Master List of Lunch Box Ideas for Kids

Here are healthy lunch ideas for kindergarten and beyond that don't require reheating. Simply follow the basic formula below to make packing a well-balanced lunch box a breeze!

Jump to:

• Basic Formula for Packing a Healthy Lunch box
• My favorite lunch boxes
• Healthy Lunch Packing Tips
• How to Keep Lunch Cool
• Easy School Lunch Ideas for Kids
• Healthy School Lunch Ideas
• Lunch box Idea for Kids - Peanut Butter Chickpea Salad

Basic Formula for Packing a Healthy Lunch box

When packing lunches, rather than thinking "what foods should I include," which is very broad and can feel overwhelming, first categorize the foods by food groups.

Then using the formula below, select at least one food from each of the categories.

Using this approach will make incorporating a variety of foods simple and doable while ensuring your child gets the nutrition and energy they need.

Protein/Fat + Complex carb (e.g. whole grains, beans, lentils, starchy vegetables) + Fruit and/or Vegetable

My favorite lunch boxes

My two favorites are Yumbox and LunchBots. I like that these bento-style lunchboxes allow more variety and keep items separate so they don't mix together and become a hot mess.

For Yumbox, the one pictured is the Original. The multiple compartments is great if your child doesn't eat that much at school, and it can help encourage variety. But it's difficult to pack larger food items, like sandwiches and wraps.

If you have a hearty eater or want something your child can grow into, then I suggest getting the Panino!

Healthy Lunch Packing Tips

• Aim for balance. Not every single lunchbox has to be perfect, but do aim to include at least 2 components from the formula mentioned above.
• Consider your child. Include at least one safe food that you know your child will eat. If they like their bread, veggies, etc. cut in a certain way, honor their preferences.
• Get your child involved. This is something I've been working hard on lately. It's so much easier for me to do everything by myself, but my toddler absolutely loves to help out in the kitchen.
• Ask your child. Keep in mind though, you don't want to give them too many choices. Offer just TWO choices from the same food group. For instance, "would you like pasta or bread? Banana or raspberries? Chicken or beans? They're more likely to eat what they chose.
• Try at home first. Try not to pack a completely new food as your child may find it intimidating.
• Start serving dinner leftovers cold or at room temperature at home. This also includes foods that are normally eaten warm. You may be surprised to find that they taste fine without being reheated. With repeated exposure your child won't have trouble eating them at school.
• Don't give up! There will be days when the lunch box you packed comes back hardly touched for whatever reason. Don’t panic or get upset. Rather, the best thing you can do is keep offering a variety of foods with their food preferences in mind. Your child will get the nutrients they need to grow and thrive over the course of days and weeks.

How to Keep Lunch Cool

I personally don't like to bother with warming up food or packing in a thermos. Therefore, all of the ideas below can be enjoyed cold with these tips.

• Get an insulated, soft-sided lunch box and use at least 2 cold packs (one on top and one on bottom of lunchbox).
• You can also freeze water bottles. Fill it about ¼ full and lay on its side to freeze. This is especially great for those with narrow openings. In the morning fill it to the top with water and pack alongside the lunch box!
• Prepare cooked food (e.g. chicken, vegetable, pasta) ahead of time so that they're chilled in the refrigerator (make sure it's set at 40°F or below)
• Keep cold foods in the refrigerator until the last minute before packing.
• Put the most perishable foods right next to the ice pack.
• Freeze foods like sandwiches, muffins, fruit, squeezable yogurt tubes, applesauce containers, etc. to keep the food cold.

Easy School Lunch Ideas for Kids

Here are 4 main categories with specific foods that pack well in lunch boxes. By all means, you don't have to include all 4 options into every single lunch.

If you find yourself in a lunch rut, I hope this list makes it easy for you to mix and match an endless number of combinations!

You may also be interested in healthy Lunch Ideas for Daycare or Preschool.

Main Course

To make things even easier for you, all of these options contain protein, fat, and complex carbohydrates. So all you need to do is pick a fruit and/or vegetable. And just like that, you have a balanced meal.

But if you'd like to see specific food items for these 3 food categories, check out my Master list of snack tray ideas!

Note: If your child's school is peanut or nut-free, seed butters are great alternatives.

• Peanut butter and banana roll ups
• Pizza quesadilla
• Bean and cheese quesadilla
• Cream cheese (or ricotta) and strawberry (or other fruit) quesadilla
• Mashed sweet potato cheese quesadilla
• Waffles
• Pancake sandwich
• Muffins
• English muffin pizza
• Deconstructed tacos with meat or beans, cheese, mild salsa, and tortilla
• DIY lunchables with meat or tofu, cheese and crackers
• Dry cereal with cheese or eggs
• Pesto pasta (here's a nut-free broccoli pesto recipe)
• Veggie nuggets
• Bagel and cream cheese
• Master list of Sandwich Ideas
• Salmon quiche
• Salmon patties
• Deconstructed breakfast tacos with scrambled eggs, beans, cheese
• Hard boiled eggs + crackers
• Grilled cheese with store-bought or homemade hummus
• Wrap (try serving deconstructed. For example, shredded chicken with pesto, sliced tortilla)
• Pizza eggs
• Chickpea veggie patties
• Veggie French toast
• Plain Greek yogurt and granola
• Yogurt and cereal or sliced bread to dip
• Veggie Omelette
• Oatmeal balls
• Baked oatmeal
• Broccoli hummus pasta
• Zucchini pesto pasta
• Plain pasta with cheese and/or beans
• Meatballs
• Dinner leftovers

Fruits

• Apples (and applesauce)
• Avocado
• Banana
• Blueberries
• Clementines
• Grapes
• Grapefruit
• Kiwi
• Mandarin oranges
• Mangoes
• Melons (honeydew, cantaloupe, watermelon)
• Oranges
• Peaches
• Pears
• Pineapple
• Strawberries
• Raspberries
• Watermelon
• Freeze-dried fruit and canned fruit in 100% juice are also great options

Tip: Frozen is just as good as fresh fruit. Add straight from the freezer as it will help keep food cold. It will thaw by lunch time.

Vegetables

• Bell peppers
• Beets
• Broccoli
• Butternut Squash
• Carrots
• Cauliflower
• Celery (try ants in a log!)
• Corn
• Cucumber
• Peas
• Snap peas
• Sweet potato
• Cherry or grape tomatoes
• Zucchini

Healthy School Lunch Ideas

Here are the actual lunches I packed for my son. I used the exact list above and aimed to incorporate an item from each of the categories as much as I could.

As a visual person, I find seeing photos of what other mamas pack for their child very helpful. I want to emphasize that this is not meant for comparison.

Spinach pancakes and cream cheese sandwich + raw zucchini and carrots + butternut squash + hard-boiled egg + raspberries + mashed avocado (with lime juice to prevent browning).

Tip: These cookie cutters are a great way to make veggies fun and exciting!

 Banana pb hemp seed roll ups + frozen edamame + raw zucchini and orange bell pepper + beet hummus + apple slices

Zucchini pesto pasta + chicken + fresh berries

Vegetable tortilla roll ups + clementine + roasted parsnips

Roasted cauliflower and chickpeas + cereal + persimmons + whole wheat bread

Vegetable French Toast + frozen edamame + yellow bell pepper + steam roasted broccoli + watermelon

Mini bagel and cream cheese + cherry tomatoes + cantaloupe

Deconstructed  easy chicken salad (added cilantro instead of carrots) + pita bread + apple + tomatoes + frozen peas

Butternut squash and cream cheese sandwich + carrot and cucumber sticks + raspberries + frozen edamame

Cheddar cheese and crackers + peaches + cucumber

Enchilada chicken + corn tortilla + cheese + avocado + mangoes + broccoli + cucumber

Korean Instant Pot Chicken and potatoes + tortilla + zucchini cookie + blueberries

Vegetable oatmeal balls + chickpeas + peas + strawberries + mangoes

Plain pasta + cheese + baked veggie nuggets + cantaloupe

Vegetable omelette + sweet potatoes + freeze-dried strawberries

Peanut butter chickpea sandwich (recipe below) + spinach muffin + hard boiled egg + apple + butternut squash

Turkey rice meatballs (Tastes great cold) + lentil bars + sweet potatoes + raw zucchini and bell peppers.

Did you make this recipe? Leave a rating below and let me know how you liked the recipe! Your feedback means so much to me!