Credit:
Dash / Reviewed / Betsey Goldwasser
Recommendations are independently chosen by Reviewed's editors. Purchases made through the links below may earn us and our publishing partners a commission. Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.
Fall is just around the corner, which means it's time to get those work lunch ideas rolling again. Packing lunch can save you a large chunk of change over time—according to USA TODAY, Americans could redirect approximately $1,043 into savings each year by skipping lunch takeout. (That adds up to almost $90,000 in an interest-bearing account over 30 years!)
If you’re dreading the task of planning lunches or the idea of eating the same things every day, we can help. We’ve tested and researched some of the best products to help you meal prep and pack delicious lunches that you and your family love. These 12 work lunch ideas can go a long way in changing how you approach lunch, while saving money along the way.
1. A popular egg cooker for quick hard-boiled eggs
This egg cooker with a cult following takes the timing stress out of making eggs.
Many of us like to add some sliced hard-boiled eggs to our salad to balance the greens with protein, but cooking eggs can be daunting and time-consuming.
This best-selling egg cooker—that we actually love—is a great solution for getting the perfect eggs in your lunchbox. In addition, it makes poached eggs and other delicious egg dishes much easier.
2. A reusable silicone sandwich bag to help you go green
Reduce your plastic waste by switching to reusable sandwich bags.
These cute reusable sandwich bags not only make your lunch more appetizing, but they also prevent you from producing more single-use plastic waste.
Our favorite sandwich bag from Lunchskins features kitschy patterns and a velcro seal, maintaining the food’s freshness. You also don’t need to worry about keeping it clean since it’s dishwasher-safe and quick-drying.
3. An aesthetically-pleasing bento box to pack a colorful and nutritious meal
I packed lunch using this cute bento box for a year and I'm still in love with it.
If you’re ever intrigued by photogenic Pinterest bento pictures, you’re not alone. Many people are jumping on the bento bandwagon, and not just for an Instagram post—bento really helps with portion control when eating. I used this bento box for a year and the well-built lunch container has held up in shape and performance.
The divided layers allow me to pack cold and hot dishes at the same time, expanding my lunch options. Plus, this layered and multifaceted container comes in several colors, and even a few fun patterns to add some personality to your meals.
4. Multipurpose beeswax wraps for sandwiches and snacks
These beeswax wraps are great alternatives to plastic.
Wrap your cheese, fruits, and bread in these washable food wraps that keep food fresh wherever you travel. The wraps are made of organic cotton, sustainably-sourced beeswax, organic jojoba oil, and tree resin.
Together, these materials create a malleable food wrap that can be used again and again. They’re so versatile that you can use them for covering food containers, leftover produce, and casserole dishes.
5. A mini Crockpot that helps you skip the microwave line
The mini Crockpot can both store and heat up your lunch.
It’s approaching lunchtime and your stomach insists that you take a break. You go to the break room and the brutal reality hits: There’s a massive line of food containers in front of the only microwave in the office.
This portable food warmer can help you avoid the line. It fits enough food for an adult-sized lunch and features a spill-proof lid that locks everything in securely.
6. A set of glassware that keeps your lunch leak-free
The leak-proof glassware is great for packing soupy foods.
If you’ve ever packed soupy leftovers for a work lunch, you have probably found yourself in situations where the food somehow leaked and completely destroyed a book, a wallet, or whatever other precious contents were in your bag.
These glass containers can seal your lunch airtight so you won’t have to worry about liquids escaping. The set comes in different sizes that cater to your storage needs. They’re also oven-, dishwasher-, and microwave-safe.
7. An ice pack to keep your food fresh
These ice packs can keep your food and drinks chilly in the middle of a hot summer.
Keeping your food cool at all times is essential for safe lunches. These inexpensive ice packs can turn your lunch bag into a cooler instantly. One Amazon reviewer wrote “These are perfect for keeping a lunch cold in this Texas heat."
The slim design makes them perfect for fitting into even the sleekest of lunch coolers, and their BPA-free, easy-to-clean exterior makes them particularly user friendly.
8. A set of cute molds that cut sandwiches and rice balls
You can add some fun to your lunch sandwich and bento using the animal-shaped cutters.
Even the pickiest eaters won’t say no to an adorable animal-shaped sandwich or onigiri (rice ball) in their bento boxes. This user-friendly tool helps me fix a quick snack or a main dish with minimal effort, and it's perfect for getting kids excited about school lunch.
This 43-piece set even comes with mini cutters for veggies, fruit and cookies, as well as silicone baking cups in fun shapes for muffins and cupcakes.
9. A meal kit subscription that keeps you motivated to cook
Try a meal kit subscription to up your lunch game.
The Reviewed Kitchen & Cooking team has spent countless hours testing the most popular meal kit subscription boxes—and Home Chef came out on top.
With consistently excellent recipes, high-quality ingredients, and a good variety to satisfy most dietary needs, Home Chef checks all our boxes. If you dread the grocery shopping and meal prepping that goes into packing lunch, give a meal kit a try.
10. A multicooker that makes the perfect cooking assistant
An Instant Pot is great to have if you're interested in meal prepping.
If you’re not into meal kits or simply don’t want to commit to a subscription, a multicooker might be a better choice to get your meal prepping done easily. We tested the most popular pressure cookers and multicookers and the winner, the Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooker Steam Fryer, scored the highest for its ease of use, versatility, and excellent cooking performance.
Beyond prepping rice, the Ninja Foodi can air fry, steam, and even proof bread and sous vide to achieve a wide variety of recipes with very little effort.
11. A portable lunch cooler for flexible storage
This spacious lunch cooler can keep food and beverages chilly.
Packing a cold lunch is challenging on hot summer days. We tried out different lunch coolers in our roundup and our top pick, the Yeti Hopper Flip 8, excelled at every task we threw at it.
Its carrying strap, removable hard-liner, and extra storage options make it a great lunch bag for adults. This cooler, both with and without the hard lining, is big enough to store quite a lot of food. It fits at least two or more plastic containers, and more than two sandwich bags.
12. A set of glass straws for your midday caffeine boost
Our favorite reusable straws are durable, pretty, and environmentally-friendly.
These glass straws made their way through our long, science-driven testing process, which involved dropping them on concrete (please don’t do that) to come out on top in our reusable straw roundup.
Why reusable straws? As our sustainability queen explained, single-use paper straws are just as bad as plastic because they’re not recyclable. She now leads a plastic-straw-free life—and you can, too.
feature
