Here are my favorite cold lunch ideas to put together when I need something quick and easy. I included the best of the best lunch recipes that make my meal prep easier and keep me enjoying what I eat.
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My Favorite Easy Lunch Ideas
I am constantly looking for easy cold lunch ideas to make. Life is busy with my two kids, and I just need something I can put together easily to eat every day that doesn’t need to be heated up.
My husband and I mostly work from home now. It’s nice we get to eat lunch together, but we’re constantly looking in the fridge for something to eat. The same old lunches got boring very quickly. I needed enough easy recipes to choose from that I could enjoy over and over again.
I just had to share all of my favorite lunch recipes that can be served cold. I find cold lunches make it ideal for packing up to head to work. I chose these recipes because they are perfect for adults, but my kids also love to pack a bunch of these for school too!
These are truly the recipes that have made my meal prep easier. They are simple recipes that can be put together either the night before or something cold I can whip together in just minutes during lunchtime.
How can I bring lunch to work without a refrigerator?
I use a thermal isolated lunch bag with a quality ice pack to keep my food cold until lunchtime. If I need to stack foods, I place an extra ice pack on top to keep both layers nice and cold.
Easy Cold Lunch Ideas
This is one of my favorite lunches to have every week. I love using leftover chicken tenders or rotisserie chicken so I can whip it up in minutes. Plus, I love the buffalo sauce and blue cheese combo!
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I love a recipe that can be prepped for the week and eaten in different ways. I’ve enjoyed this egg salad on a sandwich, croissant roll, with crackers, and with celery sticks and it just tastes so fantastic!
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My kids and I love these. I love them because they are easy to put together, and my kids love them because they taste amazing! They pack really nicely in those Bentgo lunch boxes for school lunches too.
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Chicken Caesar salad comes together easily and quickly with a mixture of fresh ingredients and store-bought shortcuts! Topped with a zesty homemade Caesar dressing.
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This wrap has a ton of veggies in it, but is so savory and filling. I’ve used leftover diced and shredded chicken for this cold lunch and it all works great. Just keep the filling separate from the tortillas until up to a day before you will eat it.
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I consider an easy lunch something I can prep once and eat multiple days in a row with no extra prep and this one is a favorite of mine. It’s all of the best flavors of a BLT sandwich in pasta salad format and when I say this salad is creamy, savory, and filling, I mean it!
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This broccoli salad has become a regular for my husband’s lunches. He loves the crunch it brings and I love putting it together for him because it’s nice and easy to make. Truth is I put extra bacon bits in there because he loves the flavor.
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My artichoke salad combines marinated artichokes, canned chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, and a zesty homemade vinaigrette to create a tasty side dish in 10 minutes. Enjoy it as is, or add protein for a light lunch!
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This is my absolute favorite lunch recipe for the summer. The balsamic glaze complements the cheese and tomatoes. I find myself eating this at least once a week!
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I love a good chicken salad, and this one is my favorite because it is so easy to put together. It’s just five ingredients! I add it to a croissant or sandwich, eat it with pita bread, or stick it in a wrap for an easy lunch.
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I absolutely love basil so pesto is among my lunches on the regular. This recipe pairs pesto with tortellini for a rich and savory meal that’s bold and filling.
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I love a good old classic sandwich with simple ingredients to make an easy lunch.I just grab turkey at the deli and cook up some extra bacon to last a few days to make this nice and quick!
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Peanut butter and jelly is a go-to lunch for my kids, but I can only make it so many times before they get sick of it. Enter this apple peanut butter wrap! It adds a nice new texture and flavor while they still get to enjoy their love of peanut butter.
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I love making this recipe when I have leftover ground beef. It’s a great change up from tacos and there’s just something about nacho cheese that makes everything better. Plus, it packs nicely in my lunch box for work!
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I love a good chicken Caesar salad, but sometimes it leaves me a bit too hungry afterward. Instead, I turn them into these delicious wraps by using leftover cubed chicken. Leftover rotisserie chicken has worked great too.
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This pasta salad recipe may seem simple, but it is my absolute favorite. It’s easy to put together and the Italian dressing adds an acidic flavor that screams summer pasta salad. I love to add pepperoni when we have leftovers from our pizza nights.
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While this recipe makes enough for just one after my husband saw me eat it for lunch one time, I have to make enough for both of us now each time. The strawberries with the dressing keep the salad sweet while the chicken adds a savory touch.
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I love to use up leftover ham from the holidays and put together this ham salad recipe for lunch the next day. It's been great on everything from croissants to bread and even as just a dip for crackers.
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I love when a sandwich can be made so easily. I literally whip this cold sandwich up in 2 minutes for my husband and myself when I'm running late for work in the morning.
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I love this lunch recipe because of how versatile it is. I’ve used deli turkey,leftover turkey from Thanksgiving, and even chicken and it all tastes amazing with it. I love it with tomato tortillas, but regular tortillas work great too.I’ve even added a couple of tomatoes into the wrap instead.
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I love a good cold pasta salad for lunch. I make almost a full box of pasta salad and I have enough to last me and the kids a few days. This one is super creamy and I say everything tastes better with bacon.
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I not only love the flavors in this lunch, but also the presentation inside a mason jar. It looks so pretty! And, it tastes so good that you would never know it uses canned chicken (I’ve substituted leftover rotisserie chicken too).
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While some may argue they never have leftover steak, I personally make extra to enjoy it the next day for this recipe. It includes simple ingredients, but the flavors blend flawlessly and it’s a nice filling cold sandwich for lunch.
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I love making this pimento cheese when I want something a little lighter for lunch. It’s spicy and works well with just about any cracker or bread. Plus, it keeps in the fridge for a week so I can enjoy it throughout the week on days I just don’t want to make anything else.
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This is my son’s favorite lunch! He is pizza obsessed, and this helps keep things interesting than his typical go-to with cheese pizza. Plus, this recipe is so much better cold than a typical pizza slice.
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I love a good sandwich recipe that comes together in minutes, which is why I am obsessed with this one. It’s high end ingredients you stack on bread for a delicious lunch.
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I will never look over yogurt when I want a light cold lunch. It’s insanely easy to put together and I love using Greek yogurt that’s high in protein when I’m counting macros too.
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My favorite hack for making lunch easier to buy a full rotisserie chicken and chop it up into a few different recipes and this is one of them. It’s been so easy to prep for the week and I eat it with crackers, on a sandwich, or my favorite,on a croissant.
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My family loves an easy way to use tuna and this fits that perfectly. Cucumbers may sound like an interesting choice, but it complements the tuna and the dill so it’s an all around meaty and rich flavor.
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I try to keep things a little healthier sometimes and that’s where this quinoa salad comes in. The chickpeas even add some good protein, but I’ve added leftover chicken when I have extra.
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I love a good pinwheel recipe because they pack so nicely in lunch boxes and I love the protein mix in this one. I just toss all of the ingredients in a bowl and let it refrigerate overnight and make them into little pinwheels the next morning!
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When I have a few slices of bacon left over, my mind immediately goes to this recipe. It’s filling and super flavorful and who doesn’t love a good sandwich for lunch?!
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This is one of my daughter’s favorite lunches for school. She’s a snacker and this pack makes her feel like her entire lunch is all snacks. I like to switch up the deli meat depending on what we have and even switch around the vegetables to clear out the fridge for the week.
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This is my favorite easy lunch recipe to grab everything from the deli. Everything is ready to go and I just stack it on the sandwich!
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I always meal prep a ton of chicken and this chicken wrap has been a go-to way I love to use it. It’s creamy, savory, and super flavorful. And, it only takes a few minutes to put together!
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Okay, this pasta salad is fantastic. It uses chicken with BBQ sauce and ranch to add a ton of flavor. It tastes best when eaten cold, so I prep it the night before and my husband and I enjoy it a few days straight for lunch.
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My husband and my kids have been loving this cucumber sandwich. And, I love it because it’s really easy for me to pack in their lunches every week!
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I am a huge fan of anything with caprese flavors and this pasta salad is no different. I love adding fresh tomatoes and mozzarella balls with basil to add a ton of flavor easily to pasta.
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I love avocados, but they are so tricky to get the timing right! Since I always have chicken prepped for the week, I love to make this lunch when I notice my avocados are ripe. Sometimes I even use half an avocado for breakfast and make one wrap with the other half so it doesn’t get wasted.
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It’s not often I can get my kids to eat salad, but they love this recipe with the fresh berries inside! I love it too and also love how easy it has been to prep. It keeps well in the fridge for a few days too!
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I love buying Lavash bread when I’m counting macros for high protein and this lunch recipe has always been a great way to use them up and get a good amount of protein in for lunch. I’ve also used regular tortillas and it works great too! They're such a cheap option when it comes to lunch.
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Orzo is always overlooked when it comes to making lunch, but it’s just as versatile as pasta. I just add store bought pesto with these other easy ingredients to make one of my favorite lunches!
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I was introduced to halloumi cheese a few years back and when I say it’s delicious, I mean it. It has a mellow flavor and tastes somewhat between mozzarella and feta. This wrap has been the perfect way for me to get some in for lunch in an easy way.
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When I’m trying to eat a little healthier, quinoa is a go-to grain for me. This quinoa lunch has been incredible to add to the routine because it’s easy and flavorful. It doesn’t taste like I’m eating healthy!
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Remember that orzo pesto salad I mentioned a few recipes up? Well, I love this pasta salad version just as much, if even not more. It only has 4 ingredients too!
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I love switching between the avocado chicken wrap and this one when I have an avocado to use up. It’s a nice change of flavors, and it gets a good amount of veggies into my lunch. Plus, this wrap is super filling!
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My husband is from Buffalo, so Buffalo sauce is a regular around here. This lunch recipe is incredibly easy when I already have cooked chicken in the fridge and I love to add blue cheese to it to taste like a buffalo wing salad.
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I could eat pasta every day and this recipe helps mix up the taste. It’s creamy, nutty, and full of flavor, and best of all, it’s delicious when you eat it cold.
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My husband says this is his favorite way to use orzo for lunch. I think it’s because it has cucumbers and tomatoes in there together, which are two of his favorites!
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I am a huge brie lover so when I came across this sandwich, I was thrilled. It’s incredibly easy to put together and I finally have a reason to eat more brie without just crackers.
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I can’t deny that I’ve eaten this recipe by the spoonful. It’s so good that I just can’t help it! I will have to say, it’s delicious with some tortilla chips too.
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Have I been buying more cranberry sauce all year round to pretend it’s the day after Thanksgiving just to make this sandwich? You bet! I love how easy it is to make, and I will even use deli turkey when I don’t have fresh leftovers from the holiday.
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Our fav lunch is buffalo wraps, so happy to have found this recipe!
My husband loved these buffalo chicken wraps. So tasty!
These are such great ideas! I wonder, do you happen to have a full list of the dishes? Just a master list we could print and hang to for ideas, then we can go find your recipe?
I can go down each list and take my own but I wondered if maybe you had one already.
Thank you!
I do not have one, but that is a great idea, Lauren!
35 easy cold lunch ideas…I’m only seeing one for Buffalo chicken wraps. Where are the other 34 ??
Hi Kathy, all of the other recipe ideas are listed about the buffalo chicken wrap. If you click on the “get the recipe” button for each recipe, it will take you to that exact recipe you are looking for.
Thank you so much for creating this post! So many of these recipes sound delicious and that’s pretty rare for me. We’re heading out on an 18-day road trip in June and we’re taking our pop-up camper, so these meal ideas were a huge help. Thanks again!
Your list of cold lunch ideas is a lifesaver for busy mornings! I’ve already tried a couple of these recipes, and they’re not only easy to make but also super tasty. Thanks for making meal prep so much simpler! 💪🥪👌
I’m so glad to hear these have been a lifesaver for you, they have for me too! I love hearing that you are enjoying the recipes and they are making meal prep so easy for you. I hope you continue to enjoy the recipes! Thanks for all your feedback.