Hearty Lunches for Teens & Tweens

Need ideas for hearty lunches for teens and tweens this school year? Here’s a collection of both hot and cold lunch ideas that are quick and filling. The teen lunch ideas are also packed with protein and are nutritionally balanced, helping kids feel full and nourished throughout a long day.

Kids have very little time to eat at lunch and nutrition these days. Between socializing, getting lost in their phone, or having to cram for a test, eating is often a last priority. But it’s still important and can make a difference between good and bad performance throughout the school day.

With that in mind, I’ve curated these hot and cold lunch ideas for teens (and tweens) that are nourishing, enticing and convenient to assemble and eat!

Jump to:

• What to love about this lunch post
• Tips for packing teen lunches
• Simple ideas to inspire
• Hot lunch ideas for teens
• Keeping warm lunches “warm”
• Ideas for cold lunches for teens
• Want a FREE Protein Guide?
• Lunchbox must haves
• More helpful lunch and meal prep posts
• 11 Hot and Cold School Lunches for Teens

What to love about this lunch post

• Protein forward, balanced lunch ideas for teens that will keep kids satiated and fueled to make it through the day.
• Convenient and easy to assemble for parents, and even easier for kids to eat during their rushed lunch period.
• All lunches include a mix of homemade and packaged items to make life a little easier for mom and dad, and also more enticing for the kids.
• The lunch ideas are all in bento box style form, allowing for a variety of food choices. When kids are presented with an assortment of smaller portion food items, they tend to eat more food.
• Includes a roundup of parent-tested and kid-approved lunch box ideas. I’ve been making school lunches for almost 15 years. After assembling thousands of lunches, these are our favorite must-have lunch box items.

Tips for packing teen lunches

Before we delve into the lunch ideas, I do want to offer a few tips that will help you pack your own kid’s lunch. It will also explain why some of our teen’s lunches look the way they do.

• Don’t be afraid of repetition. This is the most important thing I’ve learned over the years of packing hundreds of lunches. Kids and teenagers thrive off of repetition and typically don’t mind eating the same thing over and over again. In fact it is often us parents who fret over making them eat the same thing, when really, they often not only don’t mind, but enjoy it!
• Simpler is often better. Keep food choices basic and simple with little to no sauce that could get foods soggy. Limit the amount of “toppings” or dips you include so they don’t have to fuss with a bunch of containers. And of course avoid goopy, drippy foods that may make a mess and get all over their clothes and/or hands. Teens hate dealing with that stuff at school! You get the idea.

Packing lunches teens will actually eat

• Provide a mix of homemade, store-bought and packaged foods for everyone’s sanity and happiness. Think microwave rice, store bought chicken, easy to open packages of snacks and protein bars. Most teens need a lot of calories to fuel them through the day, so don’t be afraid of packaged foods that they can quickly and easily eat on the go. My teen often eats a protein bar in between passing period or even in the car right after school.
• Always provide a fruit and/or veggie option, as well as a “treat.” And by treat I mean something that will make life a bit more enjoyable at school, something they can look forward to!
• Never forget that kids have very limited time to eat, so choose foods wisely! Limit complicated packaging, hard to peel fruits and fancy food spreads that take 10 minutes to mix together.

Hot lunch ideas for teens

Here are 5 different hot lunch ideas for teens that are hearty enough to take them through the day. Of course these are all pretty basic and some adults would even call boring. But if you read my tips above, you’ll know why I have found simple to be best when it comes to lunches for teens!

And many of the items feature foods purchased at Costco. Read my Costco grocery list post for my healthy must-haves.

Hot healthy lunches for teens, from left to right

• Kirkland frozen chicken breast nuggets are delicious and offer 16 grams of protein per serving. They are also low in saturated fat and cook up in 10 minutes in the air fryer. Served with some fruit, a protein bar and trail mix.
• Steamed white rice, canned black beans and ground beef for an easy taco bowl. Cook up a big batch of ground beef at the start of the week for easy lunch making all week long. Served with a protein bar, some chips and a sweet treat.
• Boxed mac and cheese with some precooked edamame for extra protein. Throw in a couple of pieces of fruit and a Legion protein cookie to snack on in between classes.
• Steamed rice and black beans again, this time with cut up pre-cooked chicken bites from Costco. This is my easy take on a Chipotle bowl that the kids devour. Serve with fruit, packaged goldfish and a Chomps beef stick.
• Homemade healthy turkey meatballs (my recipe), served with protein pasta. Add a string cheese, fruit and a couple of extra snacks.

All of these healthy teen lunches are great for student athletes or kids that participate in after-school activities like band or choir. They need lots of calories in easy to digest food and snacks.

Ideas for cold lunches for teens

Here are a few ideas to kickstart your creative juices to make a tasty and healthy lunch your teen will dive into! Note that these are all photographed in glass meal prep containers, however, when packing school lunches I always use plastic containers. The glass containers just photograph better!

Cold school lunch ideas for teens, left to right

• Provolone and salami wraps, veggies and hummus with berries and apples. This makes for a super quick lunch to throw together during hectic mornings.
• Picnic lunch of deli turkey, cubed cheddar cheese, crackers, fruit and veggies.
• Turkey and provolone wrap served with fruit and veggies, for a bit of a heartier lunch.
• Homemade Uncrustables (yes, teens love these!), carrot chips with ranch and fruit.

Same rules apply for cold lunches; keep them simple and always make sure to include a few supplementary snacks and treats to fuel them throughout the day.

Lunchbox must haves

Here is a roundup of the lunchbox essentials we have been using for years, and a couple of new items we added this school year. These make it easier and more fun to pack healthy lunches for teens.

More helpful lunch and meal prep posts