16 Feb Healthy Packed Lunch Idea: Salad in a Jar

Our lovely buying assistant Collette recently joined the Faithful to Nature team, and we’ve been given a serious case of food envy by the lunch she brings into the office every day – a beautiful, layered salad in a jar.

Packing salad in a consol jar seems like a great idea – it looks vibrant and inspiring, and you don’t have to worry about ending up with soggy leaves by the time 12 o’ clock rolls around (since the dressing stays at the bottom), and it’s an easy, spill-proof way to transport your lunch. Plus, if you’re ultra-organised, you can get all of your jars ready at the beginning of the week, so you don’t have to think about what to pack for lunch each day.

Consol Jar with Black Clip-Top Lid 500ml R33	Chef’n Palm Zester R109	Salad Love – David Bez R315
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Here’s Collette’s step-by-step guide to assembling a salad in a jar:

1. Add the dressing

The secret to a consol jar salad is layering. Start with the dressing on the bottom. Use about 2 tablespoons per 500ml jar. (It’s also helpful to place onions at the bottom, if using them, because soaking them in the dressing helps dilute the strong onion taste and prevents onion breath at work.)

2. Add your base layer

Next add some salad ingredients that won’t soak up the dressing, such as carrots, cherry tomatoes, sugar snap peas, or chickpeas.

3. Continue layering

Continue to layer your salad with your chosen ingredients. Pack the layers as tightly as possible — the less air between layers, the longer your salad will stay fresh.

4. Top with greens

Finally, layer on your lettuce or salad greens. By ending with the greens at the top, you’ll create a moisture barrier that prevents the entire salad from becoming soggy. If you are including cheese, nuts or seeds, add them last.

5. Ready to serve

Twist on the top to seal your salad, place the jar in your fridge, and you’re good to go! If you want to include a protein such as chicken, hard-boiled egg or tofu, add them to the top in the morning of the day you’ll eat it. When you’re ready to eat, pour your salad into a bowl and toss to mix the dressing throughout.

5 Awesome recipes to inspire you

You don’t need to use a recipe to make a salad jar – just layer your favourite salad components using the formula above. But if you’d like to get gourmet, here are some recipes to inspire you:

Mexican burrito bowl – via Deliciously Ella (made with black beans, quinoa, fresh salsa and guacamole, and a yummy cashew cream made with cashews and tamari).

Asian soba noodle salad – via Food52 (made with colourful veggies, soba buckwheat noodles, sesame seeds, and tofu marinated in orange juice, ginger, sesame oil, maple syrup and cayenne pepper – delish!)

Vegan Caesar salad – via Oh She Glows (made with kale, romaine lettuce, spicy roast chickpeas, vegan Caesar dressing and ‘Parmesan cheese’ made with raw cashews, hemp seeds and nutritional yeast)

You could even pack breakfast in a consol jar:

Fruit breakfast parfaits – via Iowa Girl Eats (made with Greek yoghurt or your own homemade yoghurt, granola, chia seeds and fresh fruit)

Overnight oats – via Jeanette’s Healthy Living (made with organic oats, maple syrup, milk or milk substitute, chia seeds, vanilla, toasted nuts and fresh fruit)

Have you made a salad in a jar before? What do you pack for lunch each day?