Quick and cheap lunches to make?

[mahou prince]

Hi girls <3
As of next week (September 2nd) I will start attending
university (which is scary as f-ck, tbh) and I have a
small, tiny little problem - lunch. I don't have too much
money each month so I need tips for quick, easy and
cheap lunches to prepare to take with me. <3 I want
to avoid eating fast food and eating out every day since
that quickly gets expensive.
Erm...it can be a warm meal or a cold one, doesn't matter.
And also preferably healthy with low fat and/or low calorie.
Anyone? ; u ;

Small summary thingy:
- Quick & easy to make (I'm a terrible cook - Doesn't cost too much to make (buy ingredients etc)
- Preferably low fat/low calorie
- Can be eaten either warm or cold

Does this post even make sense? I dunno

Thanks <3  

[E.Beth]

Black beans and rice is pretty easy to make, all you need is the two ingredients. I make a big batch, freeze some of it and have some set aside for a week. It is good for most meals. You can always make it into burritos and such pretty easy. I would recommend it warm but about a minute in the microwave and you're good. If you want to make it a little healthier chopping up bell peppers and adding that in when you make it initially is a idea. As an added bonus it is considered healthy. The beans give you filling protein too.

To make it the cheapest, and healthiest, way possible just get a bag of black beans and a bag of brown rice. Soak the bean for about 8 hours or boil for an hour. I find just putting them to boil and hour is pretty easy. Then once the beans are fairly soft add the rice and boil until they are done. Generic works well. If you want you can pick through the black beans and throw out any that don't look like the rest. I never have had any issue though so I usually just rinse and boil.

If you want to mix things up so you don't get sick of beans and rice for a while you can mix in lemon or lime juice, salsa, you name it. When you reheat it if they seam dry you can add the salsa or juice then. You can also add a splash of broth too which adds nice flavor.  

[Clasela]

✿
I was reading through one of my recipe books last night and actually came across a recipe for a savoury pastry that I am going to make when I go grocery shopping again.
The recipe is called a Tomato Herb Tart, but you can basically add whatever toppings your heart desires.

show spoilerhide spoiler

Tomato Herb Tart
(Makes four mini tarts)

Ingredients:
• 1 sheet frozen flaky pastry
• 1/2 cup finely grated cheddar cheese
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
• 300g tomatoes, peeled and sliced
• 2 tablespoons of finely chopped fresh parsley, basil and thyme
• virgin olive oil to drizzle

1. Preheat oven to moderately hot.
2. Cut four circular discs from the pastry and place on oven tray to cook for ten minutes.
3. Sprinkle pastries with cheeses, leaving 1cm border around the edge. Layer tomato slices over cheeses and sprinkle with herbs.
Drizzle with olive oil and return to oven for five minutes. Leave to cool in oven. Can be served warm or at room temperature.

Hope that helps or gives you an idea for something to make. ^^
✿

 

[The Unholy Yokai]

~Here are some ideas that are super cheap and are low in calories and keeps your energy up during the day

Beans
beans are super cheap. There are also many different cheap ways to make them you can have beans and rice, refried beans on a tortilla with some veggies, hummus and some pita, exc.

Noodles
again super cheap and give you some grains. Try to make like a low mein or something where you use a couple different veggies and a sauce it can last for a couple of days too!

fruit bowls
super healthy and pretty

I hope this helped you a little and that you find some nice cheap stuff to make! Good luck!
yum_strawberry

 

[Miss_XxAriaxX]

I think you'll also cook your supper right? You can bring the left over for lunch.
Pasta are cheap.
Sandwiches also.  

[Miss_XxAriaxX]

If you cooked too much food put them in the freezer for a next time... Look flyers of the supermarket so you can buy food that are in sale.

Good luck in your studies !
What are you studying?  

[Carter Valentine]

I never made this for school, so I don't know if you can brown bag this for lunch, but I found a way to make your own pizza using everyday ingredients.

You take 1 or more slices of bread (preferably whole wheat since it's healthier), some pasta sauce, and any kind of cheese, meat, and veggies you have. I usually use deli meats and cheese that you can buy in a grocery store, but you can be creative and use something else.

For preparation, you spread the pasta sauce on the bread, put cheese on it, then meat or vegetables or both, then microwave everything for about a minute. You can use any kind of vegetable and meat for this, so you won't get bored of the taste.

Like I said, I don't know if you can brown bag this, but it might be something to fall back on if you want healthy pizza.  

[mahou prince]

Wow, thanks for the super awesome tips
girl! I will make sure to try them out! <3

XxAriaxX

Thank you! I'm going to study an
international language program
with focus on the English language
and later on a second language. (:  

[flauterfli]

Good luck! c:

Pick up some glass containers from the dollar store.
More resilient and less likely to stain than their plastic counterparts.
Plastic baggies and brown bags are, imho, terribly wasteful if not reused
(unfortunately reusing them is not all that sanitary!)

I pack a lunch the night before work, usually right after dinner so I can easily separate the left overs.
Either it's that (a rarity with my husband) or a sandwich, salad, whatevers simplest to whip up.

Make sure to include a snack for long lectures to keep your energy up (trust me, you'll need it!)

Sandwiches - whole grain bread, low fat cheese like ghouda/feta/swiss, turkey, mustard, lettuce, tomato - or just simple PB&J.
Salads - throw together lettuce, spinach, kale, and cut up veggies. Keep dressing separate.
Rice & bean combo - I think someone already mentioned this. Prepare and throw in the fridge. Good cold or hot.
Bentos - the Japanese variety. Can be time consuming or ridiculously simple. No need for a bento box, really. Tons of fun recipes on Pinterest.


Try to make it as simple and quick as possible, but still filling and healthy.

Trust me, when finals hit and burn out drags you down, a nightly routine helps a lot.
 

[Sweet Peppermint Tea]

flauterfli

Bentos - the Japanese variety. Can be time consuming or ridiculously simple. No need for a bento box, really. Tons of fun recipes on Pinterest.

yum_tea The key ingredient in a bento is actually the bento itself! Without the bento box, it's just a bag lunch. Which isn't bad, far from it, it's just not a bento lunch.

On that note, in order to train yourself to make your lunch every day, start by investing in a cute lunch box (Japanese bento or Western style box, whichever suits you best) or insulated lunch bag. Having something that you like to look at will encourage you to use it every day. Investing in a thermos or refillable water bottle will help you keep your costs down further, since you'll be able to bring your own drinks instead of buying sodas from the cafeteria or vending machines. Look for insulated containers for drinks or individual food items; failing that, make sure you have microwave-safe material for anything you want to eat hot, and that you have a reusable ice pack for the stuff you want to keep cold.

JustBento.com and JustHungry.com have a ton of easy, filling recipes that you can use to make portable lunches out of; most of them utilize rice and/or beans as the primary ingredient, so they're pretty cheap.  

[mahou prince]

Sweet Peppermint Tea

Oh, thanks for the tips! I really
appreciate it! ^_^ <3

 

[Saber Blysmey]

I like to spread peanut butter on a tortilla and roll it up with a banana inside. It's super cheap and nice when you just want a small lunch.

Another nice light lunch is an avocado. I like to splash it with lime juice, tapatio sauce, and salt and pepper. Then I just take a slice or two of cheese, a handful of crackers or good sturdy chips, and an apple. You can cut the avocado in half and take the pit out and then put it back together to help keep it from browning overnight then just eat it out of its shell the next day.

Like others have said, it's easy to make a little extra of whatever you have for dinner the night before and pack that. I always bring my own drinks too, usually more than one. Water, tea, juice. Even milk if I can keep it cold.