My place of work has a totally respectable cafeteria, but I don’t like to rely on that if I don’t have to. I vastly prefer to pack and bring in my own lunch to get through the workday.

We live in a small town in a northern state, so it’s difficult to get good fresh produce. The produce we have is often shipped in from far away and isn’t the best. As a result, I can’t rely on it that well. For meal prep, here are some of my personal tricks.

Frozen Veg

Counterintuitively, frozen vegetables can often be higher in nutritional value than many fresh vegetables. This has to do with them being picked at the height of freshness, rather than being ripened on the shelf. This makes me feel much better about buying them when they’re comparatively cheaper.  

Greens

Often the only fresh thing available in my lunch is some spinach – conveniently tucked into a salad. In between all the hearty winter-friendly dishes.

Squash

A single squash is way too much for one meal. I like to eat it roasted the first night, and then to mash it for lunch the next day. Any kind of squash will work, and it tastes delicious even a couple of days later.

Crockpot Meals

I am an enthusiastic fan of the make-ahead meal. Soups and stews can be put on in the crockpot overnight and packed up in the morning for an easy escape to work. Crockpot meals are also the easiest – meat, vegetables, and a little liquid and they always turn out fine.

While we’re here, I want to plug the best lunchbox situation I’ve found yet. These glass bento boxes by Asani are amazing. They’re sturdy. The lid snaps on securely, and each one has a convenient set of silverware tucked into the top. Something that’s also good to keep in mind is that they’re glass. I’m hesitant about microwaving plastic, and this makes me feel a lot better about it.

They don’t stain, ever. This is something I run into a lot with my other plastic containers. I also love how self-contained it is with three compartments. Previously, I was juggling a couple of different containers and this has opened some room in my work bag as a result. If you’re interested, you can check them out here. A three-pack is only $21.99.

Happy lunching!