Lunchbox - Will it be an In-thing in the Covid Era

The Straits Times ran an article, ‘Beware the Aftershocks of the Covid-19 recession’. And I cannot agree more. While we rejoice the availability of the vaccine to more in the population and looking forward to life as per normal, we need to also be prudent and realistic. The slow down in economy during this past year will not bounce back so quickly. As said in the article, many companies and in turn employees may feel the impact after the end of this month when the government support ceases.

So it’s not the time to splurge. It’s time to stay prudent. Eating more homecooked meals is not just saving money but also healthier. We are very glad to see that there are more working adults started to cook more since the Circuit Breaker and even until now as the default mode of work is still WFH (Work From Home). But from April 5, this default mode will change as the government is allowing 75% of staff to return to office.

Those who have enjoyed cooking and eating homecooked meals all this while can continue to do so by preparing lunchbox. I prepared lunchbox almost every day when I was still working. And I’ve done that for years.

Lunchboxes and Bag

Many may think that preparing a lunchbox will take a lot of time. To me, the time to walk to the lunch venue and then queue to buy the food or wait for the food to be served will involve more time than the preparation of the lunchbox. Singapore's weather is also not that conducive to walk during the lunch hours.

I have started the habit of preparing my lunchboxes when my office was re-located to a semi-industrial area. There was a canteen within our office building but the food choices were limited and the chap chye png (economy rice) was salty and oily. Nearby eating places were limited and were always so crowded during lunch hours and we were always soaked in sweat when we reached the lunch destination.

The situation forced me to cook something simple but healthy for my lunches. A few of my colleagues also started the habit and we had fun sharing lunch box ideas while enjoying our homemade lunch boxes in the pantry. We eventually moved out to the city with many eateries nearby a few years later. But my habit of preparing my lunchbox continued.

I have tried different types of lunchboxes and the ones I used the most are those in the picture above. I like Corelle (the front most) the most. It is glass but light. I bought one glass lunchbox that is so heavy even before the food is in. I used it only a few times. The plastic ones are mainly for salad or overnight oats.

Storing food properly before consuming is important. Some food may not last too long in this hot and humid weather in Singapore. I used a thermal bag to transport the lunchbox from my home to the office. Normal thermal bag may keep the food warm for an hour or two. It is better to store the lunchbox in the fridge and microwave it before consumption. For me who don't believe in microwave oven, I placed my lunchbox on a cup warmer which kept the food lukewarm.

Over this space in the next few weeks or months, I will share some of the simple and healthy lunchboxes I used to make. The lunch box picture below was taken years ago. It was a colourful, delicious and somehow healthy lunchbox.

Smoked bratwurst with salad

Ingredients

2                         Smoked bratwurst

1/2 cup             Rocket salad

3 to 4                 Cherry tomatoes

8 to 10 slices    Yellow squash

Instructions

1. Rinse the rocket salad and transfer to the lunchbox.
2. Cut some slits in the bratwurst. Halves the cherry tomatoes.
3. Heat up some olive oil in a pan. Add the bratwurst and cook for a few minutes or until they are cooked. Transfer them to the lunchbox.
4. Add the tomatoes and yellow squash into the same pan. Season with a pinch of salt and some black pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes and transfer to the lunchbox.
5. Sprinkle more black pepper over the salad.