6 small changes to make packing lunch for work way easier on yourself.

Thanks to our brand partner, Coles

Yep, it's that time of year again: the "new year, new organised work lunch" energy has officially left the chat. You want something that's actually nutritious and satisfying, but the idea of chopping, roasting and batch-cooking every Sunday? Absolutely not.

That's where some smarter shortcuts come in, especially when places like Coles are leaning into ready-to-go options that are big on flavour, freshness and convenience, so you don't have to start from scratch every single time.

Below are six simple changes that can make your work lunches feel easier, quicker and a lot less repetitive:

1. Rethink your base strategy.

Instead of planning "a whole meal" from scratch, start by choosing a base. Think salad kits, grain bowls or pre-cooked proteins and then just add one or two quick extras. This alone cuts your decision fatigue down massively and keeps your trolley (and brain) calmer.

One of the easiest upgrades here is the new Coles Shaker Salads, designed to be grabbed, shaken, and eaten with minimal effort. They come in flavours like Mexican Style (with corn chips and black beans), Japanese Style Chicken & Sushi Rice (with edamame beans and cucumber), or Vietnamese Style Chicken & Vermicelli Noodles (with spices and fried shallots), giving you variety without any extra prep. Just pour in the dressing, give it a good shake, and you've got a well-dressed, crunchy and tasty lunch ready in minutes.

While they're not available in every Coles, you'll find them across Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia and South East Queensland. Check out availability online where they're stocked near you!

Image: Coles.

Because everything is pre-portioned, you're not dealing with half-used bags of salad or random leftovers slowly wilting in your crisper. Add a handful of corn chips on the side, a few cherry tomatoes or some avocado if you have it, and lunch is done in under five minutes. No stove, no chopping board, no drama.

2. Prep tiny, not big.

If the words "meal prep" make you want to crawl under your doona, scale it way down. Instead of prepping full meals, just prep tiny components that make everything faster.

For example, you can:

These micro-prep moves take 10–15 minutes but massively cut down the thought when you're exhausted at 9pm and still need to think about tomorrow's lunch.

3. Create a 'plug and play' lunch kit.

Another small but powerful change: stop treating every lunch as a new project, and instead build a little "lunch kit" you can rotate through. Think of it as a capsule wardrobe, but for food.

You might keep a few long-lasting basics on hand every week, like:

From there, your "prep" is really just assembly. Use grains + salad + a protein + a dressing, and switch out the flavour profile each day (e.g. Greek-style one day, Mexican-style the next). This keeps things interesting without needing entirely new recipes or a mammoth Sunday cook-up.

4. Upgrade your ready meal game.

Ready meals have come a long way. Now, there are options that are about comfort and convenience, but still feel like you're eating a "proper" lunch rather than whatever's left over at the café downstairs.

The Coles Kitchen ready meals range is built for exactly this kind of day, when you want something warm, satisfying and easy. Some options include the Coles Kitchen Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni, which gives you a vegetarian pasta hit with a spinach-and-ricotta filling and rich tomato and béchamel-style sauces; you just heat and eat, no baking dish or cleanup needed. If you're after something a bit more protein-packed, the Coles Kitchen Beef Ragu Lasagne layers pasta with a slow-style beef ragù and cheesy topping, making it a hearty, good-protein option that actually feels like a real meal, not a compromise.

Then there are the Coles Perform Ready Meals, designed for those of us after high protein options. They're sports dietitian approved, helping support your nutrition goals while fitting neatly into a busy schedule. Options like the Thai Basil Pork bring a savoury, fragrant flavour hit, with balanced carbs, fats and a solid protein serve. Meanwhile, the Perform Build Butter Chicken offers up to around 38 grams of protein per serve with mixed rice and veggies, making it an easy heat-and-go choice after a lunch-break gym session or a morning of back-to-back meetings.

Pop a few of these in the fridge at the start of the week and you've automatically ticked off a few days of lunches without needing to meal prep at all.

5. Pack smarter, not harder.

How you pack your lunch can be just as important as what you pack. A few tweaks can stop things going soggy, keep textures interesting and make you feel more excited to actually eat what you've brought.

Some easy wins:

This is where a shaker-style salad really shines too. They're literally designed so you can combine everything at the last second, giving you a much fresher, more exciting lunch with almost no extra effort.

6. Have a couple of 'emergency lunches' ready.

Finally, give yourself a safety net. No matter how organised you are, there will be days when you forget your lunch, eat it at 10:30am, or just cannot be bothered making anything.

Keeping one or two "emergency" options on standby can stop the spiral into eating the sad takeaway you didn't really want. This might look like:

The whole point is to make your "lazy" option still feel like a decent, balanced choice — nourishing enough to get you through the afternoon slump, without turning Sunday into an all-day cooking marathon. Now that sounds good.

What are your tips for packing lunch that make it easier? Tell us in the comments section below.

Shop your weekly lunch essentials at Coles. Shaker Salads are available in selected stores in VIC, NSW, QLD and SA. To find out more, visit coles.com.au/shaker-salad-availability

Featured image: Getty.

At Coles, we're dedicated to offering you quality solutions through Coles Brand product lines. These are created with our teams of product developers, chefs, nutritionists – and, of course, our trusted Aussie farmers and suppliers to make sure each one delivers on flavour, consistency and safety. From everyday essentials to gourmet food, we're constantly listening to what you want to see on the shelves and innovating to bring you products and ingredients you need and love. So, you can feel good knowing Coles Brand products are crafted with care and attention to detail to help you and your family live healthier and happier lives.