On September 1, the child went to school and the issue of school meals again becomes acute for the parents. Most educational institutions offer students meals in school canteens, but often there are reasons that force children and their mothers to refuse this service. The most optimal option in these cases is the option of a lunch box assembled at home.
A small food box should contain a full-fledged diet of a schoolchild, consisting of protein products (meat, fish, legumes), sources of carbohydrates (cereals, cereals, cereals), fermented milk or dairy products, fresh vegetables and fruits. It is imperative to give children drinking water to school, poured into special bottles.
Exterior presentation of dishes and effective packaging are of great importance in a student's lunch. The most interesting and modern option for beautiful packaging of school food is bright colorful plastic containers. Such dishes usually contain funny pictures, images of heroes of popular cartoons and comics. A lunch box carefully planned by mom will take into account all the tastes and wishes of loved ones schoolchildren, provide a nutritious lunch and even help save the family's budget. Such special containers contain a lot of compartments that do not allow food to mix and crumble, are equipped with the necessary cutlery, are convenient to use and transport. You can only supplement the container with napkins, a thermos or a water bottle.
The range of food containers today is wide and varied. Different models differ in size, configuration, external design, arrangement of internal sections. Containers are produced for both single use and reusable use. The main requirements for disposable lunch boxes are safety, compactness and tightness. Such containers are usually made from plastic, polystyrene, polypropylene, natural materials such as paper raw materials. You can often find lunch boxes for one-time use, consisting of expanded polystyrene or environmentally friendly material - corn starch. Choosing disposable containers, you should pay attention that most of them are not suitable for heating in microwave ovens. These utensils are designed primarily for storing and transporting food.
Disposable boxes can be produced in a variety of shapes, configurations and colors. It is advisable to constantly have on hand lunch boxes of various sizes and use one or another depending on the volume of the products being stacked. It is also convenient to place meals in two-, three- or more sectional boxes. In this case, the smells and tastes of the food do not mix. As for the color performance, the most often on sale can be found white, but there are various other shades. In any case, the color of the dishes does not in any way affect its quality, but is of purely aesthetic interest.
There is also a great variety of materials from which reusable containers are made. Most often you can find plastic lunch boxes, but quite often there are models made of stainless steel, polyamide, neoprene (synthetic rubber), special fabric.
Lunch boxes of the premium segment are usually made of stainless steel. The advantage of such containers is that these dishes do not accumulate odors and fats, keeps the dish warm for a long time, and is easy to clean. Stainless containers can contain several containers, for example, for a main course and for a snack. Often they are equipped with a sealed cover and are vacuum insulated.For stylish high school students, there are models in the form of a folder or a case. Of the shortcomings, it is worth highlighting only the impossibility of putting such a container in the microwave (if the dish is still cold), a more tangible weight compared to plastic, and a rather high cost.
Lunch boxes made of polyamide and neoprene usually have an original design developed especially for children, an ergonomic shape in the form of a backpack or a bag, comfortable handles and adjustable shoulder straps, colorful prints on the front side. These modern technologically advanced environmentally friendly materials store products hermetically, preserve the freshness of children's meals, withstand any mechanical stress, and do not lose their properties during hand and machine wash.
Also, manufacturers offer a fairly large assortment of thermal bags. They are lightweight, comfortable and compact. These lunch boxes are made of durable, water-resistant polyester. Their inner compartment is lined with water-repellent aluminum foil, which keeps the temperature of the food for a long time, easy to clean and clean. The thermal bag has many compartments, including pockets for money, keys and a special compartment for an ice pack. With the help of special handles on the latch, the lunch box is conveniently attached to the school backpack, and is additionally equipped with a special label for recording the owner's name.
Reusable plastic containers are the most convenient and economical. Such dishes are round, square, rectangular, in the form of hamburgers, Lego parts, faces of cartoon characters. There is a great variety of configurations: suitcases with various compartments inside, folding matryoshka boxes, one-, two- and three-tier containers, cooler containers and much more. If you wish, you can buy special stickers for some models and the child will create his own individual design.
Modern plastic lunch boxes are comfortable, practical and durable. Often they are similar in quality to ordinary ceramic dishes, but they are more convenient and functional. Reliable vacuum lids with silicone gaskets keep the contents hermetically sealed. Containers for vegetables and fruits, sauces, bulk products, cutlery are compactly placed inside the containers. When used in a microwave oven, the independent compartments allow you to reheat only the food you need. Some models are equipped with special bags, in which, in addition to boxing, you can put a thermos or a bottle of water, and, having opened, can be used as a waterproof, easily washable napkin. Usually, plastic containers are equipped with reliable latches that allow you to keep food in place, even with a lot of shaking. Some models have special containers for peels and peels, which protects school backpacks from crumbling food debris.
Foldable containers allow you to significantly save space in a student's backpack, because after finishing lunch, such dishes can be compactly folded, and at home they can even be washed in a dishwasher. Some lunch boxes come with a cooling system, removable cushions or removable ice rings around which food is placed. The use of these refrigerants keeps perishable food fresh.
There are situations when a child simply needs hot liquid food. An excellent solution in this case would be a thermos with a wide neck. It can not only transport warm drinks, but it is also convenient to use for consuming soups and main courses. Thanks to the wide neck, food can be eaten directly from the thermos. Some models have a small volume, just for one serving. Importantly, a thermos with a wide neck is much more convenient to wash. In addition, there are lunch boxes specifically for soup.They have a sealed lid and outer walls that do not heat up when heated in the microwave. This dish is made of scratch-resistant plastic, and a special recess is provided on the bottom, thanks to which the container is convenient to hold in your hands.
There is also a huge selection of lunch box accessories. These are hermetic gravy boats for sauces and liquid dressings, and silicone molds for separating dishes inside the container, and molds that allow you to place a hard-boiled egg so that it does not take up extra volume in the container. A warm egg embedded in such a mold will have an original inscription or an interesting picture.
When choosing a food container for your child, test it for leaks by pouring a little water and shaking it slightly. It is better to refuse leaking boxes, otherwise all school equipment may be damaged. It is desirable that the lunch box contains several portion containers, into which it is convenient to arrange various products. It is not bad if it comes with a removable bottom container where you can put the cooling element. Choose a lunch box of such a size that the child eats lunch completely and does not bring the leftovers home. When preparing and stacking food, use special molds and stencils, then every meal will look like a real work of art. Provide your child with a variety of foods. The composition of the lunch box can be scheduled in advance for all days of the week.
When putting together a lunch box for school, think in advance about the location of the products in the container. Always have ready-made meals on hand that you can fill your lunch box with urgently. Try to pack in the evening those products that do not require pre-processing. If you need to keep a dish or drink chilled, you can take a regular drink bottle, fill it a third with milk or drinking yogurt and put it in the freezer for several hours. Just before placing in the container, top up the remaining volume and place next to a perishable food such as jelly, salad or cottage cheese. The frozen portion of the liquid will gradually thaw, cooling the rest of the drink and the dish next to the bottle.
Heat food that needs to be kept hot just before packing the lunch box, and preheat the container itself by filling it with hot water for a while. Do not overfill containers, do not pour boiling water into them, and carefully close all lids and fasteners. Don't forget to put spoons, forks, knives and don't skimp on napkins.
