Is it lunchtime yet?
It's never too late to enhance your skills in the kitchen. All you need to kick things off are the right ingredients and some easy lunch recipes for beginners. Everyone has to start somewhere, right? Even if you cut cucumbers like Kendall Jenner, it’s still possible for you to become the chef you've always dreamed of being. And not only can you learn how to make some delicious meals with YouTube and TikTok recipes, but your plates can be colorful and totally Instagram-worthy, too.
Nailing down some quick and easy lunch meals is the first step. While breakfast may be known as the most important meal of the day, you probably look forward to lunch while working from home. With some of these 15 easy-to-follow recipes, you can make yourself gorgeous lunches that you'll want to share with your friends and use to impress your coworkers. The first step is deciding on what you want to eat. It could be something healthy like a salad filled with all your favorite vegetables, or a nostalgic classic like homemade mac and cheese.
Whatever you decide to whip up in the kitchen, just remember presentation is key, and you’ll want to snap a pic for the 'Gram before you dig in. The comments and likes that start rolling in will taste even sweeter knowing that you made that meal all by yourself.
Avocado toast is a quick and extremely tasty treat you can make for yourself. This tutorial has 10 different ways you can make avocado toast, but the "everything but the bagel" recipe with an egg on top will truly make you drool. To add more color to your plate, try this roasted tomato version of avocado toast from Yummly.
A great lunch prep you can do at the beginning of the week is make yourself some colorful mason jar salads, which are perfect to grab and go. Not to mention, having everything in a mason jar instantly makes it Instagram material. You could even make some mason jar instant noodles from Yummly to enjoy after your salad.
Instead of heating up a frozen pizza, make yourself this pear and gorgonzola flatbread from TikToker @ezmealswithjen. It's a sweet and savory alternative to your usual 'za, and can be made in less than 10 minutes with an air fryer. There are plenty of other flatbread recipes out there to try as well, like this buffalo chicken flatbread or vegetable pesto flatbread.
Bringing it back to the basics, a grilled cheese is probably the easiest thing you can make for yourself when you're starting out. If you've nailed down the traditional grilled cheese, you can start adding in some extra ingredients like tomatoes and bacon for more flavor. Serve up your grilled cheese next to a bowl of tomato soup for a solid combo. Yummly has a really great roasted tomato soup recipe that is easy to prepare.
Another meal prep idea comes from TikToker @stayfitmom_krista. This buffalo chicken bake can be prepared at the beginning of the week in individual bowls, and enjoyed whenever you’ve got time for lunch. If you’ve got pizza dough, you could even make this version of a buffalo chicken bake that looks like a homemade Hot Pocket.
With a good panini press, you can make some seriously yummy sandwiches for lunch. Everything just looks better with those panini press marks. If you need an easy recipe, this chicken pesto one is a solid start or this Italian panini that only takes 15 minutes to make.
For something that's colorful and delish, opt for a quinoa salad. You might need to get an instant pot for this one if you don't already own one, but other than that, this recipe is easy peasy. Add some of your favorite vegetables that aren't included in the initial recipe to make it your own, or some extra protein like the pork in this pork and quinoa salad from Yummly.
Recreate your go-to Chipotle order with this burrito bowl recipe. It's super easy to follow, and the best part of all is that you can add as much guacamole as your heart desires. All you need is a good guacamole recipe to follow.
If you want a lunch that's bright and colorful, this watermelon radish salad is for you. The vibrant pink color will stand out in any Insta pics you snap, and you know the taste is just as great. With any leftover watermelon, you could make this watermelon salsa to enjoy with your fave chips.
It wouldn’t be a list of easy lunch ideas without including Emily Mariko’s salmon bowl recipe from TikTok. Mariko went viral for her salmon rice bowl in 2021 using ice to heat up her leftover rice. Whenever you have leftover rice and salmon in the fridge, you can also make this quick and easy bowl to enjoy at home. If you’ve got tuna instead, there’s also a tuna rice bowl recipe on Yummly for you.
Beef stew is a super easy lunch to whip up. All you really need is a good slow cooker. Get all the ingredients from the store, and you're good to go. You can also make a big pot and save any leftovers for lunch the next day. Don’t eat meat? No problem! Yummly has this vegan “beef” stew recipe you can make instead.
According to TikToker @mealsandmunchies, this recipe is “quick, delicious, and you only need to buy five things to make it.” When you’re in the mood for something cheesy — aka most of the time — get to the kitchen to make this cheesy tortellini with beef. To add more color to your dish, throw in some red peppers like this tortellini bake recipe from Yummly.
You can't go wrong with mac and cheese for lunch. Ditch the boxed mac and cheese and instead make some of your own with this drool-worthy recipe. For something with a little more spice, try this chorizo mac and cheese recipe with pepper jack.
This mini vegetable quiche recipe is a great one to keep on hand if you like to meal prep. Make yourself a whole batch of quiches at the start of the week, and you'll have something to enjoy for lunch every day. Of course, you can also just make a regular quiche and eat a slice whenever you’re hungry.
Chicken salad is always a great lunch choice. You can eat it as is, or make a sandwich. This tutorial has not only one simple recipe, but three that you can choose from. Of course, if you’re vegan, there’s also a chicken salad recipe for you as well.
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