Let’s face it: We’re all busy. We barely have time to get everything done in the day, let alone meal prep healthy lunches for the week. But you know what else we don’t have the time (or budget) for? Trekking outside for a $15 lunch salad that isn’t even that good. Luckily, there’s a solution to be found in these 75 easy lunch ideas that require basically zero effort to whip up (but still taste delicious). With everything from chicken salad-stuffed peppers to radish barbecue bowls with honey mustard dressing, this handy list of recipes should keep you satisfied for months to come.
75 Easy Lunch Ideas for Stressed-Out People
Published Jul 7, 2022
1. Avocado Egg Salad Sandwich
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, vegetarian, make ahead
If you have 25 minutes, you can make four days’ worth of lunches. (And it’s as easy as slicing a tomato to boot.)
2. Linguine With Bacon, Peaches And Gorgonzola
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
This dish takes just 30 minutes from start to finish. Be brave and eat it cold—it tastes just as good (if not better) that way.
3. Zoodles With Avocado And Mango Sauce
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, <30 minutes, vegan, gluten free
You had us at 15-minute lunch, and again at no oven required. Double the recipe to make enough for the entire week.
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
4. Buffalo Chicken Wraps With Blue Cheese And Celery
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, high protein, make ahead
Rotisserie chicken, we salute you. How else could we have a mouthwatering lunch ready to devour in just 20 minutes?
5. Tomato Salad With Grilled Halloumi And Herbs
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, vegetarian, beginner-friendly
It’s impossible to beat a ten-minute salad. And this one has tangy halloumi cheese, so it’s even better. Serve it with a hunk of crusty bread.
6. Italian Deli Pinwheel Sandwiches
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, kid-friendly, make ahead, <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser
The sandwich equivalent of icebox cookies. By that we mean easy, delicious and impossible to eat just one.
7. Joanna Gaines’s Peach Caprese Salad
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, special occasion-worthy, vegetarian
When it comes to low-fuss, healthy lunches, it turns out our design crush knows best. Feel free to add cantaloupe, prosciutto or both.
Jonathan Lovekin/At My Table
8. Sheet Pan Indian-spiced Chicken
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, sheet pan recipe, high protein, special occasion-worthy
It sounds time-consuming, but we promise it’s a breeze. There's only ten minutes of prep—just chop everything up, toss it on a tray and cook to juicy perfection.
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
9. Make-ahead Aloo Gobi
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, vegan, one pot
Tender and flavorful, this pretty lunch keeps in the fridge for up to four days. (It’s also vegan and ready in 30 minutes, but we didn’t want to brag too much.)
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
10. Blt Pasta Salad
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
Bowties beat sad, wilted salads any day of the week. Would you believe us if we told you it only takes 40 minutes to make a whopping eight servings?
11. Meal-prep Turkey Meatballs With Zucchini Noodles
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, high protein, beginner-friendly, gluten free
Ready in half an hour is just the beginning. These meatballs are tender, rich and juicy, plus they’re baked instead of fried for easy cleanup.
12. Make-ahead Farro And Brussels Sprout Salad
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: vegetarian, make ahead, dairy free
Psst: This is the easiest way to prepare Brussels sprouts. All you have to do is trim, separate and toss them with the farro before serving.
13. Lunch Kebabs With Mortadella, Artichoke And Sun-dried Tomatoes
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, make ahead, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
Aside from being a delicious lunch for you or your kids, these teeny-tiny skewers are so darn fun to eat. Customize them to your heart’s content.
14. Slow Cooker Meal-prep Burrito Bowls
- Time Commitment: 7 hours and 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: slow cooker recipe, high protein, make ahead
The answer to your lunchtime prayers? Spicy, nourishing pork burrito bowls portioned out for the entire week.
15. Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad Stuffed Peppers
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, make ahead, crowd-pleaser, high protein
Bye, lunch rut. We’ll see you never, thanks to these adorable pepper boats filled with healthy chicken salad. How is it no cook, you ask? Chalk it up to store-bought rotisserie chicken.
16. Rainbow Collard Wraps With Peanut Butter Dipping Sauce
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: vegan, make ahead, no cook
They take 30 minutes to make, won’t get soggy and last up to two days ahead in the fridge. Plus, there’s peanut butter sauce. Need we say more?
17. Meal-prep Honey Sesame Chicken With Broccolini
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, high protein, kid-friendly
Kick that sad salad to the curb and replace it with this satisfying meal. The sides are swappable, but the sticky-sweet glaze is mandatory.
18. Mini Chicken Shawarma
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, high protein, kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy
You can’t go wrong with these two-bite pockets. A quick marinade makes them taste like you spent all day in the kitchen, despite how simple they are to pull off.
19. Quick Guacamole Quinoa Salad
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: vegan, gluten free, beginner-friendly
It’s basically a giant bowl of guac masquerading as a salad, and we’re not complaining at all. In fact, that’s the definition of our dream lunch.
20. Firecracker Chicken With Rice
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: one pan, high protein, beginner-friendly, make ahead
Low-maintenance is the name of the game. Make this spicy-sweet number the night before and reap the rewards when your stomach growls at lunchtime the next day.
21. 20-minute Burrata Salad With Stone Fruit And Asparagus
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy, vegetarian
Tip: Don’t skimp on the good stuff. And by good stuff, we mean all that creamy burrata.
22. Bruschetta Chicken
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: one pan, crowd-pleaser, high protein, kid-friendly, keto-friendly
One-pan lunches are the way to go. This one, which is teeming with summer tomatoes, tastes super decadent, but it’s surprisingly healthy and low carb.
23. Keto Sheet Pan Chicken And Rainbow Veggies
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: high protein, sheet pan recipe, beginner-friendly, make ahead
Dishes? What dishes? We’re only making sheet pan lunches from now on, namely this super simple pick that calls for bell peppers, broccoli and carrots.
24. 20-minute Paleo Egg Roll Bowls
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, Paleo-friendly, high protein, dairy free, low carb
We’re ditching the fussy egg roll wrappers, because everyone knows it’s what’s on the inside (pork! cabbage! scallions!) that counts.
25. Easy Stir-fried Rice Cakes With Xo Sauce
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, one pan, beginner-friendly
These chewy, sticky rice cakes are about to win the lunch game. Find the flavor-packed XO sauce at your local Asian market.
26. 15-minute Mediterranean Couscous With Tuna And Pepperoncini
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, make ahead, beginner-friendly
What looks fancy but takes virtually no effort? This ridiculously simple lunch. What can we say, we’re suckers for canned tuna.
27. Radish Barbecue Bowls With Tangy Honey-mustard Dressing
- Time Commitment: 4 hours
- Why We Love It: make ahead, vegetarian, special occasion-worthy
This is our new favorite way to eat veggies, hands down. It must have something to do with those briny, charred radishes.
28. Cold Sesame Cucumber Noodles
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, <30 minutes, make ahead, vegan
The secret ingredient? Store-bought marinated tofu. It’s a time-saving, easy way to add a ton of flavor (not to mention protein) to a dish.
29. 15-minute Mezze Plate With Toasted Za’atar Pita Bread
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, special occasion-worthy, high protein
Finger food is the best food. The second best? It’s a tie between charcuterie, olives, toasted pita and yogurt sauce.
30. Shredded Thai Salad With Avocado
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, vegetarian, make ahead, beginner-friendly, one bowl
The prettiest salad you’ll ever make. Just look at all those colorful veggies (and tender smoked tofu).
31. The Ultimate Quinoa-avocado Bowl
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: high protein, make ahead, special occasion-worthy
The beauty of shrimp? It’s ready to eat after five minutes of cooking and goes with just about everything. Consider it a lunchtime blessing.
32. Chicken And Snap Pea Stir Fry
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, kid-friendly, one pan, beginner-friendly
We might even venture to say it tastes better as leftovers. (It reheats like a charm in the microwave, BTW.)
33. 15-minute Cheater’s Pad Thai
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, high protein
It’s way faster than ordering takeout. You can even swap the ground pork for turkey or chicken, if you’re so inclined.
34. Rotisserie Chicken Ramen
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, special occasion-worthy, high protein, crowd-pleaser
Doctor up a box of noodles with store-bought (or homemade!) broth, aromatics and our old standby, rotisserie chicken.
35. Cauliflower Rice Bowl With Curried Lentils, Carrots And Yogurt
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, vegetarian, make ahead
Who says eating healthy has to be boring? This fresh legume-veggie-yogurt combo will fill you up without weighing you down.
36. 15-minute Lemony Broccolini Pasta
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, make ahead
Nothing against jarred marinara sauce, but we need a break. And good news, you can totally swap the pine nuts for almonds in a pinch.
37. Sheet Pan Lemon Butter Veggies And Sausage
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: sheet pan recipe, high protein, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
Two things we love: hands-off meals and zero dishes. This easy lunch happens to offer both and then some.
38. Kung Pao Chicken
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, high protein, beginner-friendly, one pan
Juicy, sweet and totally irresistible. We should also mention that it comes together in a single skillet, so cleanup is easy-peasy.
39. Sugar Snap Pea Salad With Chèvre Ranch
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, vegetarian, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
This is a brand new way to use goat cheese (and it’s a far cry from that ’90s salad with dried cranberries you used love).
40. Easy Black Bean Soup
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: one pot, high protein, vegan
Thanks to Coterie member Monique Volz for keeping us warm with this guy, which is simple, flavorful, healthy and ready in 35 minutes. Canned black beans make it possible.
41. White Turkey Chili With Avocado
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: make ahead, high protein, crowd-pleaser, one pot
Light enough to eat all year long. Even better, it freezes like a dream, so you can stash some away for busy days ahead.
42. Buddha Bowl With Kale, Avocado, Orange And Wild Rice
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: vegetarian, high protein, one pot
Mixing and matching is the name of the game. With all these fresh, filling ingredients, you’ll avoid the afternoon slump like nobody’s business.
43. Avocado And Black Bean Pasta Salad
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser, make ahead, vegan
So much more fun than avocado toast, but just as easy to make. File this one under “ingenious.”
44. Green Goddess Wraps
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: vegetarian, make ahead, beginner-friendly
Real talk: This recipe’s got us excited about greens. And about that homemade green goddess dressing: It comes together with just a few whirls of your blender.
45. Zucchini Caprese Salad
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, vegetarian, kid-friendly
Grilled zucchini is a major upgrade to everyone’s favorite seasonal salad. Drizzle on some extra balsamic for us, would you?
46. Spring Roll Bowls
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: high protein, make ahead, special occasion-worthy
The healthiest way to get your takeout fix is to ditch the crispy fried wrappers for chewy rice noodles. Swoon.
47. Zoodles With Summer Vegetables
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, vegan, make ahead
Presenting the best way to use up a boatload of produce. Feel free to swap these veggies for whatever looks good at the farmers market (or is available in your fridge).
48. Grilled Watermelon-feta Skewers
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, kid-friendly, vegetarian, special occasion-worthy
Light, tangy and irresistible, these skewers put summer watermelon front and center. Let’s eat every meal on a stick from now on, shall we?
49. Avocado Chicken Salad
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, high protein, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
No grapes or walnuts in sight, just how we like it. The addition of creamy avocado, on the other hand, is *chef’s kiss*.
50. 15-minute Cucumber-avocado Blender Soup
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, make ahead, special occasion-worthy
We like the sound of zero prep even more than we like that cheesy toasted baguette.
51. Blackberry-peach Grilled Cheese
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, vegetarian, kid-friendly, one pan
This ten-minute beauty is bursting with fresh fruit and three different cheeses. Feel free to spice the sandwich up even further with bacon, caramelized onions or jam.
52. Cauliflower Fried Rice
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, vegetarian, dairy free, beginner-friendly
Sure, you can pass on the carbs by substituting cauliflower rice for regular rice. But whatever you do, don't skip the runny egg.
53. Meal-prep Creamy Kale Caesar Salad
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, make ahead, <30 minutes, vegetarian, <10 ingredients
Homemade dressing and toasted walnuts are a quick way to spruce up a classic.
54. Chicken Gnocchi Soup
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, one pot, kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy
Yup, we'll *definitely* be warming up with this hug in a bowl all winter long.
55. Grilled Peanut Butter And Jelly Sandwich
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, <30 minutes, kid-friendly, vegetarian, one pan
When all else fails, you can't go wrong with this childhood favorite. (Especially when it's grilled in butter.)
56. 15-minute Skillet Pepper Steak
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, one pan, high protein, <10 ingredients
No special ingredients required. Did we mention it contains only 230 calories a serving?
57. Spicy Shrimp Tacos With Mango Salsa
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, high protein, special occasion-worthy
In a perfect world, we'd be at the beach noshing on fresh seafood 24/7. Until then, these 20-minute beauties will have to do. (Pro tip: Pack the tortillas separately, so they don't get soggy.)
58. Crispy Tofu Bánh Mì
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes (plus chilling time)
- Why We Love It: vegetarian, high protein, special occasion-worthy
Never worked with tofu before? The secret to a crispy crust is pressing as much liquid out of it as possible before breading and frying it.
59. Roasted Broccoli And Bacon Pasta Salad
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
Why should summer have dibs on pasta salad? We love this hearty, savory take that's great for warming up with when the weather's cold.
60. 15-minute Gazpacho With Cucumber, Red Pepper And Basil
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, make ahead
Come June, the last thing we want to do is stand over a hot stove. Luckily, there's always cold soup—and this one comes together in the blender.
61. Thai Lettuce Wraps
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: low carb, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
The stars here are the quick-pickled cucumbers and scallions, which are spiked with fresh herbs, but the savory chicken and cremini mushrooms are a close second.
62. One-pot, 15-minute Pasta Limone
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: one pot, <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, vegetarian
Psst: You only need eight ingredients (and that's including salt and pepper).
63. 10-minute Pad See Ew
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, one pan, vegetarian, beginner-friendly
Nothing puts the 3-o'clock slump in its place like oodles of noodles doused in garlicky stir fry sauce.
64. Keto Steak And Blue Cheese Salad For One
- Time Commitment: 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: keto-friendly, low carb, high protein, <10 ingredients, make ahead
Color your coworkers jealous. It's a great way to use up all that leftover steak from your last barbecue.
65. Camarones Al Mojo De Ajo (shrimp In Garlic Sauce)
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: one pan, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, <30 minutes
Warm up some white rice and bust out the dinner rolls—you won't want to waste one drop of the citrus-garlic sauce.
66. Buffalo Tuna Melt
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, high protein, <10 ingredients
This protein-packed dinner only takes 15 minutes from start to finish. Not only does the chicken wing-inspired recipe call for diced celery and carrots, but the dressing is also a simple mix of Buffalo sauce and ranch.
67. Sausage And Fennel Pasta
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser, <30 minutes, high protein
Because Italian sausage is so flavorful on its own, the 25-minute pasta doesn't need much more than a flourish of grated Parm to become table-ready.
68. Tarragon Chicken Salad Sandwiches
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, high protein, make ahead
You have our full permission to substitute pre-cooked rotisserie chicken for homemade, since the best parts are really the tarragon mayonnaise and the quick-pickled red onions.
69. Strawberry, Basil And Arugula Salad With Lots Of Black Pepper
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, <10 ingredients, <30 minutes, vegetarian
The strawberries are marinated in rice vinegar and honey, which not only brings out their sweet juices, but also creates a pseudo-dressing for the salad. All that's missing is a drizzle of olive oil.
70. Tuna Salad With Yogurt, Capers And Za’atar
- Time Commitment: 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, make ahead, high protein, <10 ingredients
No offense, but this five-minute tuna salad blows your usual way out of the water. The recipe calls for tangy Greek yogurt in place of mayo, and it's brightened up with a splash of zingy apple cider vinegar and briny capers.
71. Pancetta-wrapped Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, kid-friendly
This blissful combination of buttery white bread, gooey mozzarella cheese, salty pancetta and fresh herbs is only 25 minutes away.
72. Open-face Salad Omelet
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, high protein, beginner-friendly
Eggs are the easiest route to a protein-packed meal on the fly. This omelet is not only extra satiating (thanks, prosciutto), but it's also finished with melted mozz and citrusy arugula salad.
73. Sheet Pan Curried Butternut Squash Soup
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: sheet pan recipe, make ahead, dairy free
Believe it or not, this homemade soup only requires 15 minutes of prep—your oven basically takes care of the rest.
74. Lox Bagel With Scallion And Dill Cream Cheese
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, no cook, <10 ingredients
We'll eat this no-cook brunch staple any time of day, TBH. Finish it with capers, fresh dill and minced red onion for maximum flavor.
75. Charcuterie-board Flatbread
- Time Commitment: 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
A five-minute meal that's fancy enough to serve at a dinner party? Don't mind if we do. Substitute prosciutto, apple, burrata and almonds with whatever you have on hand (just be sure to finish the flatbread with a drizzle of honey).
For even more great recipes, check out our first cookbook, Only the Good Stuff.
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