5 Benefits of Thermos for Hot Lunch + 30 Lunch Ideas

Happy New Year 2024! Time flies and it's almost March. Since Nikolai is in college, we still need to pack lunches for our selves. Hubby and I love hot lunches and we are using Thermos containers to keep our lunches hot. We have the larger Thermos food containers, but at times I'll still use Nikolai's old ones, lol. I'm sure these Thermos containers can last for a lifetime with proper care.

Let's explore the advantages of packing hot lunches in a Thermos.

1. Preserving Heat for Hours: The primary function of a thermos container is to keep its contents at the desired temperature. Whether it's piping hot soup, a savory stew, or leftovers from dinner, a quality thermos can maintain the heat for hours. 

2. Versatility in Meal Options: Thermos containers provide the flexibility to pack a wide variety of hot meals. From pasta dishes to hearty soups and chili, the options are nearly limitless. This versatility allows you to diversify your lunch choices. I'll share what we usually pack in ours at the bottom of this post.

3. Cost-Effective and Eco-Friendly: Investing in a reliable thermos container is a cost-effective choice in the long run. By packing your hot lunch, you can significantly reduce the need to purchase takeout meals. Additionally, embracing reusable containers aligns with eco-friendly practices, contributing to a more sustainable lifestyle by minimizing single-use packaging waste.

4. Healthier Eating Habits: Bringing your own hot lunch allows you to have greater control over your meal choices. You can focus on incorporating nutritious ingredients and balanced portions, promoting healthier eating habits. 

5. Time-Saving Convenience: The convenience of using a thermos container extends beyond just preserving heat. Packing a hot lunch in the morning saves valuable time during busy workdays. Skip the lines at lunch spots or microwaves in your work place.

Here are 30 Hot Lunch Ideas for Thermos:

1. Pasta
2. Mac and Cheese
3. Soup
4. Grilled Cheese
5. Pizza (cut to fit)
6. Chicken Nuggets
7. Bagel Bites
8. Mashed Potatoes
9. Ravioli
10. Meatballs
11. Chili
12. Gyoza
13. French Toast Sticks
14. Leftovers like Casserole, Steak, Chicken, BBQ Pork, etc
15. Fish Sticks
16. Scrambled Eggs
17. Pancakes
18. Sausages
19. Taco Meat (include tortilla wraps or taco shells on the side)
20. Fried Rice
21. Fried Noodles
22. Pot Roast
23. Quesadilla
24. Spaghetti
25. Jambalaya
26. Red beans or black beans and rice
27. Gumbo
28. Chicken Curry
29. Tortellini
30. Ramen noodles and more

In conclusion, making the switch to using a thermos container for your hot lunch is a small adjustment with big advantages. From financial savings to healthier eating habits and the joy of enjoying a hot, homemade meal anywhere, the benefits are undeniable.

Continue Reading »

How To Pack Hot Leftovers For Lunch & 30 Ideas For Thermos

Happy New Year 2020! It has been a couple of weeks of back to school action since the holidays. We enjoyed them and I hope you did also. Nikolai has requested some warm, comforting lunches especially this time of year, thus, leftovers in a thermos is the ticket.

Here is how I prep in the mornings when I need to send him a hot meal:

• First I fill his thermos with boiling water, close the lid, place it on the counter with the lid on and let it sit for 5 minutes or more while I'm assembling his side dishes such as fruits, veggies and a little snack.
• Heat the hot portion of the meal to piping hot. 
• Then I pour out the hot water and fill the thermos with the hot heated up food. 
• Secure lid tight and it's ready to go. 
• Don't forget to add a fork or spoon into your kids lunchbag.

For non-liquid food such as chicken nuggets or pizza, I add an extra step to my prep. After I dump the boiling water out of the thermos, I lay a piece of folded paper towel in the bottom of the thermos to absorb any moisture while keeping the food hot.
Insulated containers are great for leftovers which are mainly dinner foods! We have also packed breakfast for lunch such as pancakes, scrambled eggs and sausages.

We have several insulated jars which we love, and rotate their use quite often. They are our Lunchbots Thermal, Thermos stainless steel insulated jar and U Konserve insulated food jar. We also still have our Thermos Foogo and Thermos Funtainer which Nikolai used quite often when he was younger, and we still use occasionally.

Here are 30 Hot Lunch Ideas for Thermos:

1. Pasta
2. Mac and Cheese
3. Soup
4. Grilled Cheese
5. Pizza (cut to fit)
6. Chicken Nuggets
7. Bagel Bites
8. Mashed Potatoes 
9. Ravioli
10. Meatballs
11. Chili
12. Gyoza
13. French Toast Sticks
14. Leftovers like Casserole, Steak, Chicken, BBQ Pork, etc
15. Fish Sticks
16. Scrambled Eggs
17. Pancakes
18. Sausages
19. Taco Meat (include tortilla wraps or taco shells on the side)
20. Fried Rice
21. Fried Noodles
22. Pot Roast
23. Quesadilla
24. Spaghetti
25. Jambalaya
26. Red beans or black beans and rice
27. Gumbo
28. Chicken Curry
29. Tortellini 
30. Ramen noodles and more

Here are just a few hot lunches of which I managed to snap pictures. I always include sides with them such as fruits, veggies and snacks in another container (not pictured).

Leftover curry chicken with potatoes, carrots and basmati rice is in the insulated container. I heated the curry and rice in a microwave safe plate and transferred them to his preheated insulated container.

Leftover pasta with ground beef and spinach is in the insulated container. I heated the pasta in a microwave safe bowl and transferred it to his preheated insulated container.

This was packed by dad. Leftover macaroni and cheese is in the insulated container with pieces of baked ham. 

Here is leftover steak and mashed potatoes in the insulated container. I heated the steak and potatoes in a microwave safe plate and then transferred them to his preheated insulated container.

Leftover stir fry vermicelli / mei fun is in the insulated container. I heated it in a microwave safe bowl and transferred it to his preheated insulated container.

Leftover tri-color bow tie pasta with ground beef is in the insulated container. I heated it in a microwave safe plate and transferred it to his preheated insulated container.

There are probably lots of other children that enjoy hot lunches. What hot lunches do you send with your kids?

Continue Reading »

How To Prep & Pack Hot Lunches For School or Work

Happy New Year 2018! For us it has been a week of back to school since the holidays.

If the new year for you is starting with requests for hot lunches, this post might stir your imagination.
Nikolai was always a sandwich loving kid and now he tells me that he only wants hot lunches from now on!
His latest favorites are jambalaya, red beans or black beans and rice, gumbo and chicken curry.

Here is how I prep in the mornings when I need to send him a hot meal:

• First I fill his thermos with boiling water, close the lid, place it on the counter with the lid on and let it sit for 5 minutes or more while I'm assembling his side dishes such as fruits, veggies and a little snack. 
• Then I pour out the hot water and fill the thermos with the hot food. 
• Secure lid tight and it's ready to go. 
• Don't forget to add a fork or spoon into your kids lunchbag.

Insulated containers are great for leftovers which are mainly dinner foods! We do soup, tortellini, pasta, gyoza, chicken nuggets, chili, meatballs, fried rice, fried noodles, mac & cheese, pizza (cut to fit), Jambalaya and more. I'll also have to try breakfast for lunch such as pancakes and sausages soon.

We have several insulated jars which we love, and rotate their use quite often. They are our Lunchbots Thermal, Thermos stainless steel insulated jar and U Konserve insulated food jar. We also still have our Thermos Foogo and Thermos Funtainer which Nikolai used quite often when he was younger, and we still used them occasionally. These insulated containers are perfect for such a mission.

Here are just a few hot lunches of which I managed to take pictures. I always include sides which are fruits, veggies and snacks in another container as shown in the first picture. Actually, the foods looked better than in these photos since I had to quickly snap the photos. The whole idea is for the foods to be hot, and every moment I spend taking the photo is a moment the food is cooling.

Leftover jambalaya is in the insulated container. I heated the Jambalaya in a microwave safe plate and transferred it to his preheated insulated container. Sides are cucumber slices, orange slices, strawberries and Annie's organic crackers in our Lunchbots quad.

Chicken nuggets from the freezer, heated them in a microwave safe dish and transferred them to his preheated insulated container for lunch.

Macaroni and cheese are a favorite of many. We sometimes use alternate varieties of cheese such as Gouda or Asiago if we make it from scratch. I made Annie's Mac & Cheese in the morning, chopped up some leftover ham, tossed it in the pot and when it was hot I quickly transferred it to the preheated container.

The evening before I sent this lunch we had some steak and broccoli cheese rice which he liked so much that he requested it for lunch the following day.

These are just a few examples of the possibilities for getting the new year warmed up. I'm sure you all have some tasty ideas for some nice hot lunches for your family. Remember, the same idea can work for your own lunch especially if you don't have convenient access to a microwave at lunchtime.

Continue Reading »

How To Pack Warm Chicken Nuggets For School Lunch

Most kids including Nikolai, love chicken nuggets. I've previously sent chicken nuggets with him to be eaten at room temp, but he told me that he would prefer them warm. Therefore, I've to address a couple of things while packing nuggets for lunch; one is how to keep them warm till lunch time and another is how to keep them from getting soggy!

We are thankful that we own several insulated lunch bags which allows us to pack hot lunches in some of our lunchboxes and the lunches remained warm till lunch time.

Let's talk about thermos...I've read the pros and cons about sending chicken nuggets in thermos, some mentioned that the nuggets were soggy and some said not! So, I very reluctantly tried the thermos idea. I followed some instructions which I read on other blogs, put them on a paper towel before you microwave them and also use a paper towel at the bottom of the thermos to absorb the moisture. I also had to boil some water, pour the hot water in the thermos, let it sit for a minute or so, dump the water out, quickly dry the inside of the thermos. Then only place the nuggets inside and close the lid. That is way too many steps for me, not to mention time consuming compared with using our insulated lunch bag! I don't mind packing mac & cheese, soups or stew in our thermos, these all worked fine, but  according to Nikolai, the chicken nuggets were soggy and not quite appealing, he would rather eat room temperature nuggets than ones that are soggy.

Here are a few lunches in which I packed chicken nuggets. The ones packed in lunchboxes are also with mac & cheese or with couscous. I don't think that he would like the nuggets to be on top of mac & cheese as they would be if I were to use a thermos! I personally would not like that. He also had sides of fruits, veggies and snacks (ice pack included with these) which are not in picture.

Bento lunch 1: All natural whole grain chicken nuggets, Parmesan couscous topped with a baran sheet. This lunch was packed in a Planetbox Shuttle.

Bento lunch 2: All natural whole grain chicken nuggets with a couple of picks and Annie's organic pasta. This lunch was packed in a Planetbox Shuttle.

Bento lunch 3: Annie's organic pasta in a large silicone cup with a Mickey pick and all natural whole grain chicken nuggets. This lunch was packed in our leak-proof blue water Ecolunchbox.

Bento lunch 4: All natural whole grain chicken nuggets in a thermos and I had to quickly clean the water seen on the mouth of the jar before sending this with Nikolai.

Do your kids love chicken nuggets? My older kid, I mean my husband, loves chicken nuggets as well, LOL.

Here are the supplies that I used to create and pack these lunches.

 

Continue Reading »

Mac & Cheese, Pumpkins and A Goodbyn Bento (2)

Here are a couple of quick and easy lunches Nikolai enjoyed at school last week. I added some cuteness with food picks and baran.:)

Lunch in a Thermos.

 In this bento lunch:

• Annie's organic mac & cheese in thermos food jar and organic grape juice in thermos drink bottle.
• Pumpkin shaped cantaloupe, broccoli florets, Cascadian farm organic granola bar and ranch in small white container. All packed in his Steeltainer container.

Clean out the fridge and pantry bento in Goodbyn bynto 

In this bento lunch:

• Top section: Organic baby carrots and seedless red grapes.
• Middle section: String cheese with a broccoli florets center, organic turkey breast.
• Bottom section: Multigrain crackers.

Here are the supplies or similar that I used to make and pack these lunches.

Continue Reading »

Review: Thermos FUNtainer Food Jar and Bottle, Japanese style fried rice

I was given the opportunity to review one of our favorite products, Thermos FUNtainer. As always, I asked Nikolai to choose his favorite bottle and food jar and he chose the Monsters University set. We received them the same day the movie was released in cinemas, how cool is that! We went to the movie last weekend and Nikolai was very happy to have the drink bottle with him.

We have always carried a drink container for him when ever we were away from home, and I have found that the Thermos bottles seal well enough that I have no worries even dropping one in my handbag to make sure it doesn't get left behind.

We use the food jar to pack a wide variety of foods such as chili, soups, mac and cheese and other pasta favorites, or sometimes tasty left-overs. I usually preheat or cool the container by filling it with hot or cold water and let it stand in there (around five minutes) while I prepare the food, then empty the water and fill with the food.

Both the bottle and the food jar have double wall vacuum insulation for maximum cold temperature retention and they are dishwasher safe. The bottle will keep your drink cold for 12 hours, comes with a hygienic push button lid and a pop-up silicone straw that is easy to open and use. The exterior stays condensation free, non slip, scratch resistant base and has a flip-up carry loop.

The food jar will your food cold for 7 hours or hot for 5 hours, which is long enough to keep Nikolai's food just right until lunch time comes at school.  Both the bottle and food jar are made with an unbreakable stainless steel interior and exterior that will withstand the daily wear and tear. There are so many varieties of the FUNtainer bottles and food jars that can be found at Thermos site.

As you all might know, it is school holidays here, Nikolai follows me to work and at times I will pack him a bento lunch or snack depending on our daily schedule. Here is a simple but yummy lunch packed in his Thermos FUNtainer food jar.

In this bento lunch:

• Leftover Japanese style fried rice with tofu, edamame, seaweed and carrot sticks packed in Thermos FUNtainer food jar.
• V8 V-Fusion juice in Thermos FUNtainer bottle.
• Side of strawberries, baby carrots, butterfly shaped cucumber pieces, butterfly shaped cheddar cheese and limited edition Kellogg's Monsters University cereal.

Here are the supplies or similar that I used to make and pack this lunch.


Disclosure: Thermos generously provided me with the items for review without cost to me. Other than receiving the products, I have not received any compensation to write this review.

Continue Reading »

Bento Snack: Easter basket bento and a thermos bento lunch

Since it is school holidays here, I made this snack for Nikolai to have at a friends house. There is also a thermos bento lunch from last week that I am posting below.

In this bento snack:

• Bagel and cream cheese basket with egg shaped cheddar and mozzarella cheese.
• Frozen organic peas which will be thawed by snack time and couple of cherry tomatoes.
• Egg shaped strawberries and cantaloupe. Packed in Rubbermaid Lunchblox container. Linked to BentoLunch.net

In this bento lunch:

• Leftover lasagna from dinner in thermos.
• Fish shaped cheddar cheese, blueberries, goldfish crackers and fish shaped cucumber slices. I love our squares silicone cups, I use them a lot :)

Here are the supplies or similar that I used to make and pack this snack and lunch.

Continue Reading »

Thermos Food,Lunch Bag, Bento Lunch #226

I woke up late today and made my lazy and easy version of Mac 'N Cheese and transferred it to thermos to keep warm. Included some fruit and goldfish crackers in snack box.Can't always be a supermom!

I'll like to THANK Diana Rambles (bentoblognetwork.com) for emailing me  yesterday about what might have caused my blogging problems and possible ways to fix it. She is always so very kind and sweet and I REALLY appreciate her help!!

Here are the items or similar that I used to make this lunch.

Continue Reading »