Indian Lunch box ideas | Kids & Adults

Indian Lunch box ideas:

Indian lunch box ideas – two week’s kids lunch box and adult lunch box ideas with recipe links and pictures enough to inspire you!

For Kids

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Week 1

An easy sandwich, that kids would love with cheese and vegetables. Choose fiber rich bread and digestive biscuits for healthier choice. You can choose any sandwich of your kid’s favorite from my recipe index page.

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 5 mins

Grilled veg sandwich recipe

Paneer with rich buttery gravy goes well with the soft rotis, that will be kid’s favorite!

Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Roti recipe

Paneer butter masala recipe

Mixed veggies cooked with masalas and topped with butter with pillow soft buns! You can chop the vegies the before day and use store bought burger buns.

Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Pav Bhaji recipe

Soak basmati rice and channa overnight and morning you can make this pulao easily! Healthy for your kids too!!

Prep time: 12 Hrs

Cook time: 25 mins

Easy Channa Pulao recipe

Soak channa overnight, make atta, chop onion tomato while channa gets cooked and this lunch box will be ready! Healthy for your kids too!!

Prep time: 12 Hrs

Cook time: 30 mins

Roti recipe

Channa Masala recipe

Week 2

Another kids favorite nutella stuffed flat bread. If you want you can replace nutella with just sugar/ Jaggery and ghee mix. Tip to prevent apple from turning dark colour –
soak in cold water with a tsp of lemon juice for 10 mins. Drain and pack.

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 10 mins

Nutella Chapati recipe

I soak my pasta 1 hr in warm water and cook the pasta quickly. Pasta sauce can be made prior or use store bought ones.

Prep time: 60 mins

Cook time: 10 mins

Easy Homemade Pasta Sauce Recipe

Mixed veggies can be cut prior. I make this pulao in kadai itself, so makes the job easier.

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Veg Pulao recipe

I make mini pooris to make it more appealing for him, channa masala is his favorite for poori…

Prep time: 15 Mins

Cook time: 40 mins

Puri recipe

Channa Masala recipe

Jeera rice and aloo gobi makes an awesome combo and your kid will love it too

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 40 mins

Jeera Pulao recipe

Aloo Gobi recipe

Lunch box ideas

Week 1

Tangy gooseberry curd pachadi mixed with ghee and rice, delicious purple cabbage poriyal and creamy curd rice with pickle. Cabbage can be cut a day before and refrigerated.

Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Purple cabbage poriyal recipe

Gooseberry curd pachadi recipe

Curd rice recipe

Flavorful and healthy greens masiyal with curd rice, simple yet healthy. Can clean and keep the greens refrigerated the before night.

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Keerai masiyal recipe

Curd rice recipe

Coriander leaves thogayal is very very handy if made prior day itself. Easily we can pack it by mixing with rice and sesame oil. Ladies finger also can be cut and kept the before day.

Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Kothamalli thogayal recipe

Ladies finger curry recipe

Curd rice recipe

Mango rice can be packed for lunch when mangoes are in season. I gave snake gourd kootu to make it wholesome meal. Snake gourd can be chopped and refrigerated the before day itself. Next day pressure cook with dal along with rice in separate containers to make it fast.

Prep time: 20 Hrs

Cook time: 25 mins

Snake gourd kootu recipe

Raw mango rice recipe

Curd rice recipe

If you have a big non stick kadai, pulao can be made in kadai itself provided rice should be soaked 30 mins in warm water. Goes well with this rich butter paneer masala!

Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 35 mins

Peas pulao recipe

Butter paneer Masala recipe

Curd rice recipe

Week 2

Dal powder mixed with sesame oil and rice, Simple cabbage poriyal and creamy curd rice with pickle. Cabbage can be cut a day before and refrigerated.Perfect for a lazy Monday morning.

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Paruppu podi recipe

Cabbage poriyal recipe

Curd rice recipe

Though you might think it will be tedious to pack this for lunch, I can suggest you to prepare this poondu kuzhambu before day evening, cool & refrigerate. Chop banana stem and soak it in butter milk, keep refrigerated, next day easy for you!

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Poondu kuzhambu Recipe

Banana stem poriyal Recipe

Curd rice recipe

Prepare the puliyogare paste and keep refrigerated. This can lend you hand when you are in hurry, you can pack this for lunch monthly once. Aviyal makes a good combo for this with all vegetables and mild gravy but you can keep it simple with fryums.

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Puliyodharai recipe

Aviyal recipe

Curd rice recipe

For peanut rice, we can powder and keep forenight and this lunch box can be made ready easily as arbi can be cooked along rice in same cooker with two different containers.

Prep time: 10 Mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Peanut rice recipe

Arbi curry recipe

Curd rice recipe

Flavorful and healthy rice along with spicy vazhakkai curry – flavor will linger in your mouth after lunch!

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Curry leaves podi recipe

Raw banana curry recipe

Curd rice recipe

Disclaimer :

These Indian lunch box ideas may not be balanced meals and may not contribute your everyday essential nutrients. This is just my family’s customized Indian lunch box ideas, so it will be obviously their favorites and mostly south Indian cuisine. I will keep updating few more ideas in recent future, so keep checking 🙂

Few tips :

*Some vegetables can be chopped and kept refrigerated the previous night. Even tomatoes can be chopped and kept. Onions should not be chopped and kept as it can easily pick up the bacteria.

*Always cool the rice and before mixing, otherwise it may become thick and cake like as it cools after packing. Plan ahead, which will make your packing easy and hassle free.

*Curd should never be added to hot rice as it may kill the live culture in the curd and all the goodness will be gone.

*Use aluminium foil for packing rotis and parathas, which keeps the breads fresh.

*Make sure you change your menu every week so that they do not get bored.