mix when you are ready to eat.

4. 4
   Keep lunch cold on the journey

   Use an insulated bag and frozen cool packs for perishable food, then refrigerate on arrival where possible. A frozen water bottle can provide additional cooling. Do not assume one cool pack guarantees a whole working day at a safe temperature.

The quick version: dinner leftovers become lunch

The easiest cold lunch starts with dinner. Make an extra portion, cool it promptly in shallow portions and refrigerate according to the food's storage needs. Properly chilled pasta, vegetables and cooked meat can become a salad with oil and lemon the next morning. The weekly routine is in a week of packed lunches with less plastic, with outing ideas in a packed lunch without plastic.

Frequently asked questions