T-Man
Im short on options and also devices. I start work soon and I need help deciding what to eat for lunch. It has to last from the time i make it and the time i eat it. It needs to last roughly 4-5 Hours. I do not have a refrigerator and I only have a microwave available. The food will be kept in a locker for about 5 hours @ room temperature, slightly warmer though. My choices will be a thawed Banquet "TV Dinner", Cup of Noodle (Ramen), Fried Egg Sandwich, Ham Sandwich, and rice with asian style sausages. If you have other good ideas, it will be helpful. I don't want to go out and buy a bag of chips. If all those 5 options do not work, my last resort is to spend 5 dollars everyday on a 5 dollar subway.
Don't tell me to order pizza and heat up the pizza. Thats way to expensive to do and it takes up too much room in the fridge.
I'll be working at a Auto Shop...I wouldn't have room to bring a ice pack/cooler. It needs to be realllyyyy simple =X
Answer
My partner has a problem with outside food due to a very sensitive stomach so I prepare all his meals everyday in a tiffin box.
A good idea is to buy a 2/3 tier lunchbox or a compartmentalized lunch box with separate little boxes in the main lunch box so you can put different 'courses' through or separate certain ingredients which might make the rest of the food soggy (i.e salads, tomatoes in sandwiches, etc).
Example of a good insulated 2/3 tier lunch box:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Zojirushi-Classic-Bento-Vacuum-Insulated-Lunch-Jar-NIB_W0QQitemZ110463178372QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item19b81e5684
If you can get a good brand/type which is insulated so it keeps your food warm or cold, preventing any bacterial build up since you're talking about 4 - 5 hours.
If you prefer non insulated ones make sure they are microwaveable as not all of them are microwaveable, so double check before buying.
If you're going for a non-insulated, microwavable lunch box, its good to get one of the types which has a cold/ice/water bottle pack over the top to keep your food hygienically chilled, that way you prevent any bacterial build up over the hours.
You can then separate the water bottle/ice pack from the main food contents and microwave it to have a cool drink and a hot lunch.
Some good ideas:
- Buy a pack of frozen mixed veggies to use in stir-fries, pastas, instant noodles.
- Buy a packet of loose baby spinach or rocket to throw in sandwiches or other cook ups.
- Buy BBQ chicken at a discount and shred it, then freeze it in portions so you can use them easily in your food with meat.
- Buy basmati rice as they are long grain and when cooked the grains do not stick or become sticky, They are very good to keep for hours in a lunch box and heat up well without losing its freshness. All you need to do to 'refresh' the rice is to sprinkle a little cold water over the top and microwave for a min or two as its as good as freshly cooked.
Some Food ideas:
- Lemon mayo & baby spinach chicken/ham sandwiches:
Lemon mayo can be made by grating lemon rind and a small squeeze of lemon into normal mayo. Layer on bread, add baby spinach, tomato slices, bbq chicken shreds/ham and add salt and pepper. Flatten and slice diagonally.
- Cheesy rocket, avocado, red onion and chicken burritos:
Grated cheddar/or you can use sliced cheese, mashed avocado, sliced red onions, lettuce and chicken wrapped in a burrito. Very tasty and can omit any ingredients as per taste.
- Egg fried rice (Great with day old rice or leftover rice)
Beat egg with chilli powder, salt, pepper, pinch of 5 spice/cumin. Fry into omelette and break apart into pieces. Chop onions.
Fry onions till golden brown or slight browned, 3 tbsp water, 1/2 chicken stock cube, 1 tbsp soy sauce until it becomes a thickened sauce. Throw in frozen veggies, chopped bacon/chicken, egg pieces and stir fry for 5 min+.
Throw in 1 cup rice, stir fry on high heat until everything is well mixed.
- Mee Goreng
Cook noodles as normal, can be any flavour but of course if you use noodles such as Indo-Mee it will taste much better. Fry onions, add mixed veggies, pinch of tumeric (ok if none), 1 tbsp tomato paste, 1 - 2 tbsp water, stir fry well till veggies cooked.
Toss in noodles and mix well.
- Chinese Stir-fry of any ingredients + side of rice + side of soup
- Japanese bento style dish of Okonomiyaki chicken (chicken and egg on rice) using your bbq chicken, with a side of miso soup and a side of fruit like watermelon.
- Dips: Mexican Guacamole with dips, Greek dips with pita bread, Mid-Eastern dips such as eggplant dip, yoghurt and cucumber dip with pita bread.
You can have all these with sides of cut fruit, or perhaps some leftover muffin/dessert you had which couldn't finish or saved a portion of, a small salad for a complete, healthy meal.
Go check out some food sites for inspiration it will really help as well.
http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/collections/lunch+box+ideas
http://www.cookingcute.com/recipes.htm
http://justbento.com/recipes
http://www.c4vct.com/kym/bento/recipes.htm
http://www.laptoplunches.com/
Many of them include pictures too.
Have fun experimenting! You'll save lots of money too.
We used to spend about $20 per person a day for lunch including coffees and snacks during coffee breaks, not including weekends.
After we started making our own lunches we actually became more creative and aware of the food we were putting into our bodies and craving good, wholesome foods instead of fast food and takeaway junk.
Savings = (($20 + $20)x 5) = $200 a week)x 4 = $800 a month saved.
Annual savings = $800 x 12 = $9600
Saved up enough for a few flat screen tvs and overseas trips. :)
Jenova.
My partner has a problem with outside food due to a very sensitive stomach so I prepare all his meals everyday in a tiffin box.
A good idea is to buy a 2/3 tier lunchbox or a compartmentalized lunch box with separate little boxes in the main lunch box so you can put different 'courses' through or separate certain ingredients which might make the rest of the food soggy (i.e salads, tomatoes in sandwiches, etc).
Example of a good insulated 2/3 tier lunch box:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Zojirushi-Classic-Bento-Vacuum-Insulated-Lunch-Jar-NIB_W0QQitemZ110463178372QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item19b81e5684
If you can get a good brand/type which is insulated so it keeps your food warm or cold, preventing any bacterial build up since you're talking about 4 - 5 hours.
If you prefer non insulated ones make sure they are microwaveable as not all of them are microwaveable, so double check before buying.
If you're going for a non-insulated, microwavable lunch box, its good to get one of the types which has a cold/ice/water bottle pack over the top to keep your food hygienically chilled, that way you prevent any bacterial build up over the hours.
You can then separate the water bottle/ice pack from the main food contents and microwave it to have a cool drink and a hot lunch.
Some good ideas:
- Buy a pack of frozen mixed veggies to use in stir-fries, pastas, instant noodles.
- Buy a packet of loose baby spinach or rocket to throw in sandwiches or other cook ups.
- Buy BBQ chicken at a discount and shred it, then freeze it in portions so you can use them easily in your food with meat.
- Buy basmati rice as they are long grain and when cooked the grains do not stick or become sticky, They are very good to keep for hours in a lunch box and heat up well without losing its freshness. All you need to do to 'refresh' the rice is to sprinkle a little cold water over the top and microwave for a min or two as its as good as freshly cooked.
Some Food ideas:
- Lemon mayo & baby spinach chicken/ham sandwiches:
Lemon mayo can be made by grating lemon rind and a small squeeze of lemon into normal mayo. Layer on bread, add baby spinach, tomato slices, bbq chicken shreds/ham and add salt and pepper. Flatten and slice diagonally.
- Cheesy rocket, avocado, red onion and chicken burritos:
Grated cheddar/or you can use sliced cheese, mashed avocado, sliced red onions, lettuce and chicken wrapped in a burrito. Very tasty and can omit any ingredients as per taste.
- Egg fried rice (Great with day old rice or leftover rice)
Beat egg with chilli powder, salt, pepper, pinch of 5 spice/cumin. Fry into omelette and break apart into pieces. Chop onions.
Fry onions till golden brown or slight browned, 3 tbsp water, 1/2 chicken stock cube, 1 tbsp soy sauce until it becomes a thickened sauce. Throw in frozen veggies, chopped bacon/chicken, egg pieces and stir fry for 5 min+.
Throw in 1 cup rice, stir fry on high heat until everything is well mixed.
- Mee Goreng
Cook noodles as normal, can be any flavour but of course if you use noodles such as Indo-Mee it will taste much better. Fry onions, add mixed veggies, pinch of tumeric (ok if none), 1 tbsp tomato paste, 1 - 2 tbsp water, stir fry well till veggies cooked.
Toss in noodles and mix well.
- Chinese Stir-fry of any ingredients + side of rice + side of soup
- Japanese bento style dish of Okonomiyaki chicken (chicken and egg on rice) using your bbq chicken, with a side of miso soup and a side of fruit like watermelon.
- Dips: Mexican Guacamole with dips, Greek dips with pita bread, Mid-Eastern dips such as eggplant dip, yoghurt and cucumber dip with pita bread.
You can have all these with sides of cut fruit, or perhaps some leftover muffin/dessert you had which couldn't finish or saved a portion of, a small salad for a complete, healthy meal.
Go check out some food sites for inspiration it will really help as well.
http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/collections/lunch+box+ideas
http://www.cookingcute.com/recipes.htm
http://justbento.com/recipes
http://www.c4vct.com/kym/bento/recipes.htm
http://www.laptoplunches.com/
Many of them include pictures too.
Have fun experimenting! You'll save lots of money too.
We used to spend about $20 per person a day for lunch including coffees and snacks during coffee breaks, not including weekends.
After we started making our own lunches we actually became more creative and aware of the food we were putting into our bodies and craving good, wholesome foods instead of fast food and takeaway junk.
Savings = (($20 + $20)x 5) = $200 a week)x 4 = $800 a month saved.
Annual savings = $800 x 12 = $9600
Saved up enough for a few flat screen tvs and overseas trips. :)
Jenova.
gift ideas please?
nlovelovin
It is going to be my boyfriends 18th birthday next month. i dont want to give him some cliche' gift. please give me ideas. or personal stories
I thought of a hot air baloon ride but its too expansive.
Answer
I'm a person who loves to give practical gifts...and lots of 'em. What does he like? What does he need?
My boyfriend's birthday is actually coming up in 4 days. He is into weight lifting and running, likes funny stuff, and needs a watch. So, I got him a watch, a gift card to Foot Locker for running shoes, an insulated lunch box (he currently just uses a plastic bag) that I filled with healthy snack bars, energy shots, and sleeveless t-shirts (he likes to run and lift in them). He and I watched a Beavis and Butthead DVD his friend had, but we only saw the one and don't have it anymore, so I got him all three seasons of it on DVD. He likes Michigan State and drinking (we're of age, don't worry), so I got him a Michigan State beer glass that freezes when you put it in the freezer. And since every man is really a little boy at heart, I got him those cheese and pretzel snack packs, pixie stix, and some silly straws to drink some alcoholic drinks with.
For the party, I'm going to get him his favorite DQ blizzard in cake form, but I'm going to do the illustration on it based on a joke he made while we happened to see Ninja Turtles on TV while flipping through channels. I'm also going to make his favorite dish, and make my signature drink!
That's a lot of stuff, but even some kind of small gift package you can make by throwing a few of his favorite things into a box will work. When we first started dating, he got me a Christmas stocking with a card and filled it with protein bars (I'm into weight lifting, too).
I'm a person who loves to give practical gifts...and lots of 'em. What does he like? What does he need?
My boyfriend's birthday is actually coming up in 4 days. He is into weight lifting and running, likes funny stuff, and needs a watch. So, I got him a watch, a gift card to Foot Locker for running shoes, an insulated lunch box (he currently just uses a plastic bag) that I filled with healthy snack bars, energy shots, and sleeveless t-shirts (he likes to run and lift in them). He and I watched a Beavis and Butthead DVD his friend had, but we only saw the one and don't have it anymore, so I got him all three seasons of it on DVD. He likes Michigan State and drinking (we're of age, don't worry), so I got him a Michigan State beer glass that freezes when you put it in the freezer. And since every man is really a little boy at heart, I got him those cheese and pretzel snack packs, pixie stix, and some silly straws to drink some alcoholic drinks with.
For the party, I'm going to get him his favorite DQ blizzard in cake form, but I'm going to do the illustration on it based on a joke he made while we happened to see Ninja Turtles on TV while flipping through channels. I'm also going to make his favorite dish, and make my signature drink!
That's a lot of stuff, but even some kind of small gift package you can make by throwing a few of his favorite things into a box will work. When we first started dating, he got me a Christmas stocking with a card and filled it with protein bars (I'm into weight lifting, too).
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