5 Costco Products That Will Instantly Upgrade Your Packed Lunch Game For Work Or School

If you pack a daily lunch for yourself or your kids for work or school, you probably have your go-to standbys like salads, cheese and crackers, and classic bologna sandwiches. All of those can feel a little boring after a while, though. Luckily, it's easy enough to up your lunch game on your next Costco run. The wholesale giant is so great for all kinds of gems like must-buy frozen foods, highly-rated cookware sets, and so much more. If you haven't started shopping there for easy weekday lunch prep, though, you're missing out. 

Now granted, shopping at Costco can take more time than going to a smaller grocery option like Trader Joe's or Aldi, where you can just pop in and out. However, a lot of Costco shelf staples like canned salmon come in large quantities and will last you more than a week. That means you'll be well-stocked to prepare delicious lunches for you and your family even when weeks feel beyond busy. 

Tuna sandwiches are delicious, but don't feel all that special if you eat them all the time. Salmon sandwiches, on the other hand, feel like a true lunchtime upgrade. Prepare the canned Kirkland Signature Wild Alaskan Pink Salmon in the same way you'd prepare tuna salad, with your favorite ingredients like mayo, celery, chopped onion, and lemon juice, and you'll notice right away how much more elevated it tastes. 

Another popular TikTok recipe option is to mix the canned salmon with sriracha and use nori sheets, rice, and avocado to make hand rolls at lunchtime. A quicker version is to just pack some seaweed snacks and dip them into your salmon salad at your desk. 

If you're constantly topping your lunch salads with grilled chicken, it might be time to mix it up. Next week, pick up a carton of the Kirkland Signature Shrimp Cocktail with Cocktail Sauce and Lemon instead. For the shrimp you don't snack on immediately with the lemon and cocktail sauce, you can use them for lunch meal prep throughout the week. 

Top any green, grain, or pasta-based salad with delicious shrimp. You can also add shrimp into fresh spring rolls, use them on top of a rice bowl for a homemade poke situation, or chop them up into ceviche. You can also cook the shrimp to enjoy in a thermos with noodles or curry.

If you usually pack string cheese or cheese slices in your kids' school lunchbox, upgrade this year by keeping a bag of BelGioioso Fresh Mozzarella Snacking Cheese on hand at all times. You can, of course, pack them in any lunchbox to snack on them on their own or in a cracker, cheese, and meat charcuterie situation. But they are also so versatile to use in meal prep for lunches. Make mini caprese skewers with cherry tomatoes and pesto that will delight kids and adults alike. 

Put them on salads directly for a delicious alternative to feta or goat cheese. Make pasta salad with roasted eggplant and mozzarella. Or, melt them on top of grilled chicken and pasta sauce at home to pack for a lunchtime chicken parm delight that you can put on a sandwich or reheat at the office. The cheesy possibilities are endless.

Sandwiches and salads are always available in rotation, but frozen dumplings are just a delightful lunch alternative. Costco carries a few brands of frozen dumplings like Bibigo and Ling Ling, so check what's available at your local store in the freezer section. 

Now, as for packing them for lunch, if a microwave or toaster isn't available, you can always cook them at home in the air fryer or steam them and pack them in a thermos or other container to keep them warm and crispy until you enjoy them. Don't forget to pack a separate container for your favorite dipping sauce.

Other fantastic lunch ideas for frozen dumplings include cooking them in soup or curry, packing them over rice or noodles, or stir-frying them in sauce and vegetables. You'll never consider a sad desk salad again.

Packets of instant ramen are a smart go-to for your office kitchen, but if you're ready for an upgrade, keep a case of Ajinomoto Vegetable Yakisoba noodles stashed in a nearby freezer instead. (No kitchen? Heat them at home and then pack them in a thermos instead.) The packets are filled with veggies and steam in the microwave in just three quick minutes, so they'll be ready whenever you're hungry. Even the sauce is pre-mixed in, so no additional stirring work is needed. 

The noodles are vegetarian, but you can also add protein like eggs, grilled chicken, beef, or tofu to round out your quick meal.