LUNCH! Week 1: Rice Noodles + Chicken + Lime

Let’s do LUNCH!. With chapters built around three main ingredients, the LUNCH! cookbook demonstrates how to make 10 weeks of exciting lunches (50 recipes in all) with fresh ingredients and healthy variety.

Monday Rice Noodle Salad
Tuesday Coconut Curry Noodle Soup
Wednesday Rice and Lentil Bowl with Chicken Meatballs
Thursday Rice and Lentil Bowl with Roasted Vegetables
Friday Red Curry Shrimp Stir-Fry

This week delivers an umami bang! Super flavorful chicken meatballs find their way into a satisfying cold noodle salad on Monday, a curry soup on Tuesday, and a lentil bowl on Wednesday. The best part? They come together in a snap and are delicious at any temperature. Lime, fish sauce, and peanuts are dominant flavors this week, and they’ll make you forget all about your favorite Vietnamese takeout restaurant. The raw veggies will provide a hit of vitamin C and freshness throughout the week, while the Rice and Lentils in Coconut Milk is a warming, fiber-filled base (not to mention vegan!) that will provide some balance. Store the rice and lentils in the refrigerator right in the pot you cooked them in, which will make reheating a breeze. Throughout the week, add a garnish of torn up cilantro and mint leaves to your bowls; the herbs pack a flavor punch and get you closer to your goal of zero waste at the end of the week.

Grocery List

Pantry

8 ounces thin rice noodles
½ cup brown rice
¾ cup red lentils
½ cup panko bread crumbs
Grapeseed oil
5 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
3 tablespoons fish sauce
4 teaspoons soy sauce
3 teaspoons red curry paste
1 (14-ounce) can full-fat coconut milk
1 (5.4-ounce) can coconut cream
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons turmeric
2 teaspoons brown sugar or coconut palm sugar
2 cups chicken stock (ideally homemade, see page 18) or water
½ cup roasted salted peanuts
2 tablespoons hemp seeds

Produce

2 garlic cloves
1 (3-inch) piece fresh ginger
2 medium sweet potatoes
2 limes
2 jalapeños
1 small onion
1 large bunch of mint
1 bunch of cilantro
1 bunch of scallions
2 carrots
3 Persian cucumbers
1 bunch (about 5 stems) broccolini
¼ pound shiitake mushrooms  

Dairy

1 egg

Meat and Seafood

½ pound ground chicken
¼ pound shrimp (about 6 pieces)—peeled, deveined, and frozen until ready to use