Lunch is a well-deserved break in the middle of the workday. For many people who work full time, there’s a constant temptation to order takeout or visit a drive-through in the middle of the day. But buying lunch every day is expensive, wastes time, and is so unhealthy.
You can do something kind and helpful for your husband that will also be a gift to your family’s budget.
This post is all about lunch ideas and tips to help you pack a great lunch for your husband.
Tips for packing the best manly lunch for your husband:
- Consider what he has access to at work: a fridge? A microwave? If not, make sure the lunch you pack will taste good when eaten cold.
- Get a reusable bag, containers, and an ice pack.
- Pack lunches for your husband that are tasty! If you wouldn’t be excited to eat it, neither is he!
- Include items like lunch meat, cheeses, and other foods that are high in protein
- Make sure to include some variety so he doesn’t get bored of the same lunch every day.
- Avoid dainty girly ideas – these lunches should be hearty enough for construction workers!
- Pack various hot foods and cold lunch ideas to mix it up.
❤️ And don’t forget to feed…yourself! You’ll find plenty of stay-at-home mom lunch ideas here.
27 Best Lunches to Pack for Husbands
Here are 27 manly lunches that will make him want to eat his packed lunch instead of ordering food! These recipes are perfect for construction workers or other jobs where there is no access to a microwave. They include sandwiches, tuna salad, egg salad, and other foods high in protein.
When you’re looking for just the right meal idea to tuck in a lunchbox, you don’t really need a recipe. You just need…ideas! Here are plenty of them.
Sandwiches and wraps
- A turkey and cheese sandwich on whole-wheat bread
- Roast beef and horseradish sandwich on a baguette
- Tuna salad sandwich on rye bread
- Egg salad sandwich on a croissant
- Ham and Swiss cheese sandwich on a roll
- Peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole-wheat bread
- Cream cheese and bacon sandwiches
- Chicken Caesar salad wrap
- Grilled chicken sandwich
Hearty Salads (Ready to eat lunch ideas)
Mason jar salads are a great way to make any salad portable. If you’re looking for healthy lunch ideas, salads are a great thing to put in a lunch box. Make sure you add plenty of protein, like hard-boiled eggs or cooked meats, to make this lunch filling.
- Salad with hard-boiled eggs and ham
- Taco salad in a tortilla bowl
- Greek salad with feta cheese in a pita
- Asian chicken salad with crispy noodles
- Waldorf salad
- Cheese and fruit platter
Cold Cuts and Deli Salad (Some of the best cold lunch ideas)
Add crackers or a roll to any of these for a complete meal
- Ham salad with red grapes
- Pasta salad with diced ham and cheese
- Chicken salad with celery sticks and cheese cubes on the side
- Italian deli meats with black olives and jarred peppers
- Tuna with pickles and avocado
- Hard-boiled egg with diced tomatoes
Hot lunch ideas to put into a Thermos:
A nice-quality thermos can be filled with something hot at breakfast and stay warm for hours.
- Tomato soup
- Chicken noodle soup
- Chili con carne
- Black bean chili
- Baked potato soup
- Macaroni and cheese
- Pasta with meat sauce
Side dishes
It can be hard to think of healthy lunch ideas, so if your husband needs something healthy, a good choice is grilled chicken and plenty of fruits and veggies on the side.
- Cherry tomatoes with ranch
- Tortilla chips and salsa
- Carrot sticks with Caesar dressing
Treats you can add
- Homemade cookies or bars
- Trail mix
- Fruit and yogurt parfait
- Apple slices with peanut butter
- Fruit salad
- Muffins
How to get (and stay!) in the habit of making your hubby’s lunch
Of course, reading a list of lunches is one thing and actually making them is quite another.
How can we make sure that we stay in this money-saving habit and make homemade lunch a regular thing?
Make a plan
Meal planning sounds like a pain but it’s one of one the best ways to make your life at home easier. Planning lunches is a key to your success.
Prep ahead when you can
You can make some of these lunches ahead of time, so you don’t have to worry about making something every morning.
If you’re cooking dinner, make a double batch and pack the leftovers for lunch the next day. If you have time on the weekends, roast a chicken or make a big pot of soup to eat throughout the week.
Set up a meal prep session once or twice a week (a few 30 minutes blocks will do) to make cold salads, chop veggies, make a batch of chili, and prepare other foods that will pack well.
You can make salads like tuna, egg, or chicken salad to store in the fridge for a few days.
Getting what you husband’syour husband’s lunches without spending a fortune
The whole point of making work lunches is to save money, right? So if you can get a lunch box packed and save money on the ingredients, you get bonus points.
Buy food in bulk when you can. You can get great deals on cream cheese, canned tuna, dried pasta, and other essentials for cold lunches at Costco and Sam’s Club. You can also find prepared foods like pasta salad and fruit salad for a reasonable price (but still more than making it yourself.)
Get reusable items if they’re practical. A lunch bag that’s easy to wash and reuse will pay for itself many times over. Leftover containers, a lovely small ice pack, and even cloth napkins will help make this meal extra nice at no extra cost.
What are good lunches for men?
Good lunches for men are the same as good lunches for anyone else. Men might require more calories and bigger portions or more meat, but there is no magic “man food.” (Despite the jokes above about packing a manly lunch!)
There are a lot of stereotypes about the kind of food that men like, but the truth is that most men enjoy a variety of foods.
Final thoughts
The best way to know what your husband likes, then ask him! If he’s been packing his own lunch, there’s a good chance he has some favorite recipes or items that he likes.
If you’re not sure what to pack, sandwiches are a great place to start. Sandwiches with cheese and meat are filling and easy to eat on the go. You can pair them with some pretzels or crackers, sliced fruit, carrot sticks, or apple slices for a healthy you’ve en if you’ve never been much of a cook, you can make these simple and affordable lunches for your husband. With a little bit of planning, he can have a healthy and delicious lunch to look forward to every day.