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Four glass meal prep lunch boxes on a dark wooden table: sesame chicken with brown rice and broccoli, chicken caprese with seeded bread, shrimp fusilli with peas, and rice with green beans and eggs, with nuts and apples

High-Protein Meal Prep Lunch Boxes

Five high-protein work lunches from one 75-minute prep: sesame chicken with rice and broccoli, a chicken caprese box, lemon garlic shrimp pasta and an egg, edamame and green bean rice box. 35–44 g protein per box.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings: 5 lunch boxes
Calories: 510
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Chicken (boxes 1 and 2)
  • 14 oz boneless skinless chicken breast about 400 g
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • salt and black pepper to taste
Sesame glaze (2 sesame chicken boxes)
  • 2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
  • 2 tsp honey
  • 2 tsp toasted sesame oil
  • 2 tsp sesame seeds
Grains and vegetables
  • 2/3 cup brown rice or brown and wild rice blend uncooked, makes about 2 cups cooked
  • 2 oz fusilli dry
  • 3 cups broccoli florets
  • 6 oz green beans trimmed, about 1½ cups
  • 1/2 cup frozen peas
  • 1/2 cup frozen shelled edamame
Shrimp pasta (box 3)
  • 5 oz raw shrimp peeled and deveined
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove minced
  • 1/2 lemon juice and zest
  • 1 tbsp grated Parmesan
  • microgreens optional, to serve
Caprese box (box 2)
  • 1 1/2 oz fresh mozzarella
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
  • 2 slices seeded whole-grain or rye bread
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
  • fresh basil leaves
Egg box (box 4)
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame oil

Method
 

  1. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Cook the rice according to the package directions.
  2. Rub the chicken with olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper and place it on a sheet pan. Spread the broccoli on a second sheet pan with a pinch of salt. Roast the broccoli for 15–18 minutes and the chicken for 18–22 minutes, until it reaches 165°F (74°C) inside.
  3. Meanwhile, place the eggs in boiling water and cook for 10 minutes, until the yolk and white are firm. Transfer to ice water, then peel.
  4. Cook the fusilli in salted water, adding the peas for the last 2 minutes. In another pot, boil the green beans and edamame for 4–5 minutes. Drain everything.
  5. Heat 1 tsp olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and shrimp and cook for 2–3 minutes, until the shrimp are pink and opaque. Toss with the pasta and peas, lemon juice and zest, and Parmesan.
  6. Slice the chicken. Mix the soy sauce, honey and sesame oil, and toss with about two-thirds of the chicken (10 oz raw weight). Keep the rest plain for the caprese box.
  7. Spread the food on trays or in shallow containers to cool, and refrigerate within 2 hours of cooking.
  8. Pack the boxes: 2 sesame chicken boxes with ¾ cup rice, 1½ cups broccoli and sesame seeds each; 1 caprese box with chicken, mozzarella, tomatoes, basil, and the dressing and bread packed separately; 1 shrimp pasta box; 1 egg box with ½ cup rice mixed with the edamame, the green beans, 3 eggs, and the soy sauce and sesame oil.
  9. Refrigerate the boxes and eat them within 3–4 days: shrimp pasta on Monday, sesame chicken on Tuesday, caprese on Wednesday and the egg box on Thursday. Freeze the second sesame chicken box for Friday and thaw it in the fridge the night before.

Notes

Nutrition is the average per box. Per box: sesame chicken 44 g protein and 530 kcal; caprese 42 g and 505 kcal; shrimp pasta 40 g and 435 kcal; egg box 35 g and 550 kcal.
Reheat boxes 1 and 4 until steaming hot. Boxes 2 and 3 are meant to be eaten cold.