34 Anti-Inflammatory Lunches You Can Pack for Work (2024)

With these healthy recipes in your rotation, your lunch break just got a lot more delicious and nutritious. From salads and grain bowls to simple sandwiches and smoothies, 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. Pack classic recipes like our Cucumber-Chicken Green Goddess Wrap and Spicy Ramen Cup of Noodles in a chilled lunchbox to give you something flavorful to look forward to at lunch time.

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Anti-Inflammatory Cherry, Beet & Kale Smoothie

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Kale, cherries and beets team up in this powerful anti-inflammatory smoothie. All three of these fruits and veggies contain unique anti-inflammatory compounds that may help stave off diseases associated with chronic inflammation, including cancer, heart disease, arthritis and diabetes. Using packaged steamed beets is a great shortcut here. If you have cooked beets on hand, use those! The cherries help sweeten the smoothie and add a fruity flavor. If you opt for tart cherries, you can balance the tanginess with a small drizzle of honey or maple syrup.

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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

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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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Cucumber-Chicken Green Goddess Wrap

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This quick and easy wrap rolls up and is ready for a casual, stationary lunch or a meal on the go, with protein from chicken to keep you going. The green goddess dressing is creamy with cheese and avocado and bright from lemon and herbs. Cucumber and carrots add color and crunch to this healthy, robust whole-wheat wrap.

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Lemony Lentil Salad with Feta

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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

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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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Anti-Inflammatory Eat-the-Rainbow Vegetable Soup

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This vibrant and wholesome soup recipe helps support your well-being. It’s packed with a variety of colorful vegetables, like tomatoes, which contain lycopene, a phytochemical that may help reduce inflammation. The base of the soup is prepped ahead of time and stored in separate containers. Simply add the broth and heat it in the microwave when you’re ready to eat. If you don’t wish to travel with vegetable broth or don’t have access to a microwave, you can use reduced-sodium bouillon instead and just add hot water.

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Fall Chopped Salad with Spinach, Butternut Squash, Apples & Cheddar

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Who says spinach salads are only for spring? Use autumn's tender crop of fresh spinach and other seasonal vegetables to make this fall salad with roasted butternut squash, apples, cheddar and pecans. This colorful and healthy salad would be a wonderful addition to your Thanksgiving menu, but there's no reason to save it for holidays--serve it along with chicken or pork for a healthy weeknight dinner, or turn it into a main course by adding some chickpeas or chopped chicken or turkey.

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Loaded Cucumber & Avocado Sandwich

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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

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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

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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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Anti-Inflammatory Breakfast Smoothie

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This mango green smoothie gets bright tart flavor from frozen passion fruit, and inflammation-fighting benefits from fresh kale. Dates add natural sweetness without added sugar. While cilantro may not be a typical smoothie ingredient, we love the herbal notes it adds to this smoothie. Feel free to leave it out if that's not your thing—it's just as delicious without.

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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

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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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Arugula & Cucumber Salad with Tuna

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Spicy baby arugula pairs with crisp Persian cucumbers and celery in this refreshing salad. Italian Castelvetrano olives offer a mild, buttery flavor that doesn't compete with the flavor of the tuna. If you want more punch from your olives, Niçoise olives or Kalamata olives work well too.

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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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Anti-Inflammatory Lemon-Blueberry Smoothie

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The kale, hemp seeds and green tea in this bright, lemony smoothie all contain antioxidants that can help fight inflammation. If you can’t find baby kale, baby spinach will work well in its place. Banana adds natural sweetness. If you want it a little sweeter, just a touch of honey will do the trick.

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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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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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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

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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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Anti-Inflammatory Cherry-Spinach Smoothie

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This healthy smoothie is not only delicious--it also boosts your daily dose of anti-inflammatory foods. It starts with a base of creamy gut-friendly kefir and includes cherries, which can lower the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein. Heart-healthy fats in avocado, almond butter and chia seeds deliver additional anti-inflammatory compounds to the body, while spinach offers a mix of antioxidants that sweep up harmful free radicals. Fresh ginger adds zing, plus a compound called gingerol, which preliminary studies suggest may improve inflammatory markers of heart disease if consumed daily.

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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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Green Salad with Edamame & Beets

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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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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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34 Anti-Inflammatory Lunches You Can Pack for Work (2024)

FAQs

What is the healthiest thing to eat for lunch at work? ›

Nourishing bowls

For the base, use grains such as quinoa or bulgur wheat; for protein go for leftover cooked chicken or beans; and add plenty of greens, such as spinach, kale or broccoli and fresh herbs, if you have them. Pack a light dressing and when you're ready to eat, drizzle over and enjoy.

What is the number one food for inflammation? ›

Fatty fish

Fish such as sardines, salmon, and tuna are chock full of omega-3 fatty acids and considered to be anti-inflammatory. One large study 12. Long-term intake of dietary long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and risk of rheumatoid arthritis: a prospective cohort study of women. Ann.

What cheese is anti-inflammatory? ›

Swiss, provolone, Cheddar and Gouda are some examples.

What are 7 healthy lunches? ›

What you eat for lunch is almost as important as what you eat for breakfast.
  • Avocado and egg sandwich. ...
  • Summer rolls with peanut sauce. ...
  • Quinoa pear salad with spinach, cranberries and pecans. ...
  • Protein Salad. ...
  • Loaded Vegetable Sandwich. ...
  • Lentil vegetable soup. ...
  • Chicken burrito bowl with rice and beans.
Aug 30, 2023

What are the 10 worst inflammatory foods? ›

Here are the top ten worst offending foods that can trigger or cause inflammation:
  • Dairy Products. ...
  • Wheat, Rye, and Barley. ...
  • Fried Foods. ...
  • Refined Flour. ...
  • Red Meat. ...
  • Processed Corn. ...
  • Artificial Chemicals and Additives. ...
  • Trans Fats. Trans fats, aside from causing cancer, also create low-density lipoproteins, which feed inflammation.
Dec 9, 2023

How do you flush inflammation out of your body? ›

Healthy eating tips to help reduce inflammation
  1. Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. ...
  2. Choose high-fiber carbohydrates. ...
  3. Eat more fiber. ...
  4. Choose plant-based and leaner animal protein sources. ...
  5. Be conscious of your fat sources. ...
  6. Reduce the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio in the diet. ...
  7. Reduce your sugar intake. ...
  8. Limit or avoid alcohol.
Nov 16, 2023

Can I eat eggs on anti-inflammatory diet? ›

Can You Eat Eggs On An Anti-Inflammatory Diet? Eggs are a highly nutritious food that can provide various anti-inflammatory benefits when consumed as part of a healthy, balanced diet.

What meat is anti-inflammatory? ›

In fact, pasture-raised chickens, pigs, lambs, and cows have higher levels of anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids and lower levels of pro-inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids than corn-fed animals. Research even shows less disease among people who opt for meat from grass-fed animals over conventional.

Is peanut butter good for anti-inflammatory? ›

Are peanuts inflammatory? The short answer is no, and in fact, peanuts and some peanut products like peanut butter have been shown to be anti-inflammatory.

What are the 3 super foods for your gut? ›

Three superfoods for the gut are fermented foods like kimchi and sauerkraut, prebiotic-rich foods like garlic and onions, and probiotic-rich foods like yogurt and kefir. These foods contain beneficial bacteria that support the growth of healthy gut flora and promote digestion and nutrient absorption.

What foods are gentle on the stomach? ›

Foods that are easier to digest include toast, white rice, bananas, eggs, chicken, salmon, gelatine, applesauce, and oatmeal. Symptoms of digestive problems include acid reflux, bloating, or abdominal pain.

What is the best food to eat first thing in the morning for gut health? ›

Adding fiber-rich foods to your breakfast aids digestion by promoting beneficial gut bacteria and also helps you feel satisfied after eating. Fiber-rich foods include vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts and seeds, and whole grains.

What is healthy to eat while working? ›

Consider bringing unsalted nuts, Greek yogurt, low-fat cheese, whole grain crackers, unbuttered popcorn, fruit or raw vegetables to the office. Keep extras in your desk drawer or chilled in the office refrigerator. That way nutritious food is handy if you find yourself hungrier than usual.

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