Looking for lunch recipes? we have 12 lunch ideas whether you’re planning ahead or looking for something last minute.
Contents
1. Virgina’s Tuna Salad
This was always a summer Saturday favorite for my grandparents and I. Great served on a large lettuce leaf. You may also add grapes or chopped apples if you wish. (Recipe By KRISTIEV)
Virgina’s Tuna Salad
4
servings20
minutes5
minutesIngredients
1 egg
1 (5 ounce) can tuna, drained and flaked
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
1 pinch ground black pepper
Directions
- Place egg in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let egg stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water; cool for 5 minutes. Peel and chop into bite-sized pieces.
- In a medium bowl, mix together tuna and mayonnaise. Mix in egg, celery, relish, and black pepper.
Notes
- Substitute creamy salad dressing (such as Miracle Whip(R)) for the mayonnaise if desired.
2. Spicy Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Grilled cheese with onions, tomatoes and jalapenos– tastier than the original! (Recipe By PATELGURL)
Spicy Grilled Cheese Sandwich
2
servings2
minutes3
minutesIngredients
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
4 slices white bread
2 slices American cheese
1 roma (plum) tomato, thinly sliced
¼ small onion, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
Directions
- Heat a large skillet over low heat. Spread butter or margarine onto one side of two slices of bread. Place both pieces buttered side down in the skillet. Lay a slice of cheese on each one, and top with slices of tomato, onion and jalapeno. Butter one side of the remaining slices of bread, and place on top buttered side up. When the bottom of the sandwiches are toasted, flip and fry until brown on the other side.
Notes
3. Chicago-Inspired Italian Beef Sandwich
I tried to combine the traditional Italian beef sandwich with the French dip sandwich with a little nod to the pulled pork sandwich. Instead of using thinly sliced roast beef, I used stew beef, with apologies to my friends from Chicago. (Recipe By Chef John)
Chicago-Inspired Italian Beef Sandwich
4
servings15
minutes1
hour10
minutesIngredients
1 ½ pounds boneless beef chuck, cut into 2-inch pieces
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
6 cloves garlic, sliced
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 ½ teaspoons salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
3 cups chicken broth, or as needed
4 ciabatta rolls, sliced in half
1 cup chopped giardiniera (pickled Italian vegetables)
2 teaspoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Directions
- Season beef with a pinch of salt and black pepper. Heat vegetable oil in a heavy pot over high heat. Cook and stir beef in hot oil until browned, 5 to 8 minutes.
- Stir garlic, vinegar, oregano, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, thyme, rosemary, 1 teaspoon black pepper, bay leaf, and red pepper flakes into beef. Pour enough chicken broth into beef mixture to cover the meat by 1 inch and bring to a simmer.
- Cover pot with a lid, reduce heat to low, and simmer until meat is fork-tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
- Transfer meat with a strainer or slotted spoon to a separate pot; pour about 1/4 cup of meat broth into pot. Use a wooden spoon to gently break meat into smaller chunks. Cover pot with a lid or aluminum foil and keep warm.
- Skim excess grease from top of broth remaining in the first pot; season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover pot with a lid or aluminum foil and keep broth warm.
- Lay halves of a roll out on a work surface and spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons meat broth over each half. Top bottom half of roll with a generous portion of meat and a spoonful of pickled vegetables. Place tops on sandwich. Repeat with remaining buns, broth, meat, and pickled vegetables to make 3 more sandwiches.
- Spoon hot meat broth into ramekins and top each ramekin with 1/2 teaspoon parsley. Serve sandwiches with hot broth for dipping.
Notes
4. Basic Italian Bean Soup
Simple and basic Italian bean soup. Great for a quick fix during the week. My Italian mother-in-law rattled this one out to me over the phone years ago. So glad I wrote it down quick! She doesn’t remember telling me. The kids love it for a simple and quick dinner. (Recipe By Dawn Wensdofer Brower)
Basic Italian Bean Soup
4
servings15
minutes1
hour10
minutesIngredients
olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, or more to taste
2 cups tomato sauce
24 ounces prepared cannellini beans
1 tablespoon dried basil
½ teaspoon oregano
salt and ground black pepper to taste
Directions
- Heat olive oil in a pot over medium-high heat. Cook and stir onion in hot oil until tender, about 5 minutes; add garlic and continue cooking until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes more.
- Pour tomato sauce into the pot; stir. Add cannelini beans, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a simmer, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until the beans are hot, 5 to 7 minutes more.
Notes
- You can add orzo, cut spaghetti, or grated cheese. It’s also good with just some saltine crackers.
- Garbanzo beans work just as well as cannellini in this recipe.
5. Cobb Salad
This Cobb salad has some of my favorite ingredients: chicken, egg, tomatoes, blue cheese and avocado. (Recipe By Bill)
Cobb Salad
6
servings20
minutes30
minutesIngredients
6 slices bacon
3 eggs
1 head iceberg lettuce, shredded
3 cups chopped, cooked chicken meat
2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
¾ cup blue cheese, crumbled
1 avocado – peeled, pitted and diced
3 green onions, chopped
1 (8 ounce) bottle Ranch-style salad dressing
Directions
- Place eggs in a saucepan and cover completely with cold water. Bring water to a boil. Cover, remove from heat, and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel and chop.
- Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
- Divide shredded lettuce among individual plates.
- Evenly divide and arrange chicken, eggs, tomatoes, blue cheese, bacon, avocado and green onions in a row on top of the lettuce.
- Drizzle with your favorite dressing and enjoy.
Notes
6. Banh Mi
A Vietnamese sandwich, made with chicken and full of pickled vegetables. My husband works around a lot of Vietnamese restaurants, and I was making him bring me home these tasty sandwiches. Finally I attempted to make one, and found that my recipe was even better than the restaurants, mainly because I used chicken breast and fresher ingredients. I also love the pickled vegetables, so I made sure there was plenty of those. (Recipes By metzstar)
Banh Mi
2
servings30
minutes20
minutesIngredients
½ cup rice vinegar
¼ cup water
¼ cup white sugar
¼ cup carrot, cut into 1/16-inch-thick matchsticks
¼ cup white (daikon) radish, cut into 1/16-inch-thick matchsticks
¼ cup white (daikon) radish, cut into 1/16-inch-thick matchsticks
1 skinless, boneless chicken breast half
garlic salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
1 (12 inch) French baguette
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
¼ cup thinly sliced cucumber
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro leaves
1 small jalapeno pepper – seeded and cut into 1/16-inch-thick matchsticks
1 wedge lime
Directions
- Place rice vinegar, water, and sugar into a saucepan over medium heat, bring to a boil, and stir until the sugar has dissolved, about 1 minute. Allow the mixture to cool.
- Pour the cooled vinegar mixture over the carrot, radish, and onion in a bowl, and allow to stand for at least 30 minutes. Drain off the excess vinegar mixture after the vegetables have marinated.
- While the vegetables are marinating, preheat the oven’s broiler, and set the oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source. Lightly oil a slotted broiler pan.
- Sprinkle the chicken breast with garlic salt and pepper, and broil on slotted broiler pan, turning once, until the center of the chicken breast is no longer pink and the surface has browned, about 6 minutes per side. Remove the broiled chicken, and slice into bite-size pieces.
- Slice the baguette in half the long way, and pull the center of the bread out of the baguette halves, leaving a cavity for the filling. Place the baguette halves under the broiler to lightly toast, 2 to 3 minutes.
- To assemble the bahn mi sandwich, spread each half of the toasted baguette with mayonnaise, and fill the cavity of the bottom half of the bread with broiled chicken, cucumber slices, pickled carrot, onion, and radish, cilantro leaves, and jalapeno pepper. Squeeze a wedge of lime over the filling, and top with the other half of the baguette.
Notes
7. Grilled Chicken Salad Sandwich
This is a great way to use leftover grilled chicken breasts from dinner the night before. I like it on wheat. My husband likes it on sourdough. (Recipe By Erin Noel)
Grilled Chicken Salad Sandwich
4
servings15
minutes15
minutesIngredients
1 cup mayonnaise
⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
⅛ teaspoon celery salt
⅛ teaspoon celery salt
2 celery stalks, sliced
½ cup sweetened dried cranberries
⅔ cup salted cashews
8 slices bread, toasted
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
4 large red leaf lettuce leaves
1 ripe tomato, sliced
Directions
- Whisk together 1 cup of mayonnaise, pepper, garlic powder, and celery salt until combined. Combine the chicken, celery, cranberries, and cashews in a large bowl. Pour the mayonnaise mixture over the chicken mixture and stir until evenly combined.
- Spread 1/2 tablespoon of mayonnaise on each slice of toasted bread. Divide the chicken salad between four of the slices of toast; top each with a lettuce leaf and a slice of tomato. Complete each sandwich with the remaining toast slices.
Notes
8. Vegetarian Chickpea Sandwich Filling
Serve this tasty sandwich spread on crusty whole grain rolls or pita bread, with lettuce and tomato. Other raw, chopped vegetables can be substituted for the celery. Your favorite salad dressing can be substituted for the mayo. (Recipe By FISHLOVE)
Vegetarian Chickpea Sandwich Filling
3
servings20
minutes20
minutesIngredients
1 (19 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 stalk celery, chopped
½ onion, chopped
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- Drain and rinse chickpeas. Pour chickpeas into a medium size mixing bowl and mash with a fork. Mix in celery, onion, mayonnaise (to taste), lemon juice, dill, salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
9. Winter Chicken Bake
This is an easy recipe that is warm, hearty, healthy, and colorful. The tartness of the cranberries compliments the sweetness of the barbecue sauce and the mellow sweet potatoes. Homemade barbecue sauce is what I used, but your favorite barbecue sauce will work too. (Recipe By CAGEINCALI)
Winter Chicken Bake
2
servings25
minutes55
minutesIngredients
1 sweet potato
½ medium sweet onion, chopped
1 medium apple – peeled, cored, and chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons barbecue sauce
1 cup cranberries
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking dish.
- Pierce the sweet potato several times with a fork and cut in half. Place in a microwave-safe dish; pour water to about 1/2-inch deep. Cook in microwave 10 minutes.
- Arrange the onion, apple, and carrots into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Brush the barbecue sauce on both sides of the chicken breasts and lay atop the vegetables. Peel the sweet potato and cut into large chunks; scatter into the baking dish. Sprinkle the cranberries over the dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven until the chicken is tender and no longer pink in the center, 45 to 55 minutes. Allow to cool 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
10. Delicious Egg Salad for Sandwiches
This is a wonderful-tasting egg salad sandwich that you will definitely devour. It’s really good on rye. (Recipe By wifeyluvs2cook)
Delicious Egg Salad for Sandwiches
4
servings10
minutes15
minutesIngredients
8 eggs
½ cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
¼ cup chopped green onion
salt and pepper to taste
¼ teaspoon paprika
Directions
- Place egg in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel and chop.
- Place the chopped eggs in a bowl, and stir in the mayonnaise, mustard and green onion. Season with salt, pepper and paprika. Stir and serve on your favorite bread or crackers.
Notes
11. Reuben Sandwich II
These sandwiches are really delicious and easy to make. They are one of my family’s fix-it-quick favorites. I like to serve them with big bowls of steaming vegetable soup and dill pickles on the side. Enjoy! (Recipe By COLETTE G.)
Reuben Sandwich II
4
servings15
minutes10
minutesIngredients
2 tablespoons butter
8 slices rye bread
8 slices deli sliced corned beef
8 slices Swiss cheese
1 cup sauerkraut, drained
½ cup Thousand Island dressing
Directions
- Preheat a large skillet or griddle on medium heat.
- Lightly butter one side of bread slices. Spread non-buttered sides with Thousand Island dressing. On 4 bread slices, layer 1 slice Swiss cheese, 2 slices corned beef, 1/4 cup sauerkraut and second slice of Swiss cheese. Top with remaining bread slices, buttered sides out.
- Grill sandwiches until both sides are golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Serve hot.