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Gluten-Free Lunch Ideas for Work
Packable gluten-free lunches that hold up in a fridge, most of them cold.
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If you eat gluten-free and pack lunch for the office, you need meals that survive a fridge and a desk. Cold bowls are the easy route: Breadless says most keep three to four days, though its turkey and pomegranate bowl gets three and the smoked salmon bowl two to three. Shutterbean's habit is the other half. Tuna salad is almost always in her meal prep, and taco meat is another staple, so lunches get built from them. Keep any dressing in its own small container. This list assumes you've got a fridge at work and a bit of weekend prep time. It leaves out takeout orders.
Why these items are on the list
- Tuna salad on gluten-free crispbread. Top with tomatoes. Tuna salad is almost always in Shutterbean's meal prep.
- Cheese, dried fruit, grapes, olives. An adult lunchable. No cooking, just a plate to assemble and pack.
- Ranch dip, veggies, and almonds. A snack-style lunch you can nibble while you're still working at the computer.
- Sausage and white bean soup. Shutterbean's meal-prep staple. Skip the bread and add extra Parmesan instead; make it ahead.
- Chicken, quinoa, and avocado salad. Cook the chicken and quinoa ahead, then pile on arugula and avocado when you pack.
- Taco meat rice bowl. Make extra taco meat when you meal prep. Add rice, salsa, cheese and avocado.
- Cold jerk chicken and mango bowl. Breadless pairs 5 oz of chicken with half a cup of mango and shredded collards.
- Falafel and roasted vegetable bowl. Breadless uses three baked falafel patties with zucchini, red pepper, collards and lemon-herb dressing, kept three to four days.
- Smoked salmon and avocado bowl. Breadless tops Swiss chard with 4 oz smoked salmon, cucumber and capers, and says it keeps two to three days.
- Turkey and avocado chard wrap. Breadless says Swiss chard holds up through a commute. Wrap it tightly in parchment first.
- Falafel wraps in romaine. Breadless says keep the tzatziki separate until serving, so pack it in its own container.
- Hard-boiled egg snack box. Breadless packs four eggs, sliced pepper, celery and almond butter. Keep the eggs unpeeled until lunch.
- Turkey roll-ups with almonds. Breadless rolls turkey around Swiss cheese sticks, with almonds and blueberries on the side. Eat it one-handed.
- Packed salad, dressing on the side. Pack a sturdy base like kale, quinoa, rice or sweet potato cubes, and the dressing separately.
- Bento-style lunch box. Fill separate sections for protein, produce and carbs. Options include cheese cubes, edamame, cucumber rounds and rice cakes.
- Rice, meatballs, and spinach. Leftover rice works: Shutterbean heated it with meatballs, then served it over spinach with feta and tomatoes.
- Chicken cilantro meatballs, tamari. Shutterbean uses tamari to keep these gluten-free.
- Crustless quiche. BBC Good Food lists it as easy and gluten-free, at 55 minutes, so bake it ahead.
Tick the ones you've prepped on your phone, and through the week you can see what's still waiting in the fridge.
When to use it
Use it when you're planning the week's packed lunches, or any time the office fridge needs restocking.