Let’s pack my husband’s lunch box for the week together; we will make FIVE dishes and 1 hour.

I pack my husband’s lunch box every Sunday. I want to make sure your lunch box has two protein options and 2-3 side dishes.

The trick to quick cooking is to use different kitchen appliances, so my stove isn’t cluttered, and I can make dishes while my air fryer and rice cooker are doing the work

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I included a shopping list for this week’s lunch box at the bottom, along with links to recipes so you can recreate it at home.

LUNCH BOX MENU THIS WEEK

Lunch Box #1 (Monday and Wednesday

)

• Air fryer Soy sauce

Chicken spinach with homemade garlic oil Sauté mushrooms Rice lunch box #2 (Tuesday and Thursday) Beef gyudon spinach with homemade garlic oil

• Sauté mushrooms

Rice lunch box #3 (cold garnish for the week) Cucumber and spicy garlic salad Lunch

bowl dish

#

1: Spinach with

Garlic Oil

5 Minutes, 4 Servings Ago

My husband and I are big fans of spinach; not only is it easy to prepare, but it’s also super affordable. If you can’t find loose spinach, swap it with other loose leaves and green vegetables.

Any vegetable is delicious when combined with my homemade garlic oil. If you’ve ever wondered why Chinese restaurants always serve the BEST garlic recipes, it’s because of their secret garlic oil that makes everything taste delicious!

Tasty, delicious and full of umami flavor, my secret garlic oil is a basic family seasoning that I have ready to carry in the fridge at all times

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Ingredients

• 6 cups spinach
• 2 tablespoons homemade garlic oil
• 1 teaspoon salt

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the spinach. Blanch for 30 seconds – 1 minute, drain and set aside.
2. Drizzle over garlic oil and salt, mix well and enjoy.

Lunch Box Dish #2: Sauté Mushrooms

10 Minutes,

4 Servings Ago

No

wonder we’re BIG fans of mushrooms in this home

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The mushroom, similar to spinach, is affordable and takes less than 10 minutes to prepare. Since I’m always making mushroom recipes throughout the week, I usually have plenty of mushrooms left over in my fridge on Sunday.

I’m using shiitake mushrooms and shemiji mushrooms

today, but you can switch the mushroom with any of your options, such as cremini and oyster mushrooms.

Ingredients

2

• cups shiitake mushroom 2 cups
• shemiji mushroom

1

• tablespoon sesame oil 1
• /4 cup Gyudon sauce (dish #4)
• A pinch of black pepper

1. In a frying pan, add the shiitake mushroom and shemiji mushroom. Turn up the heat and sauté without oil for 2-3 minutes. You can also switch to any mushroom of your choice.
2. Drizzle in Gyudon sauce, raise heat to high and sauté for another 1-2 minutes or until mushrooms soften

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3. Drizzle sesame oil and a pinch of black pepper, and sauté over high heat for another 1 minute.

Lunch Box Dish #3: The

BEST Air Fryer Chicken with Soy Sauce

30 minutes, 2 servings ago

This recipe is the BEST Air Fryer soy sauce chicken you’ve ever had, and the best part is that it’s also SUPER easy to make! The chicken is crispy on the outside, while the meat is super juicy and tasty on the inside. It is the perfect dish for any lunch box!

An air fryer is

something that saves me a LOT of TIME in the kitchen.

I did a blog post trying to find the best air fryer on Amazon and tried 4 of the best-selling options to see which one is the best! Spoiler, I love my Cosori air fryer, but if you’re looking for a new air fryer, I highly recommend checking out my blog post that breaks down the price, size, features, and much more.

Quick tip, marinate the chicken at first, and while waiting for the chicken to marinate, prepare the ingredients for the other dishes

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Ingredients

2

• pieces boneless chicken thigh with skin

in 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce 1

• /2 tablespoon five spice powder
• 1 teaspoon white

pepper

• 2 teaspoons sugar or honey
• 3 garlic cloves (chopped)

Marinate chicken with

• soy sauce

,

1. dark soy sauce, five spice powder, white pepper, sugar and garlic chopped for 30 minutes
2. Add the chicken to the air fryer, skin facing up. Set the air fryer to 380F for 15

minutes

Lunch Box Plate #4: Meat Gyudon

20 minutes, make 2-3 servings

One of my favorite recipes for my husband’s lunch box every week is Beef Gyudon

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Super easy to make at home, delicious and affordable. You can swap thin slices of beef for pork if you don’t eat meat. You can find thinly sliced beef at most Asian grocery stores in the “hot pot” section.

Ingredients

1 yellow onion, sliced 1

• /2 pound thinly sliced beef

1 cup dashi broth 1 tablespoon sugar 3 tablespoons soy sauce

• 3 tablespoons

mirin,

• or swap with water

Add soy

• sauce

, sugar, mirin,

• dashi broth

1. and onion to a skillet. Light the fire to medium-high and bring everything to a simmer.

Simmer for 2-3 minutes or until onion is soft and translucent Add thinly

2. sliced beef and simmer for another 2-3 minutes or until meat is cooked.

Lunch Box Dish #5: Spicy

Cucumber Salad

30 Minutes, 4 Servings

The

tasty, garlic crushed cucumber salad is refreshing and pairs perfectly with every meal, and that’s why cucumber salad is always part of my weekly lunch box. Since it’s a cold side dish, I like to store cucumber salad in a metal bowl, and my husband can enjoy it by adding a little on top of his daily lunch box.

The most important tip when making any cucumber salad is to always remove the water with salt and sugar, so that the cucumber stays crispy throughout the week

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Ingredients

2

• English cucumbers, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon salted Marinated

4 garlic cloves (chopped/crushed) 1.5 tablespoon homemade chili oil 1 teaspoon sesame oil 2 tablespoons black vinegar Sesame seeds for garnish

1. Add sugar and salt to the cut cucumber. Mix and let stand for 20 minutes; This will help the cucumber stay nice and crispy. After 20 minutes, pour all excess liquid.
2. Pour the marinade over the cucumber, and you’re ready to enjoy!

I also have other cucumber salads like my sweet and sour Taiwanese cucumber, spicy Korean cucumber salad, spicy crushed cucumber salad and garlic crushed cucumber salad.

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