7 Packable Vegan Lunch Ideas for School or Work

Hey everyone, how's it going? Caitlin here and welcome back to another video. If you're new here, be sure to hit the little subscribe button. I post accessible, simple and delicious vegan recipes at least once a week. So today we are talking about fall inspired back to school slash back to work lunch recipes. Even if you're not going back to work, it's always a good idea to have some lunch staples on hand. So you're not just eating chips and maybe carrots or hummus for lunch. Can't say I've been there. I've totally been there. So these recipes are all easy to make ahead of time. They are packable. They're great for both kids and adults, and they're obviously vegan, but they're still packed with veggies and very nutritious, but also still really satisfying and delicious. So I'm going to be showing you seven different recipes today. They are all unique and have their own spin. So I'm sure you'll find something that you like. Some of these I featured in past YouTube videos, but I thought it would be great to do a compilation of all of them so you get all of the inspiration for your lunch necessities. All right, let's get into the recipes. First up, we're going to make this buffalo chickpea salad. It is a spicy and obviously vegan take on the chickpea salad. We're going to start by adding some mayo and buffalo hot sauce to a bowl. I am making a homemade vegan mayo. It's linked on my blog, but I also have substitutions for that and the hot sauce on my blog too. So check out that link in description. So once that's whisked together, we're going to add in our chickpeas, and I just like to mash them directly into the dressing. It saves a little bit of mixing time, and I mash around 75% of my chickpeas. That's a texture I like, but you do you. Next, we'll add in our red onion, celery, carrots, and then we're adding in both dill and cilantro to give it a nice herby taste. Then we'll just mix everything together until it's nice and combined, and you're ready to serve it up. So obviously you can enjoy this as is. You can also eat it with some celery sticks, put it in a sandwich, or also enjoy it with some crackers or, you know, anything you really want. So here I am making in a sandwich. I just have some whole grain bread, and I'm adding some butter lettuce, and then dollop on a thick layer of that chickpea salad. Use a spoon to spread it around and then top it off. If you want to, you could add in other crunchy veggies, maybe even some plant-based cheese if you want. I feel like that'd be pretty good. But that's all I did for mine. The salad is packed with flavor, and I really love the texture of this because the chickpeas are nice and hearty, but you also have some great crunchy veggies in there too. Next up, we're making some quinoa tabbouleh, which is a Middle Eastern inspired dish. Might taste a little different. Obviously, we're using quinoa to keep it gluten-free. It's usually made with bulgur and has a little bit more herbs. So first up, we're just going to cook our quinoa according to the package directions, and then the rest is pretty easy. I'm making this oil-free today and using tahini, but you can also use olive oil. We're going to add it to a bowl with some lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, and pepper to taste. I mean, I didn't add it there, but you can add it. Then we'll just whisk it together and combine everything. So we're adding the cooked and cooled quinoa, and then some finely diced tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, parsley, and then I also like to add a little bit of mint. Just make sure you're finely dicing everything. That's kind of the key to a good tabbouleh, so that way all the flavors are nice and incorporated. And this dish isn't loaded with plant-based protein, so typically I like to serve it with some chickpeas or maybe even some pita bread on the side. That's more carbs, but makes a complete meal. Next we're making a curried lentil salad with roasted cauliflower. This can be enjoyed either hot or cold, but either way it's super delicious and I love how colorful it is. First up, we're starting with some French lentils. They are a more firm lentil, so we're going to add them to a pot with some salt and garlic powder to give them a little bit more flavor. I then just fill up the pot with some water and we'll cook those according to the package instructions until they're tender. And in the meantime, we're also going to be roasting some cauliflower. So here I'm drizzling it with a little bit of oil and we're adding in a seasoning blend with curry powder, smoked paprika, garlic. You can get the full instructions again in the blog post, which is linked in the description of this video. So we're going to mix that up until it's nice and combined and then place it on a baking sheet and pop that into the oven so it gets nice and golden while our lentils are simmering away. And we're also going to be making a dressing, so we'll add some avocado oil, some apple cider vinegar, a little bit of Dijon mustard, some more curry powder, and salt to the bowl and then whisk it all up until it's nice and emulsified. You can also shake it in a jar as well. So now it's time to combine. Once your lentils have cooked, you can add them to a large bowl along with that roasted cauliflower, some shredded carrots, some pickled red onions. The recipe for that is on my blog too. And then we're also adding in some cilantro here, but if not a fan of cilantro, you could use parsley too. Then we're just going to mix all this up until it's nice and combined and you're good to go. Again, this is great on its own. You can also toss in some extra leafy greens there. It's protein packed, very bright and flavorful, and you know, it's just a great staple to have in your repertoire. I love to make it in the fall. Next up, we're making a Tex-Mex black bean salad. This one comes together super, super quickly, basically no cooking involved if you get canned beans. So we're just going to add some black beans to a bowl along with some fresh tomatoes, some fresh corn, a diced bell pepper, some pickled jalapenos. You can do homemade or store-bought. I have a recipe for that on my blog. And then again, we're adding in red onion, cilantro, and some olive oil and lime juice. And then last but not least, we'll add in some spices to really amp up the flavor. I love this recipe because you just mix the dressing in when you combine it with everything else. It's very fuss-free. You can mix it all up in a bowl, then divvy it up into smaller jars for meal prep, and you are good to go. This is especially delicious with tortilla chips. You can even use it as like a hearty dip or chop up some avocado and put it on top too. Next up, we're making a chickpea salad sandwich. This is like my classic take on a chicken salad, but vegan. So it's a little more traditional than that buffalo one we saw at the beginning of the video, but it starts similarly. So we're going to start by adding some mayo to a bowl along with some lemon juice, some Dijon mustard. And one of my hacks is to add poultry seasoning because it kind of makes it taste a little bit more herby and like chicken. Then I'm also adding some black pepper here, and we're whisking this all up until it's combined. And then just like the other chickpea salad recipe, we're going to add our chickpeas directly to the bowl and then mash them up using a potato masher, or you can also use a fork until everything is nice and mixed. And then we go in with our crunchy ingredients. So we've got some red onion, some celery, some slivered almonds for a nice crunch, some parsley, and then I love to add fresh grapes to my salad. I really like that sweet and salty combination. You can also use raisins if you like. I have a whole other list of suggested add-ins to this recipe on the blog post, so make sure you check it out. And then again, you can enjoy this on its own. It's listed as a sandwich recipe on my blog, so I'm making a sandwich here just like I did with the other one, but you can also just have it with celery sticks. I honestly also just really love this with crackers. It's like a nice hearty dip. It's super filling, but it's also packed with fiber. It's packed with veggies. It's nice and creamy from the mayo. If you want an even bigger protein boost, you can make the tofu-based mayo. And you know, it's just overall delicious, versatile, can't go wrong. I think both kids and adults would really like this one. Next up, we are making a rainbow quinoa salad with red curry dressing. So this is another fun, colorful, protein, and veggie-packed meal. We'll start by making the dressing. We'll add some garlic to a blender along with some fresh ginger, a hefty scoop of red curry paste, some lime juice. Then we'll also add a touch of maple syrup for sweetness. And then for creaminess, we're adding both creamy peanut butter, which complements the curry paste really well, and then also some coconut milk, which also complements the paste pretty well. Then we'll add in some salt, and we'll blend this up until it forms a nice and creamy consistency. Honestly, you can use this over other bowls too. It is a really delicious and yummy salad dressing to have on hand. You could even put it over stir fry. But today, we are making that rainbow quinoa salad. So now let's work on that. First off, we're going to start with some cooked quinoa. Follow the package instructions. You guys know the drill. We're also adding in some edamame, some red cabbage, some carrot, a slice of bell pepper, cilantro, and then toasted cashews, which add a nice crunch and textural component. The edamame is naturally packed with some plant-based protein, and then you have the nice textural variation from the soft, heartier quinoa and all of the crunchy veggies. And it just looks so colorful and pretty, and it's great for meal prep because nothing gets soggy in the fridge and stays crunchy. If you want to, you could leave the cashews out until right before serving if you really want them to be extra crunchy. I guess they would get a tiny bit soggy, but either way, it's really delicious. And then last but certainly not least, we're going to be making another simple bean salad. This is a Mediterranean chickpea salad, and we're going to start out again by making the dressing in the bottom of the bowl. Just combining some olive oil with lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, and black pepper. You can also make this oil-free by using tahini instead. I have the details for that on my blog. So again, whisk it all up until it's emulsified. Then in go the chickpeas, tomatoes, we've got some chopped cucumber, some red onion, a diced bell pepper, all of this for some spicy, tangy, not spicy, just tangy, briny goodness. And then we're also adding in parsley and mint. And then you're ready to serve and enjoy as is. I personally love to serve this with a side of toasted sourdough. Okay, and there you have it. Leave a comment down below and tell me what your go-to packable lunch is, whether it's one of these recipes or not. If you want to know more about these recipes, be sure to click the links in the description. I have a, actually, I have a roundup post of over 20 different vegan lunch ideas that is really awesome. So even if you didn't find something in here, though I'm pretty sure you would have, if you want more inspiration, go check out that. And if you're really into videos, most of them have video contents too, you can click the link and it will take you to the page for the individual recipes. If you're looking for more inspiration on YouTube, I've also just posted recent videos for three more simple spring salads, and then also pasta salad recipes that are not boring and super creative. Those are great packable lunch ideas too. So if you add those three up and you watch this, you'll actually have a total of 13 different recipes that you can make for back to school or work or life. So there's tons of inspiration over here and on my blog at frontofmybowl.com. And also be sure to follow me on Instagram. I post daily content there, and sometimes you get sneak peeks or advanced recipes on Instagram that get posted later on YouTube. So if you want all of the good food news as quickly as possible, be sure to hit the follow button over there. All right, guys, that is it for this video. I really hope you enjoyed it. If you have any recipe suggestions, please leave those in the comments below too. I always love to hear from you, or you can leave a comment on my blog, write me a few recipes too if you'd like them. But yeah, hope you're having a great day and continue to have one. And I look forward to virtually seeing you in the next video. Bye.