In my post from two weeks ago, I talked about keeping greens fresh. I also wrote about how raw vegetables can cause gas and how to prevent it. Today, we’re talking about jarred salads, a continuation of those two. If I ever have a meal out, the only thing I invariably take with me is a jarred salad.

No need to reheat, no worries about spills or bad smells. And it’s the easiest meal to prepare with my own ingredients from home.

First, I want to tell you how I prepare it.

I pour olive oil, pomegranate molasses, lemon juice, or whatever sauce I want into the bottom of a wide-mouthed jar. I don’t add salt because it wilts the greens quickly. I add the salt just before eating.

Then I start layering what I want. First, the pre-washed, dried greens.

In between, whatever I have at home… steamed vegetables, boiled quinoa or legumes, cheese, anything… I’ll show you the options below.

To keep you full, I always add raw seeds. Pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, walnuts, etc.

I also add some greens or grated, firmer ingredients like carrots and radishes on top.

When preparing the jar, I make sure to include a sweet vegetable or fruit. Like baked pumpkin, sweet potatoes, carrots, or a diced apple. Adding sweet vegetables to our diets and meals helps manage sweet cravings throughout the day.

I close the jar, put a fork and salt in my bag, and take my meal with me.

When I’m ready to eat, I turn the jar upside down, gently shake it to distribute the sauce evenly, add salt, and my salad is ready to eat.

With this jar by my side, nothing can stop me when I’m out. I don’t crave anything else, neither food, nor sweets, nor nuts. Everything is together, super practical, and delicious. I really love these compact, all-in-one meals.

I often prepare it even at 6 am before leaving home. Now you might be wondering: Doesn’t cutting and preparing the ingredients beforehand lead to vitamin loss? Yes, of course it happens a little, but I would much rather eat a salad I’ve prepared myself at home, according to my own taste, even if its vitamins are slightly reduced, than eat a salad outside where I don’t know what’s in it, which will upset my stomach later, and I don’t even know if it’s been cut beforehand. Don’t let these small details deter you from healthy eating and the lunchbox campaign.

Examples:

It contains lightly steamed spinach, carrots, and greens.

Salad with boiled sweet potatoes, goat cheese, and pumpkin seeds.

The night before, there were some leftover hummus and a yogurt-based appetizer. The next day, they immediately found their place in the jar of salad. Some boiled pumpkin and cheese were added on top.

With carrots and boiled lentils. Here, I used the filling nature of boiled lentils.

This time it’s a lighter, summery salad. I’m sure to add pumpkin seeds on top again to increase the feeling of fullness. Walnuts or almonds would also work, but as long as it has some crunchy, oily seed in it.

This is a jar salad to use up leftovers. At the bottom is cooked quinoa, on top is a little bit of sinkonta (an Aegean dish, salted pumpkin. I shared the recipe on my Instagram account 2-3 days ago), which isn’t a meal on its own, and on top of that are greens. It was a super filling meal.

This method makes it very easy to take food out even if you don’t have any at home. You can even prepare the jars on Sunday and just chop the greens and add them in the morning.

I wish everyone a healthy, happy, and sugar-free week.