Commute-friendly meals
May 31, 2018 7:32 AM   Subscribe

I'm starting my new internship tomorrow, and I'm going to have a two hour commute each way until August. I may need to eat breakfast and potentially dinner during my commute sometimes. I'm limited to odorless “snack-type” foods on the bus. Any suggestions?

I need to bring the food with me; I can't afford to eat out every day.

I'd rather avoid things like Pop-Tarts. I don't like cheese sticks, granola bars, or similar protein/fiber bar products, and I know I'll probably get bored of hard boiled eggs and yogurt parfaits by week three. I don't eat beef or pork products, so I can't eat jerky, etc.

I'm looking for healthy or healthy-ish recipes or snack ideas that will keep me full. Must be easy to transport, odorless, and easy to eat.
posted by marfa, texas to Food & Drink (18 answers total) 16 users marked this as a favorite
 
For snacky foods, I like primal strips jerky (they're made from tofu, seitan, mushrooms, or tvp, and sometimes a combination thereof and come in lots of flavors). Crudites, especially carrot and celery sticks and whole cherry tomatoes, hold up well and can be dipped in almost anything (hummus, pb or almond butter for the celery sticks, any sort of salad dressing). Nuts and seeds are also good - you could make some homemade trail mix with whatever you like mixed together (try adding some plain cereal, like cheerios, too).

I think you could easily eat a simple sandwich on the bus. Hummus and thinly sliced cucumber, or other similar spreads with neatly sliced veggies would work fine. You might want to start with frozen bread and maybe even butter it so it doesn't get too soggy by evening (I'd toss an ice pack in your dinner bag too). For breakfast, you could do another savory sandwich that would hold less well, or you could do pb&j. Then add some easy to eat fruit, like grapes or blueberries or a banana.

Also, hard boiled eggs are far from odorless. I can think of very few food smells that would be worse on a bus than eggs.
posted by snaw at 7:48 AM on May 31, 2018 [2 favorites]


For a reasonable ease/cost/nutrition intersection, you could do a lot worse than Soylent or similar meal-replacements, especially if you could keep them cold for a return trip.

For the sake of your busmates who occasionally find themselves without headphones on a two-hour commute, please consider noisiness in addition to odorousness.
posted by supercres at 7:59 AM on May 31, 2018


Hard-boiled eggs are indeed a bit odiferous on a bus, and tbh I find yoghurt even worse, but hey, people have to eat. That said, you have tons of options!

Mini-quiches in muffin cups are great for portable breakfasts. Here's a very basic recipe; you can modify it easily for a variety of fillings. Roasted red pepper and feta, cheddar and mushroom, whatever you like! They're pretty tasty (and odorless) cold, and can be made in advance.

Overnight oats in a mason jar are also great on the bus, especially in summer when it's hot. Again, easy to batch-and-grab, because you literally just put everything in a jar and shake it. Also very easy to modify; I like almond milk, chia seeds, dried cranberries, and nuts.

Also good for summer: smoothies made in advance so you can grab-and-go. (These are great for afternoon snacks, because they thaw by then, but they also serve as an icepack to keep your dinner cold.)

Bento-box-type snack packs are also great if you usually get a seat on the bus. Sliced-up fruit and veg, cheeses, olives, crackers or pita, dried fruit/nuts, maybe some hummus. You can either put things in baggies or pick up a cheap Tupperware-type container with different little sections.

For dinner, kale-based salads are going to be amazing, because kale benefits from marinating and softening. You can experiment with different dressings, different mix-ins. Cold buckwheat noodles with shredded carrots and greens are also great, tossed in a simple soy-mirin-sesame oil dressing. Or a variety of made-ahead quinoa bowls? Not all of those are portable, but some ideas to help get you inspired.

Also maybe wraps? They keep well without getting too soggy. Mediterranean-style with veggies and hummus, or turkey/chicken/vegetarian deli slices with cheese. You could also do breakfast versions with cheese and scrambled egg, but I don't think they'd last as well over the course of a day.

Roasted chickpeas are a great portable snack if you get tired of trail mix.

COMMUTER PROTIP: get one of those little keychain-type hand sanitiser bottles to attach to your bag, and use it every time before you eat on transit. Public transit is gross as heck, and it will definitely help you avoid getting sick.
posted by halation at 8:05 AM on May 31, 2018 [2 favorites]


If you eat poultry, there is turkey jerky.
posted by ShooBoo at 8:05 AM on May 31, 2018


I have a variable 45-120 minutes commute depending on the day and time.

For breakfast, I like:

peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
other sandwiches that don't fall apart (spreads, mainly, some favorites include: hummus and baby kale, pub cheese and walnuts, cream cheese and olives)
the Super Burrito from Trader Joe's, cold
plain cereal, dry
bagels or croissants bought from the grocery store and portioned out over several days
Fruit that I cut up the night before.

And of course, coffee. I make iced coffee and do everything except the ice the night before. I don't care for smoothies but you might like them since they are breakfast in a cup. Sometimes I eat an apple or banana during the walking portion of my commute; think about where you have a trash can opportunity and time it for then. My opinion is that food smells (other than something egregious like hot fish) are not particularly a problem since once you eat it and close up the wrapper, we don't have to smell it any more-- I am more bothered by the body odor, hair product, and perfumes of the people around me because they don't go away.

If I know it's going to be a rough commute that night and I'll have to eat dinner on the train, I typically just take a few minutes and eat dinner at work. I would rather eat something hearty with a fork like a civilized person even if I get home 20 minutes later. Then I eat a dessert/snack on the train, like pretzels, baby carrots, snap peas, or cookies. Otherwise, I eat the same thing as breakfast but a different version (so if breakfast was a sandwich, dinner is a different filling.) I also reuse my coffee cup for instant lemonade or ice water in the evening.
posted by blnkfrnk at 8:06 AM on May 31, 2018 [1 favorite]


Try Food52.com or 101cookbooks.com for ideas, including snack balls! I really like 101cookbooks for portable snacks, as she is always looking for airplane food.
posted by LinneaJC at 8:07 AM on May 31, 2018 [2 favorites]


I've been making myself get into the habit of baking a quick bread once a week, intentionally to use as a breakfast. They're easy, lots of quick breads are packed with fruit or even vegetables, they're open to invention ("I know this pumpkin bread technically doesn't have nuts in the recipe, but what the hell, lemme add some") and they can be eaten out of hand and they don't smell bad. I just whack myself off a slice every morning for breakfast and I'm done. If you'd rather, too, any quick bread recipe can be turned into a muffin recipe simply by pouring the batter into muffin cups instead of a loaf pan and baking them that way.

Or, just go with fruit ilke apples, pears, peaches, a bunch of grapes, etc.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:10 AM on May 31, 2018 [1 favorite]


Oh, and for dinners: go with the ploughman's lunch concept. A crusty roll, a hunk of cheese, an apple.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:11 AM on May 31, 2018 [2 favorites]


Any sort of muffin-type meal. For breakfast you have your traditional muffin, toasted english muffins and other bread-based solutions like bagels, etc. Bagels alone can be varied with different fillings, etc. You can bake awesome egg-based things in muffin tins and load them up with all sorts of things - meat, veggies, etc.

Pre-cut veggies, fruits, cheese and processed lunch meat products have also gotten me through many a quick meal while driving.
posted by cgg at 8:33 AM on May 31, 2018


Response by poster: Thanks guys. The bus company actually recommended eggs and yogurt as "odorless" foods on their website, so no hate on me please.

Any other suggestions/recommendations are welcome.
posted by marfa, texas at 8:44 AM on May 31, 2018 [1 favorite]


Quiche (crustless will be less messy) and other casserole-format egg foods can be eaten out of a baggie as the holder, wrapped in a tortilla, with a fork/spoon from a container, or sliced and turned into sandwich filling with bread/roll/croissant. It generally tastes just as good cold or room temp as hot. Add a tablespoon or two of flour to your egg mix, or a couple teaspoons of coconut flour or flax meal, and it'll firm up a little better and will also freeze and thaw without going too watery.

You could do the same with other casseroles, so long as you don't mind eating them cold (or I suppose you could microwave on your way out of the office to take the fridge chill off). I like pasta-y casseroles with a bechamel or eggy base so it solidifies pretty good and then slices well, because slices reheat better than a chunk or solid portion.

There's bento-style options too, or less formally just a graze plate to go. A few turkey meatballs (or slices of meatloaf) if you eat poultry, cheese, low-sauce pasta (something extremely fork-friendly) or rice balls or some nice bread. (If you want to do some weekend meal prep, make up a double batch of gougeres and freeze most of them unbaked so you can just bake a couple days' worth at a time when you want them. They make a perfect slider bun or nibble on a grazing plate.)

Roast vegetables that will be appealing to you cool or cold - I love cold roasted carrots, mushrooms, tiny potatoes, radishes, parsnips.

I use meal prep containers for, well, meal prep, and am moving off of regular Gladware stuff because meal prep containers nest so much better. My preferred style is a longer lower box like this but I just recently screwed up and ordered these, which hold nearly the same amount but they're quite tiny and deep, easier to hold in one hand without needing a lap or surface as long as you can eat the contents with one hand (and if you have to eat on transport, I would say eat everything humanly possible with a utensil or wrapper so you don't have to put your public transport hands on your food/near your mouth).

I agree that if it's at all possible, eat dinner quickly before leaving the office and take a little dessert on the bus. That way you can have a nicer, less-worrysome meal.
posted by Lyn Never at 8:54 AM on May 31, 2018


I had a similar commute for 9 months as a contractor. I made a bunch of freeze-ahead breakfast burritos. The point is that you can put anything you want into a wrap, basically, and I did. Scrambled eggs, shredded cheese, rice, beans, and roasted sweet potatoes. I usually had cottage cheese with fruit and nuts in the morning for breakfast and the burrito either at lunch or on the bus home for dinner with a piece of fruit.
posted by Bella Donna at 8:58 AM on May 31, 2018 [2 favorites]


Yes, eating at the office is generally preferable to having to do it on a long commute, if the schedule of the shuttle doesn't make it totally impractical. Get home twenty minutes later, having eaten what you actually want in a vaguely civilized setting without having to worry about your fellow-commuters.
posted by praemunire at 9:08 AM on May 31, 2018


I have had times I had to feed my kids en route this way so here's part of my list:

Stuff-in-bread-or-pastry is basically created for these situations. Some suggestions, which can be homemade or in some cases located in the freezer section of your grocery store and baked the night before, especially if you (like my family) are willing to eat them cold/room temp:

Samosas - cold they aren't really smelly at all, and there are completely vegetarian (potato/chickpea and potato/pea) versions, soy protein versions, chicken versions available.

Empanadas - same thing, black bean filling etc.

"Chinese buns" - these are a sweeter bread dough cooked with things in them, sometimes dumpling style with like a curry inside, sometimes wrapped around things like (tofu) dogs or cheese. If you have a breadmaker the dough setting is perfect for this. If you don't, you can do "pigs" in a blanket in or any of the above using crescent roll dough, using tofu dogs or veggie sausage. Include mustard on the inside or dip in a little container on the bus if you need condiments.

Cornish pasties and Jamaican patties are other variations on this method.

Pizza pockets are the Americanized version, you can find or create your own vegetarian ones. For those, you can use refrigerated pizza dough, which actually does work for some of the things above.

Savoury muffins or quickbreads.

"French toast fingers" - make french toast, cut into strips, dunk in a small container of syrup.

"Enhanced" pancakes and waffles - there are protein pancake mixes or oatmeal or ricotta pancakes. Again you can bring a dip sized portion of syrup or jam. Cutting them up into pieces makes them more bus-friendly.
posted by warriorqueen at 9:21 AM on May 31, 2018 [1 favorite]


Tupperware tub of nut butter and fruit/veg that can be dipped in same.
Mason jar salads and oatmeal.
Make your own trail mix or granola, with stuff you actually like.
posted by ApathyGirl at 11:08 AM on May 31, 2018


Super simple, healthy breakfast muffins, which freeze really well and defrost overnight ready to eat for breakfast. I eat them on the bus, not smelly despite containing eggs, contain protein, fibre and carbs. Perfect breakfast food!

Scale up as you please, proportions are:
2 eggs
2 tablespoons of porridge oats
1 piece of fruit, chopped (ie. 1 Apple or equivalent)

Mix it all up, stick into muffin tins and bake for 15-20 mins on 180-200C

I make a batch using a dozen eggs etc. and get 18 muffins, and eat two a day, though they’re not huge so you might want more. At first taste, they’re a little different, because your palate is expecting a regular muffin but these are more like a fruit omelette. I make them with apple and sprinkle cinnamon on top and they’re delicious. I’ve also tried them with (defrosted) frozen summer fruits, which saved peeling/chopping the apples but wasn’t quite as tasty.
posted by penguin pie at 3:14 PM on May 31, 2018


I know you don't like food bars, but I highly recommend having some kind of emergency food unit stashed in your bag (nut butter pouches?). They aren't meant to be liked, they are meant to keep you from hanger-murdering a fellow passenger after you forget / accidentally drop your dinner.
posted by momus_window at 3:24 PM on May 31, 2018 [2 favorites]


A few ideas:

- If you like a hot breakfast, buy one of those small vacuum-sealed stainless steel thermos containers for oatmeal.
You can cook up a batch of several servings at one time and just portion out that day's oatmeal in the morning with whatever toppings you like. You could probably even put an egg scramble in there but that might get kind of messy and smelly.
- Can you keep sandwich stuff at work? That way you could make a nice sandwich for yourself before leaving the office and not have to worry about it getting soggy or meat going bad.
- Someone above mentioned iced coffee. In the summer I like to make a batch of cold press that yields a few days' worth of coffee (I have this but you can make it without one, there are a million how-tos on the internet). Then in the morning, I put a serving in a glass jar or bottle, add cream, and shake it up. Makes it all frothy like a fancy coffee drink from Starbucks. Sometimes I add flavor to it, like vanilla extract or a tiny bit of chocolate syrup.
posted by lunasol at 3:36 PM on May 31, 2018


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