Easy & Quick School Lunch Ideas

Finding kid-friendly, real food meals is hard enough. Fitting these magical foods into a lunchbox and keeping their tastebuds interested every day for nine months of the year? Now there’s a challenge. Enter Primal Kitchen dips and dipping sauces: dunk-worthy, delicious, and made with avocado oil, they bring flavor and fun into the lunchroom.

Consider this post your cheat sheet to carefree, child-approved meal prep made for little lunchboxes. Keep a variety on the menu and save precious prep time in the mornings with our guide to building the perfect lunchbox with these easy lunch ideas for kids.

Build a Kids Bento Box

Remember the not-so-good 'ol days when the school lunch prep options were a paper sack, a plastic baggie, and a paper-thin metal lunchbox? Midday meal options for kids have come a long way! Stock up on washable, reusable trays like these Lunch Bots bento boxes in vibrant, kid-friendly colors and fill them with DIY treats. Here are our some of our favorite flavor combos: 

Tasty Taco Kit

All you need for this super-easy DIY kit are the taco basics: shredded cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, chicken, and tortillas. Cut the tortillas into triangles and don't forget to tuck in a mini-container of Avocado Lime Dipping Sauce to give these tasty treats a creamy, zesty punch of flavor.

Nuggs & Nibbles Box 

Call 'em nuggets, nuggies, or nuggs, there's nothing kids love more than crispy breaded pieces of chicken-y goodness. We paired Good Ranchers pre-made nuggs with celery and carrot sticks with our lip-smacking, finger-lickin' Chicken Dippin' Sauce for an easy and satisfying meal the kiddos will eat up.   

Burger Wrap Bento

Tuck slider-sized burger patties into wraps cut to size for a petite, deliciously perfect lunch any kid would love. We teamed the Good Ranchers beef with tater tots, drizzled our tangy Special Sauce over the wrapped burgers for fast-food flavor without the seed oils, and tucked in a tasty homemade fruit salad for dessert.  

Salmon Snack Lunch

Our older kids go wild for this refreshingly different salmon and veggie lunch plate served with our sweet-and-umami Yum Yum Dipping Sauce. This one is best served warm, so make sure your child has access to a microwave at lunchtime. Serve over jasmine rice or cauliflower rice for an even more filling bowl!

Mix-and-Match Lunch Box List for Kids 

If your brood isn’t quite as adventurous, build your lunch box by picking their favorites from each section for a child-friendly charcuterie board that beats out the regular brown bag any day.

Pick a Protein:

• Hummus (perfect for extra dipping)
• Cheese Sticks
• Strips of Bacon
• Hard-Boiled Egg
• Turkey Breast
• Grilled Chicken Strips
• Almond or Peanut Butter
• Yogurt

Choose Your Veggies:

• Carrot sticks
• Bell pepper slices or mini bell peppers
• Cucumber rounds
• Snap peas
• Cherry tomatoes
• Celery
• Broccoli
• Zucchini 
• Cauliflower (make it spicy with Buffalo!)

Find a Fave Fruit:

• Grapes (cut in half for small children)
• Apple slices
• Bananas
• Orange slices
• Berries
• Melon slices
• Peaches
• Watermelon

Grain and Carb Swaps:

• Swap out white bread for sourdough
• Sub lentil chips for potato chips
• Give grain-free crackers a try

Pair these picks with delicious Buffalo Ranch Dip or Ranch Dip, or add a guacamole or a not-so-spicy salsa.

How to Get Kids to Eat Veggies

If your kiddos are on a steady diet of chicken fingers and ketchup like ours are, building a colorful plate they’ll actually eat when you’re not there to encourage them (okay, maybe it’s more like bribe, barter, and negotiate by any means necessary) may seem laughable. Here are a few of our secrets to mid-day snack success.

1. Try it air-fried. If your kiddo won't touch broccoli or cauliflower, experiment with lightly coating veggies in an egg wash and gluten-free bread crumbs, then popping them in the air fryer. Serve with ranch dressing. 
2. Vegetable cutter shapes like stars, airplanes, or flowers can bring smiles to little faces and encourage picky eaters to try new foods like sweet potatoes or eggplant. Use cookie cutters left over from the holidays or cut simple shapes by hand.
3. Eat the rainbow. Variety and color keep kids interested. Instead of sending them off with a big bag of carrots, try a few carrot sticks with some celery, cucumber pinwheels, or a technicolor of berries.
4. Make meals delicious with dips. You might appreciate the subtle tang of a cherry tomato or the crunch of celery, but the kiddos need a bit more motivation. Pair cucumber slices with our cool, creamy no-dairy ranch dip or tuck a side of smoky, savory Chicken Dippin' Sauce next to their nuggets.  

Unexpected School Lunch Ideas

Whether you stick with sandwiches or pack a picnic of dippable delights, variety is the name of the game for keeping lunchtime boredom at bay. Try these tricks to update your old school lunch routine.

Change Out the Condiments

• Mix it up with Mild Buffalo Sauce on a burrito!
• Big kids still love ketchup? Give Spicy Ketchup a whirl for a little extra kick.
• Beat mayo monotony: Try Chipotle Lime with grilled chicken and avocado, or pair Pesto Mayo with tomato, basil, and mozzarella cheese.
• Swap Spicy Mustard for Dijon, or vice-versa.

Switch the Shape

Sandwich shape cutters can be a secret weapon for little ones who can’t stand crust. You can also try pre-made items like dino-shaped nuggets and organic round PB&J sandwiches sans crust. 

Wrap it Up

Even if you make the same sandwich every single day, swapping in a spinach wrap or tomato basil tortilla for bread adds a bit of color and variety... plus a sneaky extra hint of veggies or fruit!