Lunches at the moment are a bit of a struggle. The office I work in is located across the road from a sort of supermarket mall thing with lots of discount stores and terrible takeaway joints. The office of course has a canteen, but there is only ever one vegetarian option and it’s… well… it’s not very delicious.

So, the problem is, how do I cater for myself a healthy lunch while living in a hotel room? My plan for next week is to stock up on some of the following and throw a little lunch salad together each day. It might be the same boring thing day after day, but at least it won’t make me feel ill while I’m eating it and I will feel a little healthier.

Options:

• bag of mixed salad leaves
• bag of julienned carrots (I’ve seen these in the market across the street)
• mushrooms (these don’t even have to be chopped! Just throw them in as is)
• fetta, cubed if possible
• nuts (I’ve always liked walnuts in a salad)
• balsamic / olive oil (if I can find two small jars)
• olives (the olives here are generally not great, but I’ll try a few sorts and see if I can find some nice ones)
• pearl barley

I think the pearl barley might be might be a challenge as I can’t actually cook it in a hotel room, but I think that soaking it overnight might work. I have a backup options if it is inedible – couscous or bulgur wheat, both of which just need a soak to be ready to eat.

I’ll post an update later in the week discussing how well it is (or not) going.