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  5. 28 Anti-Inflammatory Lunches You Can Pack for Work

28 Anti-Inflammatory Lunches You Can Pack for Work

Leah Goggins headshot
Leah Goggins Reviewed by Dietitian Jessica Ball, M.S., RD June 05, 2022
Reviewed by Dietitian Jessica Ball, M.S., RD
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loaded cucumber and avocado sandwich
Credit: Jacob Fox

With these healthy recipes in your rotation, your lunch break just got a lot more delicious. From salads and grain bowls to simple sandwiches, these lunches are packed with anti-inflammatory ingredients like avocado, spinach and beans that can help keep pesky symptoms of inflammation, like mental fog and digestive distress, at bay. Recipes like our Loaded Cucumber & Avocado Sandwich and Lemony Lentil Salad with Feta are totable classics you'll be excited to reach for when lunchtime comes around.

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Veggie & Hummus Sandwich

Veggie & Hummus Sandwich
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This mile-high vegetable and hummus sandwich makes the perfect heart-healthy vegetarian lunch to go. Mix it up with different flavors of hummus and different types of vegetables depending on your mood.

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Spicy Ramen Cup of Noodles

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Make your own cup of instant soup at home with this vegetarian ramen recipe. Pack several jars at once to take to work for easy lunches throughout the week.

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Black Bean-Quinoa Bowl

Black Bean-Quinoa Bowl
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This black bean and quinoa bowl has many of the usual hallmarks of a taco salad, minus the fried bowl. We've loaded it up with pico de gallo, fresh cilantro and avocado plus an easy hummus dressing to drizzle on top.

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Lemony Lentil Salad with Feta

Lemony Lentil Salad
Credit: Jason Donnelly
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This delicious and healthy lentil salad comes together in just 30 minutes and makes a wonderful hot-weather meal. Serve with whole-wheat pitas, if desired.

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Chickpea Tuna Salad

Chickpea Tuna Salad
Credit: Photography / Caitlin Bensel, Food Styling / Ruth Blackburn
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This chickpea tuna salad with capers, feta and cucumber makes for the perfect lunch to pack for work or school. You can prep the salad the night before (just be sure to keep the spinach separate and dress the salad right before serving).

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Loaded Cucumber & Avocado Sandwich

loaded cucumber and avocado sandwich
Credit: Jacob Fox
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This loaded cucumber-and-avocado sandwich is filled with creamy avocado and crispy cucumbers. Ricotta cheese mixed with extra-sharp Cheddar adds flavor while sliced red peppers offer a splash of color.

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Avocado Tuna Spinach Salad

Avocado Tuna Spinach Salad
Credit: Greg DuPree
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Avocado adds creaminess while sunflower seeds provide texture and crunch in this easy tuna-spinach salad.

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Avocado Tuna Salad

Avocado-Tuna Salad
Credit: Photography / Greg DuPree, Styling / Ruth BlackBurn / Julia Bayless
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Jazz up a can of tuna with this easy avocado tuna salad recipe. Silky avocado adds creaminess that's cut with a hit of acidity from lemon and a briny punch from feta cheese. Romaine hearts and cucumber offer refreshing crunch.

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Vegan Burrito Bowls with Cauliflower Rice

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These meal-prep vegan burrito bowls are healthier and more flavorful than takeout. Make them early in the week for grab-and-go meals when days are busy. We use frozen cauliflower rice, a low-carb substitute for white or brown rice, to cut down on prep time.

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Tomato, Cucumber & White-Bean Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

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This no-cook bean salad is a delicious way to use summer's best cherry or grape tomatoes and juicy cucumbers for a light dinner or lunch. Fresh basil elevates an easy vinaigrette recipe that dresses up this simple salad into something extraordinary.

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Mashed Chickpea Salad with Dill & Capers

Mashed Chickpea Salad with Dill & Capers
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This creamy yet light vegan salad is full of bright, herby goodness. On its own, it's great to serve alongside a sandwich or veggie burger in place of potato salad or coleslaw. You can also make it into a light lunch by adding a handful of arugula to enjoy it as a green salad. Double the recipe and refrigerate to have on hand throughout the week.

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White Bean & Veggie Salad

White Bean & Veggie Salad
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This meatless main-dish salad combines creamy, satisfying white beans and avocado. Try mixing it up with different seasonal vegetables.

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Mediterranean Tuna-Spinach Salad

Mediterranean Tuna-Spinach Salad
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This tuna salad recipe gets an upgrade with olives, feta and a tahini dressing. Served over baby spinach, this is the perfect easy and light lunch or dinner salad.

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Green Goddess Salad with Chickpeas

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In this cucumber, tomato, Swiss cheese and chickpea salad recipe, a healthy green goddess dressing is made from avocado, buttermilk and herbs. The extra dressing is delicious served with grilled vegetables.

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White Bean & Avocado Sandwich

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White beans mash seamlessly into a creamy protein-packed spread for a satisfying healthy sandwich that makes for an easy lunch or dinner. Mix it up by trying it with canned chickpeas or black beans. This vegetarian sandwich recipe is also a fiber superstar: avocado, beans, greens and whole-wheat bread team up to give it 15 grams of fiber, more than half of what most women should aim for in a day.

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Green Salad with Edamame & Beets

green salad with edamame and beets
Credit: Katie Webster
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This big salad is a feast for the eyes and an everyday way to incorporate nutrient-rich beets and plant-based protein from edamame (green soybeans). If you're not a fan of cilantro, mix in freshly chopped basil or dill instead.

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Quinoa, Avocado & Chickpea Salad over Mixed Greens

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Protein-rich quinoa and chickpeas add staying power to this zesty and healthy salad recipe.

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Mason Jar Power Salad with Chickpeas & Tuna

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This power salad will keep you fueled for hours, thanks to 26 grams of protein and 8 grams of fiber. Tossing the dressing and kale, and then letting it stand in the jar, softens it enough so you don't need to massage or cook it to make it tender.

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Quinoa Chickpea Salad with Roasted Red Pepper Hummus Dressing

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This hearty vegan salad is loaded with plant-based power ingredients: chickpeas, quinoa and hummus. We love the crunch of the sunflower seeds and the unexpected flavor of roasted peppers.

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Meal-Prep Turkey Cobb Salad

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Cubed deli turkey takes the place of chicken, while Cheddar replaces blue cheese in this easy Cobb-inspired salad. The protein-rich turkey and cheese, plus eggs and bacon, gives the salad staying power, so you won't get hungry an hour after you eat. Feel free to swap out the turkey for cooked chicken or chickpeas to mix things up. Serve the salad right away or pack it up in individual containers and you'll be set for lunch for days.

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Chopped Veggie Grain Bowls with Turmeric Dressing

veggie grain bowl in a glass to-go container
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In about 10 minutes, you can prep a week's worth of lunches using 4 simple ingredients from your local specialty grocery store. To minimize prep, we're taking advantage of prechopped fresh veggie mix and frozen quinoa (which heats in the microwave in under 5 minutes). These crunchy chopped salad bowls are high in fiber but lower in calories, making them perfect for those following a reduced-calorie diet.

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Couscous & Chickpea Salad

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Cooked couscous and canned chickpeas come together in this quick lunch salad. The basil vinaigrette makes it taste anything but basic! When in season, we recommend adding fresh chopped tomatoes for a spin on tabbouleh.

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Thai-Style Chopped Salad with Sriracha Tofu

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Prep four days' worth of high-protein vegan lunches using just four easy ingredients from your local specialty grocery store, including a veggie-heavy salad mix as a base. Because this salad mix is hearty, you can dress these bowls up to 24 hours before serving to allow the flavors in this healthy chopped salad to marry. If you can't find a hearty mix, go with broccoli slaw or shredded Brussels sprouts.

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No-Cook Black Bean Salad

No-Cook Black Bean Salad
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A classic black bean salad is a must for picnics and potlucks. This vegan version gets its creaminess from blended avocado. Any mix of salad greens will work well, but try arugula if you want to give this hearty salad a peppery kick.

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Green Goddess Quinoa Bowls with Arugula & Shrimp

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We're taking advantage of all the healthy items you can find at your local specialty grocery store to create these healthy meal-prep lunches. To add extra protein (while minimizing prep time), we're using fully cooked quinoa and cooked shrimp, both of which you can find in the freezer section. With a few more simple items, including bottled salad dressing, you'll have all the ingredients you need to make these high-protein lunch bowls in under 20 minutes.

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Farro Salad with Arugula, Artichokes & Pistachios

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Precooked farro makes this dish come together in no time. And you can make it in the same bowl you serve it in, minimizing cleanup!

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Indian Grain Bowls with Chicken & Vegetables

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Look forward to a week of healthy, flavorful lunches with these high-protein meal-prep grain bowls. We're using bulgur wheat, which cooks up quickly and is higher in fiber than rice, but feel free to swap in any whole grain you prefer. The bowls are topped with broiled chicken (from our popular Indian-Spiced Chicken Pitas recipe) and cilantro chutney (see Associated Recipes). To balance the heat of the chutney, dress these bowls with a squeeze of fresh lime juice just before serving.

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Teriyaki Tofu Rice Bowls

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With a handful of shortcut ingredients from your local specialty grocery store, you can prepare an entire week's worth of high-fiber meals in about 15 minutes. Look for precooked wild rice packets to cut down on prep time. Plus, wild rice is a good source of fiber and each pouch of cooked rice heats in 3 minutes. Topping these bowls with prebaked tofu also cuts down on the time it takes to make this quick meal-prep lunch.

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    Everything in This Slideshow

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    1 of 28 Veggie & Hummus Sandwich
    2 of 28 Spicy Ramen Cup of Noodles
    3 of 28 Black Bean-Quinoa Bowl
    4 of 28 Lemony Lentil Salad with Feta
    5 of 28 Chickpea Tuna Salad
    6 of 28 Loaded Cucumber & Avocado Sandwich
    7 of 28 Avocado Tuna Spinach Salad
    8 of 28 Avocado Tuna Salad
    9 of 28 Vegan Burrito Bowls with Cauliflower Rice
    10 of 28 Tomato, Cucumber & White-Bean Salad with Basil Vinaigrette
    11 of 28 Mashed Chickpea Salad with Dill & Capers
    12 of 28 White Bean & Veggie Salad
    13 of 28 Mediterranean Tuna-Spinach Salad
    14 of 28 Green Goddess Salad with Chickpeas
    15 of 28 White Bean & Avocado Sandwich
    16 of 28 Green Salad with Edamame & Beets
    17 of 28 Quinoa, Avocado & Chickpea Salad over Mixed Greens
    18 of 28 Mason Jar Power Salad with Chickpeas & Tuna
    19 of 28 Quinoa Chickpea Salad with Roasted Red Pepper Hummus Dressing
    20 of 28 Meal-Prep Turkey Cobb Salad
    21 of 28 Chopped Veggie Grain Bowls with Turmeric Dressing
    22 of 28 Couscous & Chickpea Salad
    23 of 28 Thai-Style Chopped Salad with Sriracha Tofu
    24 of 28 No-Cook Black Bean Salad
    25 of 28 Green Goddess Quinoa Bowls with Arugula & Shrimp
    26 of 28 Farro Salad with Arugula, Artichokes & Pistachios
    27 of 28 Indian Grain Bowls with Chicken & Vegetables
    28 of 28 Teriyaki Tofu Rice Bowls

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    28 Anti-Inflammatory Lunches You Can Pack for Work
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