Easy Uni Lunch Ideas For Students
- Christina Attrah
- Jan 8
- 19 min read
Updated: Jan 14
If you’re too busy to cook during studies, we’ve got easy uni lunch ideas so you can still get your fuel.
It’s easy to neglect your eating habits while you’re at university. With the stress of assignments, not having much money, and general life, eating healthily can often be pushed to the bottom of the priority list.
We wouldn’t be able to concentrate or kick-ass without food, so we’ve got some easy uni lunch ideas to help you stay on top of a balanced diet (and probs help your studies, too!).
Cheap and cheerful, these uni meal ideas won’t cost you much, but should keep you full up for longer than a packet of biccies…
From quick pasta bowls to veggie soup ideas, you’ll have enough inspo to feed you for the entire month!
Need to stock up your cupboards? Check out the essential uni food shopping list of everything you’ll need.
Jump to:
Uni lunch ideas
Lunch is probably the most important meal of the day (because who gets up early enough for breakfast?).
All these uni lunch ideas are easy to replicate so go on, get cooking!
Make sure you take a look at our food & drink student discounts to make your uni lunching that little bit more affordable. Enjoy student discounts from the likes of Deliveroo, Wagamama, and many, many more.
Wrap ideas for lunch
Wraps are a filling and tasty option for lunch.
With a whole range of fillings available that suit being cosied up in a Tortilla wrap, the world is your oyster. Wrap away!
Avocado, chicken and cream cheese wrap
This is an easy lunch recipe for beginners that doesn’t involve any cooking (unless you want to cook the chicken yourself, which is super easy too!). If you’re ever stuck with what to put in a wrap, this simple lunch full of healthy fats, protein and carbs will keep you going.
Ingredients
Tortilla wraps
Half an avocado
Precooked chicken (or cook chicken of your choice from home to save money)
Season the chicken if you plan to cook it! Use seasonings like Cajun, Mexican, Nando’s Peri Peri rub or conjure your own from a mix of herbs!
Use Vivera plant-based chicken breast as a vegan substitute
Cream cheese
Philadelphia, or Violife for a vegan substitute
Caesar chicken wrap
Caesar chicken wraps are an easy food to make for lunch, as they can be simplified and customised to your heart’s content. The secret is literally in the sauce.
Ingredients
Tortilla wraps
Caesar salad dressing
Cheese (ideally parmesan, but cheddar will do too)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Salt and pepper (if needed)
Cream cheese
Chicken (or vegan substitute)
Chopped lettuce
Any other ingredients of your choice, like peppers or olives
BLT wraps
Bacon, lettuce and tomato. What’s not to love? A uni lunch idea staple, these three main ingredients are super versatile, and a common lunchtime feast. That’s why it’s perfect as a student lunch idea when you’re stuck for one.
Ingredients
Bacon
Tortilla wraps
Chopped lettuce
Chopped tomatoes
Shredded cheddar cheese
Mayonnaise or ranch-based dressing
Crunchy tuna wraps
Student lunch ideas just have to feature tuna. Why? Canned tuna is yet another staple for many. It’s super easy to incorporate into wraps, pasta bakes and much more. Make it a crunchy tuna wrap by adding ingredients like peppers, water chestnuts, lettuce, sweetcorn and any others that take your fancy.
Ingredients
Tortilla wraps
Tin of tuna
Finely chopped onion
Other finely chopped vegetables of your choice:
Celery
Sweetcorn
Peppers
Water chestnuts
Lettuce
Mayonnaise
Mustard (optional)
Easy Christmas wraps
Got leftover Christmas dinner left? Or plan to use some from home? Make this easy student lunch idea into a festive Christmas wrap. We promise the combo is to die for, and we could swear it tastes even better the next day.
Ingredients
Leftover Christmas dinner
Meats and/or leftover main
Trimmings (stuffing)
Sauces (cranberry, mint, apple)
Gravy
Tortilla wraps
Hummus and veggie wrap
A hummus and veggie wrap make for a quick veggie meal when you’re in a hurry or on the go. This Mediterranean-inspired wrap filling is especially easy to prep if you have leftover veggies to use already. Perhaps cook a bit extra for a dinner one time, and use the excess for your lunch.
Ingredients
Hummus
Tortilla wraps
Sliced vegetable mix, or finely sliced vegetables of your choice:
Carrots
Cucumber
Cabbage
Cooked broccoli
Cooked cauliflower
Balsamic vinegar (optional)
Pizza wraps
Pizza wraps can be eaten hot or cold, and either way, it’s super scrumptious. If you love your pizza and need wrap ideas for lunch, don’t pass up a pizza wrap. Plus, you can customise it each time you make it with the “toppings” of your choice!
Ingredients
Pizza toppings of your choice
Pepperoni
Chicken
Bacon
Ham
Pineapple
Green pepper
Mushrooms
…you get the idea!
Tortilla wraps
Chopped or sliced tomatoes
Sweetcorn
Red onion
Cheese/vegan cheese of your choice
Sweet chilli chicken lettuce wraps
If you love sweet chilli-based flavours, then you’ll love this sweet chilli chicken wrap. We’ve given you a recipe for a lettuce wrap, in case you want a healthier alternative, but you can use tortilla wraps to make this too. Don’t forget you can still make this tasty wrap idea with a meat substitute like Quorn pieces, halloumi and more.
Ingredients
Chicken (pre-cooked or cooked from home)
Sweet chilli sauce
Vegetables of your choice:
Sweetcorn
Red peppers
Little gem lettuce
Taco lettuce wraps
When thinking of what to put in a wrap, tacos might not be on the mind. However, they should be, because they’re much easier to prepare than you think.
This is also another lettuce wrap we can’t get enough of too. While you can simply get taco shells, they’re a little pricier than lettuce. Plus, this is a much healthier alternative.
If you love Mexican food, this simple lunch will keep you both satisfied and wanting more. Leave some filling for dinner!
Ingredients
Little gem lettuce
Meat or vegetarian/vegan substitute of choice
Taco seasoning
Bacon (optional)
Cheese (optional)
Easy Fajita wrap
When it comes to wrap ideas for lunch, fajitas might not be number 1 on the list. That’s because fajita wraps can often be a lot of hard work, but not this one! Chop everything up and toss it into a pan with some seasoning — this is the key to making your easy lunch scrumptious.
Plus, this wrap-filling idea is filled with protein, vitamins from the veg, carbs and healthy fats. It’s got all the good stuff to keep you healthy and getting on with your day.
Stuck on how to make it? Just watch our YouTube short on the prep:
Ingredients
Tortilla wrap
Mayonnaise
Guacamole (or smashed avocado)
Red onion
Shredded chicken (or meat substitute)
Spices of choice (fajita seasoning, paprika, cajun)
Pomegranate or red peppers (optional)
Coriander (optional).
Toastie recipes
“What should I eat for lunch?” A toastie of course! These are probably the easiest toasties to make a student out there. They can all be made into vegetarian or vegan-friendly versions too!
For our chosen toastie recipes, we say to pick your cheese of choice, but we highly recommend cheeses such as cheddar, mozzarella or red Leicester. The cheese world is your oyster, though!
Our toastie recipes are easy to make in a toastie maker, but they can be easily prepped on the grill too if you have one. Check out our toastie ideas and super cheap healthy lunch ideas that can still form part of a healthy student meal plan.
Check out the best cheese toastie ideas and fillings.
Cheese and baked beans toastie
When it comes to the building blocks of toastie ideas, baked beans on toast are a student staple, so what better way to make this into a toastie to have on the go instead?
This easy toastie recipe is perfect for those craving a classic. You could even add a dash of Lee and Perrins sauce or HP sauce for a little kick of extra flavour too.
Ingredients
Baked beans
Cheese of choice
2 slices of bread
Butter (optional)
Tuna melt toastie
We’ve talked about tinned tuna being a huge staple in a student kitchen, so what better way than to list it in our top toastie recipes? Tuna melts are incredibly versatile, easy to make and super tasty. Add in extra veg like red onions or sweetcorn for a crunch.
Ingredients
Tuna
Mayonnaise
Red onion (optional)
Sweetcorn (optional)
Cheese of choice
2 slices of bread
Pizza toastie
Reminisce on your childhood with this fantastic pizza toastie recipe. Again, it’s super easy to prep and tastes incredibly delicious. Now, we say two slices of bread here, but we won’t judge if you need 4 to make seconds.
Ingredients
Pizza toppings of choice (pepperoni, chicken, ham, pineapple etc)
Pizza sauce (Marinara sauce or jarred pasta sauce will work well too)
Cheese
2 slices of bread
Leftover bolognese toastie
Bolognese on toast is super underrated, so if you have some left over from the night before, this is the item in our toastie ideas list you simply can’t miss. This toastie recipe literally involves sandwiching the bolognese between two slices of bread and popping it in a toastie maker or grill. Easy peasy!
Ingredients
Leftover bolognese (or any old pasta mix you have left)
2 slices of bread
Cheese
Cheese, tomato and onion toastie
When it comes to toastie ideas, simplicity is key. Three simple ingredients that involve a bit of chopping, then placing between bread and toasting. It’s a classic toastie recipe that’s got some veg, crunch and cheesy goodness. If you’ve got more time on your hands and you’re feeling adventurous, level up this easy lunch idea by caramelising the onions.
Ingredients
2 slices of bread
Cheese
Tomato
Red onion
Fancy a sweeter taste? Use sugar, butter and red onion in a frying pan to caramelise it
Cheese and mushroom toastie
Another super easy toastie recipe idea that involves a quick chop here and there. We would recommend upping the game of most of our toastie ideas by spreading some chutney or caramelised onion in there for added flavour, but alone, it’s still a super tasty and simple lunch idea to prep as a student.
Ingredients
Cooked mushrooms
2 slices of bread
Cheese
Salt and pepper (optional)
Chutney or caramelised onion (optional)
All-day breakfast toastie
Had an all-day breakfast already and you’re craving more? This easy food to make for lunch just involves frying up a few ingredients! And don’t worry, you don’t have to source every toastie filling on the list, just get what you can or what you’re craving!
And if you don’t know how to make scrambled eggs, we’ve got a YouTube short on our channel which shows you how to make scrambled eggs the right way.
Ingredients
Scrambled or fried eggs
Bacon
Sausage
Tomatoes
Mushrooms
Black pudding (optional)
Hash browns (optional)
Baked beans (optional)
Cheese
Fish fingers toastie
This easy toastie recipe is probably one of the easiest on this list. Fish fingers are yet another student staple (or staple for life, if you ask us). Simply cook your desired amount of fish fingers and add cheese. Want to level this up? Add some baked beans for extra flavour!
Ingredients
Cooked fish fingers
2 slices of bread
Cheese
Baked beans (optional)
Pesto chicken toastie
Pesto chicken is typically an easy dinner idea, but if you have some leftovers, why not add it to your toastie too? Add in some greens to make this toastie recipe extra healthy.
Ingredients
2 slices of bread
Pesto
Chicken
Spinach (optional)
Basil (optional)
Cheese
Fancy making your own pesto? Watch this video and learn how to get started:
Vegan all-day breakfast toastie
Just like the all-day breakfast recipe, this is much easier to make than it looks. We recommend looking up a recipe for scrambled tofu — though typically, all you have to do is crumble the tofu into tiny pieces and fry in a pan with seasoning, so it’s pretty easy!
Our combo for a vegan all-day breakfast wrap is second to none, but as always, simply add what you can get and don’t break the bank. It’ll still taste super scrumptious!
Ingredients
Scrambled tofu
Vegan sausages
Vegan bacon
Vegan cheese
Baked beans (optional)
Veggies of your choice (spinach, tomatoes, hash browns)
Chutney spread (optional).
Quick pasta dishes
Wondering what to put in pasta? We have a ton of quick pasta recipes from cream cheese pasta to one-pan pizza pasta! As always, we’ve included a list of ingredients to make each of our easy pasta recipes. Plus, you’ll find most of these are quick and easy pasta recipes with few ingredients. And if you’re brave enough, try the carbonara recipe!
Psst…Want garlic bread to accompany your pasta-based meals? Here’s our super handy video on how to make it:
Cream cheese pasta
Cream cheese pasta is one of those easy pasta dishes you can make with very few ingredients. Philadelphia sauce for pasta (or a vegan alternative) works great, and you can customise it by adding a variety of veg if you want to make it a little healthier too. Top it with more cheese like parmesan for that extra cheesy and nutty flavour.
In fact, pasta with Philadelphia cheese should be your number one choice if you need an easy lunch in a hurry (and you’re craving pasta!).
Ingredients
Cream cheese
Pasta or spaghetti of choice
Parmesan cheese
Olive oil (optional)
Garlic
Chilli flakes (optional)
Salt and pepper
Spinach pasta
Spinach pasta is another pasta with cream cheese recipe. Cooked spinach tastes amazing with cream cheese pasta, and it’s even better with added garlic and chilli flakes (though you can skip the latter if you don’t agree with spice). Again, you can add more of your own ingredients to our spinach pasta recipe to bulk it out.
Ingredients
Pasta or spaghetti of choice
Baby spinach
Cream cheese
Parmesan cheese
Olive oil
Garlic
Chilli flakes (optional)
Salt and pepper
Spinach is also full of vitamins and nutrients for your immune system, so you can make this knowing you're making a healthy choice. Your parents would be so proud.
Spaghetti carbonara
Spaghetti carbonara…easy!? Yes! Hear us out. This cheese pasta recipe shouldn’t be passed up.
You probably think carbonara is hard to make, but it’s not. And that’s because the egg mixing part confuses a lot of people. Here’s how to make a carbonara easily with eggs:
Transfer your cooked pasta straight into the pan and toss it with the cooked bacon.
Pour beaten eggs mixed with parmesan into the pan, and keep everything moving, loosening with splashes of water until you have a silky sauce. Make sure the pan isn’t too hot otherwise the eggs will scramble.
It might take a few goes, and even if the eggs scramble, it’s still a super delicious and amazing pasta meal for one!
Ingredients
Sliced bacon
Pasta or spaghetti of choice
Parmesan cheese, plus extra to top the dish
Olive oil
2 free-range eggs
Bacon and tomato spaghetti
Bacon and tomato are a match made in heaven and make for quick pasta recipes. That’s why it’s part of our quick pasta dishes that are easy and cheap to make. Simply toss it all in a pan once your pasta is cooked and top it with your favourite cheese.
Ingredients
Pasta or spaghetti of choice
Olive oil
Sliced bacon
Onion
Garlic
Paprika
Chopped tomatoes
Grated parmesan or other cheese to serve (optional)
Spaghetti bolognese
Bolognese is one of the simple pasta recipes to make, like, ever. Why? Because everyone makes it differently, meaning you can make it how you’d like! We’ve provided the base ingredients to get started.
Ingredients
Premade bolognese mix, or:
Mixed herbs
Tinned chopped tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
Tomato puree
Garlic
Pasta or spaghetti of choice
Onions
Olive oil
Minced beef (or veggie/vegan substitute)
Parmesan or other cheese to serve (optional)
Tuna pasta
One of the easy pasta recipes on this list, make it as though you’re about to make a tuna sandwich, but pop the mix into some cooked pasta instead! It’s a super quick and easy pasta recipe with few ingredients, so you won’t have to spend tons of time cooking your lunch. It’s the perfect cheese pasta recipe.
Ingredients
Pasta or spaghetti of choice
Tuna
Mayonnaise
Salt and pepper (optional)
Sweetcorn (optional)
Meatball pasta bake
Pasta bakes are music to a student’s ears. They’re easy pasta recipes, and only involve mixing everything together and popping it in an oven to bake through and melt the cheese. Here is our meatball pasta bake recipe, a cheese pasta recipe enriched with meatball goodness (which can also be subbed for veggie/vegan versions too).
Ingredients
Pasta or spaghetti of choice
Meatballs (fresh or frozen)
Pre-made tomato pasta sauce
Mixed herbs
Garlic
Onion
One pan pizza pasta bake
You only need a minimum of five ingredients for this simple one-pan pizza pasta bake recipe. So how is this a one-pan recipe? Begin by combining the pizza sauce, tomatoes, a bit of water, and pepperoni in the pan. Over high heat, bring the mixture to a boil. Cook until al dente and pop in a dish to bake with your toppings. Easy peasy!
Ingredients
Uncooked pasta
Tinned pizza sauce (marinara works too)
Tinned chopped tomatoes
Sliced pepperoni
Veggies of choice:
Spinach
Sweetcorn
Mushroom
Peppers
Red onions
Cheese of choice
Marmite pasta
This is certainly a love-it-or-hate-it dish in our easy pasta recipes list, but hear us out. Sometimes, we don’t have enough left in our cupboard at the time, so what better way to make something out of what we’ve got?
Simply cook your pasta, add your marmite and top with cheese. It’s as easy as that…it’s just not for the faint of heart.
Ingredients
Pasta
Butter
Marmite
Cheese
Chicken pesto pasta
Chicken pesto pasta is one of those boujee-like meals that’s actually an easy lunch idea to prepare. Simply cook off the chicken, add your pesto, and any other veg and stir in your cooked pasta. It works great as pasta for one too.
Ingredients
Pasta or spaghetti of choice
Chicken or substitute
Jar of pesto
Extra veggies of choice (optional).
Vegetarian soup recipes
For our soup recipes, we do recommend investing in a blender to cream everything together. Plus, it makes for easy storage too. Use our home student discounts to get some cash off a blender if you need one. Otherwise, see if you can borrow one from a friend, or housemate, or ask for one for your birthday or gifting season!
Carrot and coriander soup
Carrot and coriander soup is a warming soup to have in the colder months, particularly if you add some spices like turmeric into it. Simply bring everything to a boil (or roast your root veggies for a deeper flavour), then blitz everything together.
Ingredients
Olive oil
Onion
Cumin
Turmeric
Coriander (fresh)
Carrots
Vegetable stock
Potato to thicken
French onion soup
French onion soup might sound daunting to make, but it’s anything but. This easy veggie soup recipe is perfect for students who need something easy to cook that’s both filling and hearty to eat too.
Ingredients
Oil
Thinly sliced onions
Garlic
Marmite
Thyme (fresh or dried)
Light brown sugar
Balsamic vinegar
Vegetable stock
Cheese (to top — optional)
Easy miso soup
One of the easiest vegetarian soup recipes out there has to be miso soup. While you can get tons of other ingredients to increase its umami, we’re all about quickness and efficiency. If you’re still after a flavourful yet light miso broth, this is the recipe for you.
Ingredients
Vegetable stock
Nori (optional)
White or yellow miso paste
Green veggies of your choice
Spring onions (optional)
Firm tofu chopped into cubes
Creamy roasted tomato soup
Tomato soup is the ultimate staple for students. But if you’re sick of Heinz soup, we don’t blame you. One of our quick veggie meals on this list involves roasting all the veggies and blending it together with some stock and tinned tomatoes.
Plus, we say to add cream, but if you’d rather not, then don’t! It’ll still taste incredible without it.
Ingredients
Onion
Celery (optional)
Garlic
Tinned chopped tomatoes
Vegetable stock
Roasted tomatoes
Roasted red onions
Mixed herbs
Double cream
Spicy cauliflower soup
This is one of the more warming vegetarian soup recipes on the list that’s a staple in a healthy student meal plan. Why? It’s got tons of vitamins, is perfect for all diets and is super tasty. Again, you can sub out the yoghurt, replace it with coconut milk or remove that step altogether.
Ingredients
Cauliflower
Olive oil
Onion
Garlic
Curry powder (intensity of choice is yours)
Vegetable stock
Dash of lemon juice (optional)
Greek yoghurt or coconut milk to thicken
Thai red curry soup with butternut squash
If you’ve been craving Thai food, then we have easy food to make for lunch right here. Using Thai red paste and a few other staples in Thai cuisine, you can make your very own soup that’s hearty, warming and rich in flavour.
Ingredients
Thai red curry paste
Onion
Coriander
Ginger
Garlic
Chillies (optional)
Roasted or boiled butternut squash
Vegetable stock
Potato and spring onion soup
One of our best light lunch ideas has to be this potato and spring onion soup. It’s super cheap and simple to prepare. Simply boil the potatoes up, mix up some veggie stock and either garnish with the spring onions or add as many to the soup as your heart desires.
Ingredients
Butter
Spring onion
Potatoes (large)
Vegetable stock
Double cream
Easy Vietnamese Pho soup
Pho soup might seem intimidating, but we have a simplified version that you’ll love. Using the main base ingredients, you can transform this Vietnamese soup into a student lunch staple, much like our other vegetarian soup recipes. If you’d prefer to add meat, simply substitute the tofu for your meat of choice and use chicken stock instead.
Ingredients
Dry rice noodles (or noodles of choice)
Oil
Fried tofu
Garlic
Vegetable stock
Salt and pepper
Ginger
Soy sauce (optional)
Garnish:
Spring onions
Bean sprouts
Coriander
Limes
Easy quick veggie ramen
Ramen? Quick veggie meals? With our recipe, you can make ramen a super easy and flavourful dish to eat for lunch or dinner.
Simply fry off your garlic and ginger, add your stock and noodles to cook, and then top with your favourite veggie ingredients. Again, if you’d prefer to add some meat, you can!
Ingredients
Vegetable stock
Garlic
Ginger
Noodles
Vegetables of choice (broccoli, mushrooms, spinach)
Boiled eggs
Toppings:
Spring onion
Carrots
Sriracha sauce (optional)
Simple vegetable broth
You can turn all of your leftover vegetables into soup! Our ingredients list is simply a guide on what to include (though we highly recommend keeping in the garlic and stock for added flavour). It’s one of the easiest vegetarian soup recipes on this list, as it’s all about using what you’ve got. Chop into smaller pieces and don’t blend for a chunky soup if you’d like!
Ingredients
Cooking oil
Celery
Mixed herbs (fresh or dried)
Potatoes
Carrots
Onions
Ginger
Garlic
Vegetable stock
Noodles or pasta (optional)
Nutritional yeast (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste.
Vegetarian sandwich ideas
Need inspiration for vegetarian sandwiches? We have lots here to choose from. They’re quick veggie meals for those on the go and are filled with some pretty healthy ingredients to keep you going throughout the working day.
Egg and mayo sandwich
Egg and mayo is a classic sandwich many students love. Skip the Tesco’s meal deal and make your very own vegetarian sandwiches at home, starting with these super simple eggs and mayo ingredients.
Ingredients
2 slices of bread
Boiled eggs
Mayonnaise
Salt and pepper (to taste)
Greek salad sandwich
Love a salad? Salad sandwiches are by far some of the easiest sandwiches to prepare and make for some seriously tasty quick veggie meals. Simply chop everything up into small pieces, mix with a little dressing (we love a combo of olive oil and lemon as it’s super simple) and sandwich the mix in between your bread of choice.
Ingredients
2 slices of bread
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Spinach or lettuce
Feta
Red onion
Olive oil
Lemon (optional)
Avocado and tomato sandwich
Too tired to chop up ingredients for a full-blown salad? Avocado and tomato sandwiches are easy to make at home and only require a list of four ingredients. Three if you skip the pepper. Plus, you can add other sauces on top too if you wish, like sriracha or mayo.
Ingredients
2 slices of bread
Sliced avocado
Butter or cream cheese
Pepper to taste
Cucumber sandwich with cream cheese
Love cream cheese? Cucumber and cream cheese sandwiches are a seriously simple lunch you can make in a flash. Requiring only 3-4 ingredients, you can get a quick healthy lunch prepped at home.
Ingredients
2 slices of bread
Sliced cucumber
Cream cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Halloumi and sriracha sandwich
Halloumi, AKA squeaky cheese, is super tasty and not to be missed out on for a vegetarian sandwich idea. Simply grill or fry off the halloumi before adding it to your sandwich, place any other ingredients you’d like, and drizzle with sriracha and mayonnaise.
Ingredients
2 slices of bread
Fried or grilled halloumi
Sriracha sauce
Salad ingredients (optional):
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Red onion
Lettuce
Mayonnaise
Vegan tempeh sandwich
Tempeh isn’t for everyone, but if you’re a fan and you’re looking for vegan sandwich ideas, then this is worth trying out. Remember to fry off the tempeh before having it in a sandwich (tempeh must be cooked before it’s eaten, both to kill the culture and to add moisture), slice some avo on there for some healthy fats, and top with your favourite sauces and some lettuce (optional).
Ingredients
2 slices of bread
Fried tempeh
Sliced avocado
Vegan mayonnaise
Hot sauce (optional)
Lettuce or rocket
Falafel and apple sandwich
Don’t hate this vegetarian sandwich idea before you’ve tried it. This chickpea-based staple in many vegetarian and vegan diets goes incredibly well with the sweetness and texture of apples. And even better — it’s an easy and simple lunch to prepare.
Ingredients
2 slices of bread
Pre-made falafel
Lettuce
Red apple
Fruit-based chutney (optional)
Sliced cucumber
Vegan meatball sub sandwiches
Want a decadent vegan or vegetarian sandwich idea? Cook off some vegan meatballs and prep it in a way you would for a meatball marinara sub. You can heat up the marinara and add it on directly, or season it up with some spices and herbs in a pan. Mix in your meatballs so they get coated in all the tomato-y goodness too.
Ingredients
Baguette
Cooked vegan meatballs
Marinara tomato sauce
Vegan cheese
Seasoning for marinara
Garlic powder
Mixed herbs
Paprika
Chilli powder (optional)
Easy Banh Mi sandwich
Bahn Mi makes for some of the best vegetarian sandwich recipes. That’s because Vietnamese cuisine is highly veggie and vegan-friendly. While this might seem like a lot of ingredients, a healthy student meal plan can consist of other meals that involve these ingredients too. It’s a slightly more time-consuming sandwich to prepare, which is why we recommend making it in batches so you can use it for future lunches or dinners too.
Ingredients
Burger buns, baguettes or 2 slices of bread
Grated carrots
Sliced cucumber
Honey
Apple cider vinegar
Greek yoghurt
Mayonnaise
Coriander
Thickly sliced tofu
Corn starch (to make tofu crispy)
Salt and pepper to taste
Peanut butter and banana sandwich
This sweet yet healthy lunch is packed with protein, vitamins and minerals. Bananas contain tryptophan, an amino acid which the body converts to the feel-good brain chemical serotonin. Plus, tasty foods make us feel good, so that’s a double win in our books. If you’re not a fan of peanut butter, consider subbing for honey for an extra-sweet sandwich.
Ingredients
Banana
2 slices of bread
Peanut butter
Cinnamon
Cooking oil (optional — only if you plan to brown both sides of the sandwich).
For more tips on how to elevate a simple sandwich - check out this video:
Vegan lunch recipes
Don’t worry vegans, we haven’t forgotten about you!
With 4.1% of UK students saying they’re already vegan and another 10% reporting that they plan to adopt more of a vegan diet soon, we’ve got some of the easiest vegan student lunch ideas to help you out. Here's a basic pasta recipe to get you started:
Mushrooms on toast
It’s simple, but oh so delicious, and vegan. A speedy brunch or lunch idea you can easily chomp between lectures.
Ingredients
Chestnut mushrooms (quartered or sliced)
Garlic powder
Vegetable oil or any other neutral oil
Bread (any kind you like or have in the cupboard)
Tip the mushrooms into a bowl and season with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Stir everything together and drizzle over a bit of the oil.
Preheat the air-fryer or oven to 200c and place the mushrooms into the basket/tray and cook for 12-15 minutes. Mix halfway to even out the cooking.
Toast the bread, tip the mushrooms over it, and voila! You have mushrooms on toast.
A quick and easy vegan dish that is filling and good for the soul.
Ingredients
Soy sauce
Peanut butter
Lime
Sesame oil (or any you have)
Spring onions
Chilli
Garlic
Dried rice noodles
Carrot
Creamed coconut
Mix the soy, peanut butter, and the juice and zest of one lime. Heat oil over a medium-heat pan and add the spring onions, chilli and garlic with some salt. Cook for 3 minutes.
Pour in 450 ml of water, bring to a boil and crumble in the creamed coconut. Stir to dissolve and add the peanut butter mixture from step 1. Mix well and add the noodles and carrot strips. Season to taste.
Curried tofu wraps
Who said wraps couldn’t be vegan? Not us!
Ingredients
Red cabbage shredded
Dairy-free yoghurt
Tofu cut into cubes
Tandoori curry paste
Oil
Onions sliced
Garlic cloves sliced
Chapatis
Start by mixing the cabbage and yoghurt, season and set aside. Toss the tofu with the curry paste and cook in the oil until golden. Remove from pan and add onions and garlic, cook for 8-10 minutes until soft, then add tofu back to the pan.
Warm up the chapatis and top with your tofu mixture. Enjoy!
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