Quick Healthy Lunch Ideas for Work and College

Always feel like you are running errands with no time to think about cooking? We are here to help! We broke down and simplified quick and healthy lunch recipes for work. The recipes require minimal time, and you can go do other things while they cook in the oven.

Read our list of healthy easy lunch ideas for work or college:

Chicken, red and yellow peppers, zucchini and red onion cut in cube shaped pieces

Greek Chicken Bowl In the Oven

Ingredients

  • Chicken breasts
  • Red and yellow pepper
  • Zucchini
  • Red onion
  • Olive oil
  • Lemon juice
  • Garlic
  • Oregano
  • Feta cheese

Get ingredients near GEC Viva.

Get ingredients near GEC MG & Pearson.

Get ingredients near GEC Burnaby Heights.

Recipe

  1. Chop everything! Chop chicken breasts, peppers, zucchinis, red onion, and feta cheese in cubes. 
  2. Add all chopped ingredients on a large sheet pan and mix with olive oil, garlic, oregano and salt to taste — except Feta cheese.
  3. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes at 375 F until the chicken is fully cooked. Then, divide it into meal prep containers and add feta cheese on top.

Pro-tips

  • You can use this baked chicken and veggie mix as a salad topper. Simply use a salad base and add in your baked dish with some more olive oil.
  • This dish can also be put in tortilla wraps for a different take on the recipe!
pasta salad with greens and feta cheese in a bowl

Mediterranean Pasta Salad

Ingredients

  • 1 cucumber
  • ½ Sliced kalamata olives
  • 1/3 cups of sun-dried tomatoes
  • 6 tbsp Feta Cheese
  • ½ of a red bell peppers
  • 4 cups of lettuce
  • 250 grams of cherry or grape tomatoes
  • ½ a Red Onion
  • Avocado pieces (1)

Get ingredients near GEC Viva.

Get ingredients near GEC MG & Pearson.

Get ingredients near GEC Burnaby Heights.

Dressing

  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic (or garlic powder)
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • Pepper to taste

Recipe

  1. Boil the pasta as you always do. Drain, and put in a large bowl.
  2. Whisk together all dressing ingredients.
  3. Chop or mince all salad ingredients as instructed.
  4. Put the veggies alongside the pasta and mix with the dressing. Enjoy your quick healthy lunch!
Tuna salad with tuna, onions, greens and mayo in a bowl

Tuna Salad

Ingredients

  • 2 cans of flaked tuna
  • 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
  • 1/4 cup diced celery
  • 1/2 chopped red onion
  • 1 tbsp mustard
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 eggs (optional)
  • Lettuce leaves
  • 1 sliced cucumber
  • 1 sliced apple (optional)

Get ingredients near GEC Viva.

Get ingredients near GEC MG & Pearson.

Get ingredients near GEC Burnaby Heights.

Recipe

  1. Put drained tuna in a bowl with Greek yogurt, celery, onion, mustard, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix well.
  2. Boil the eggs and peel them. Cut eggs in half or chop them.
  3. Toss tuna mixture, eggs, cucumber, chopped lettuce and apples in a bowl. Mix– your healthy and protein packed salad is ready!

Pro-tips

  • Spread the tuna salad mix in between two slices of bread for a sandwich! If you go with the sandwich option, it may be a good idea to take off apple and cucumber slices from the mix as they may not work the best with bread.
Chickpeas, quinoa, cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onion diced in a reusable glass container

Quinoa Chickpea Bowl

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cooked chickpeas
  • 1 cup quinoa
  • 1 large cucumber (or 3-4 small)
  • 24 cherry tomatoes
  • 1 small red onion
  • 7 oz cubed feta – (200g)
  • Sea salt
  • Black pepper

Dressing (4 servings)

  • 1 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 Tbsp tahini
  • 1 Tbsp honey
  • 4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Get ingredients near GEC Viva.

Get ingredients near GEC MG & Pearson.

Get ingredients near GEC Burnaby Heights.

Recipe

  1. Cook quinoa as instructed on the package. When it cools down, dump it all in a bowl.
  2. Wash and cut all veggies.
  3. Mix the dressing ingredients. But, do not pour it in!
  4. You can divide the mixed ingredients in 4 different containers as this recipe produces 4 servings to cover you for 4 days/lunches!
  5. Only pour the dressing on the day of your lunch or before eating to prevent sogginess. This is one of the best healthy lunch ideas for work!
udon noodles with chicken and green beans in a bowl

Garlic Chicken Udon

Ingredients

  • 1 grated garlic clove
  • 8 oz udon noodles
  • 8 oz shredded chicken
  • 1 cup chopped celery
  • 1 cup bean sprouts
  • Sesame seeds and salt to taste

Sauce

  • 1/4 creamy peanut butter
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 unseasoned vinegar rice
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil

Get ingredients near GEC Viva.

Get ingredients near GEC MG & Pearson.

Get ingredients near GEC Burnaby Heights.

Recipe

  1. Whisk all sauce ingredients but the vegetable oil. Add vegetable oil gradually and whisk more.
  2. Cook noodles as instructed in the package and drain.
  3. Boil the chicken until soft. Shred the chicken with a fork.
  4. Chop veggies and put in a bowl with the noodles, chicken, and combine with 3/4 of the dressing.
  5. Drizzle remaining dressing, salt and sesame to taste. Enjoy easy healthy lunches!

Where Can I Find the Ingredients?

Lucky you, there are so many local grocery stores near GEC residences, all featuring foods and spice from all over the world! We linked some stores below to help you find the ingredients you need.

GEC Viva

GEC Pearson & Marine Gateway

GEC Burnaby Heights

Thank you for reading our healthy work lunch ideas. Here are some other blog posts by GEC that may interest you: