Lunchbox Recipes – 5 Dishes in 1 Hour!

Let’s pack my husband’s lunchbox for the week together.

For my husband’s lunchbox this week, I will be making 5 dishes in 1 hour. As always, there will be 2 main protein and 3 vegetable side dishes.

I decide what to make for my husband’s lunchbox normally based on two things, one, what my husband is craving for the week, and two, what is on sale at the supermarket.

This week on the menu, we will be making my viral Coca-cola Chicken Thighs and my super easy air fryer Honey Glazed Pork belly. 

I INCLUDED A GROCERY SHOPPING LIST FOR THIS WEEK’S LUNCHBOX AT THE BOTTOM, ALONG WITH LINKS TO THE RECIPES SO THAT YOU CAN RE-CREATE IT AT HOME. 

LUNCHBOX MENU THIS WEEK 

LUNCHBOX #1 (Monday & Wednesday) 

• Buttery Honey Glazed Baby Carrots 
• Broccoli with Homemade Garlic Oil 
• Honey Glazed Pork Belly 
• Rice

LUNCHBOX #2 (Tuesday & Thursday) 

• Buttery Honey Baby Carrots 
• Broccoli with Homemade Garlic Oil 
• Coca-Cola Chicken Thighs 
• Rice 

LUNCHBOX #3 (2 per day) 

• Zucchini and Carrots Pancake 

LUNCHBOX DISH #1: Broccoli with Homemade Garlic Oil 

5 minutes, makes 4 portion 

One dish I always have on my weekly lunchbox is blanched vegetables with homemade garlic oil.

It is so simple, delicious, healthy, and affordable! If you have ever wondered why Chinese restaurants always serve the BEST garlic recipes, that is because of their secret garlic oil that makes everything taste delicious!

Savory, delicious, and packed with umami flavor, my secret garlic oil is a staple family condiment that I have ready to go in the fridge at all times!

Ingredients

• 4 cups Broccoli 
• 2 tablespoons homemade garlic oil 
• 2 tsp salt  

1. Bring a pot of water to boil, and add 1 tsp salt. Once the water is boiling, add in the broccoli, Blanch for 2-3 minutes, drain, and set aside.
2. Drizzle on garlic oil and salt, mix well and enjoy

LUNCHBOX DISH #2: Buttery Honey Glazed Baby Carrots 

8-10 minutes, makes 4 portion

I love baby carrots so much that whenever I see them on sale at Costco, I will for sure grab them. Carrots are super delicious and healthy. If you can’t find baby carrots, you can also use regular carrots, peeled them, and cut them into smaller pieces. 

To save time and money, I am using the marinade from the Honey Glazed Pork Belly to make the buttery sticky glaze for the carrots, so make sure not to throw away the marinade! 

Ingredients 

• Marinade from Honey Ginger Glazed Pork Belly 
• 3 cups baby carrots 
• 2 tablespoon butter 

1. Bring a pot of water to boil, and add 1 tsp salt. Once the water is boiling, add in the baby carrots, blanch for 2-3 minutes, drain and set aside. (use the same water from dish #1 to save time) 
2. In a pan, add marinade from honey-glazed pork belly and 2 tablespoons of butter. Turn the heat to medium, and once simmering, add in the carrots. 
3. Toss the carrots in the glaze and cook for another 2-3 minutes or until the sauce has turned into a sticky glaze. 

LUNCHBOX DISH #3: Honey Glazed Pork Belly 

45 minutes, makes 2 portion 

I’m not even trying to be DRAMATIC, but if there is only one air fryer recipe you need to try, it is my Honey Glazed Pork Belly. Savory, delicious, and easy to make at home, Air Fryer Honey Glazed Pork Belly has been one of my go-to weeknight dinner recipes.

PRO-TIP: to save time, use a fork and poke holes in the pork belly; this will help the meat soak up all the sauce. If you have time, you can also marinade the pork belly the night before to make it extra flavorful. 

Ingredients 

• 0.5 lb pork belly, cut into 3 inches lengthwise 
• 2 tablespoon oyster sauce 
• 1.5 tablespoon soy sauce 
• 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger 
• 2 tablespoon honey 
• 3 tablespoon Chinese cooking wine (optional) 
• 1.5 tsp five-spice powder 

1. Using a fork, poke holes through the pork belly; this will help the flavor soak through. 
2. Marinate the pork belly with oyster sauce, soy sauce, grated ginger, honey, Chinese cooking wine (optional), and five-spice powder for at least 15 minutes. 
3. Place the pork belly in the air fryer on the side and air fry at 380 F for 12 minutes on each side. 
4. Slice the pork belly into thin strips and enjoy! 

LUNCHBOX DISH #4: Coca-Cola Chicken Thighs 

30 minutes, makes 2 portion 

You will not believe the secret ingredient to this chicken thigh recipe is … COCA-COLA!

A classic childhood recipe that is super easy to make at home and is finger-licking good, Coca-Cola Chicken Thigh. The chicken is tender, and the glaze is a perfect balance between sweet and savory. Coca-Cola Chicken Thigh is an easy one-pot dinner recipe perfect for a weeknight dinner that everyone will love.

Ingredient 

• 4 pieces of Chicken Thigh 
• ¾  Onion, sliced 
• 6 cloves of Garlic minced 
• 2.5 tbsp of Soy Sauce 
• 2 tbsp of Oyster Sauce 
• 0.5 tbsp of Black Pepper 
• 160 mL of Coke 

1. Turn the heat to medium-high and drizzle oil in a pan. Once the pan is hot, add in onion and sauté for 1-2 minutes; next, add minced garlic and sauté for another 1-2 minutes or until fragrant. 
2. Add in the chicken skin side down first and let it cook for 3-4 minutes or until the skin is golden brown. 
3. Add in soy sauce, black pepper, oyster sauce, and coke. Make sure that every piece of chicken is soaked in the sauce. 
4. Put the lid on and turn the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes. 
5. Turn the heat back up to medium-high and pour the sauce all over the chicken for another 2-3 minutes.

LUNCHBOX DISH #5: Zucchini and Carrots Pancake 

30 minutes, makes 8 pancakes 

One of my favorite ways to enjoy vegetables is to make them into pancakes. You can eat so many vegetables, and it tastes delicious.

The trick to making sure the pancakes stay crispy and don’t become soggy is to use salt and draw out all the water from the zucchini.

Since my husband works from home, and I want to ensure that the pancake stays crispy, I store the pancake in another lunchbox, and he removes them 2 a day and heats them on its own. The pancake tastes delicious with ketchup or chili oil. 

Ingredients 

• 6 medium-sized zucchini 
• 1 tsp salt 
• 1 whole carrot, peeled 
• ½ cup Corn Starch 
• 2 Eggs 
• Salt and pepper to season 

1. Grate the zucchini with the skin, and add 1 tsp of salt. Massage the zucchini and set it aside for 10 minutes.
2. After 10 minutes, squeeze out all the excess water.
3. Grate in carrot, add in corn starch, eggs, and season with salt and pepper. 
4. Mix everything until a paste-like consistency. 
5. In a pan, drizzle in a generous amount of oil, and turn the heat to medium. Add around 2 tablespoons of the zucchini mixture to make 1 pancake. Using the spoon, press down to flatten the pancake. 
6. Pan-fry for 2-3 minutes on each side or until crispy and golden brown. 

SHOP THE INGREDIENTS ONLINE 

A FEW NOTES: 

• Make sure all the food has fully cooled down before putting the lid on and refrigerating 
• You can leave the lunchboxes in the fridge, which will stay fresh for 4 days, or you can also freeze 2 and take them out of the freezer the night before and reheat them the next day in the microwave or steamer to enjoy. 
• I find that the meat sauce helps keep the rice moist and delicious; alternatively, you can also purchase lunchboxes with dividers if you don’t like everything all mixed in one box. 
• All my lunch boxes are from IKEA.