We have ice packs and an insulated bag. You can also freeze juice boxes (I know, the horror), yogurt drinks or tubes, applesauce packets, etc. and they will be thawed enough for a late snack as well as keeping things cold. We’ve been doing this with DD for the last few years and like PP, anything remaining her bag is still cold when she gets home around 330.

There are also bento box type containers that have a built in frozen chiller component.

I put leftovers from the frig in our plantbox all the time. No ice pack or reheating. Just send it as is. Three kids, oldest is 12. You are overthinking this by a lot.

Anonymous wrote:I’m not a microbiologist, but I pop an ice pack into my kids lunchbox and make sure their sandwich or leftovers are next to it. It’s usually still cold when they get home at 3, so I feel fine about the safety of their lunches.

They’ve been in school 6 years now with no food related illnesses, so it seems fine.

This.

Cashews not cashes.

Just a mom… my 10 yo still uses a Bentgo lunch box. She has cold rotisserie chicken in the main/biggest part once or twice a week. Ketchup goes in the smallest. This is one of her favorite lunches. Been doing this since K. I do make it the night before so the whole lunch and lunchbox starts off cold, I threw an ice label pack in in the morning and it’s fine. She had cashes, celery sticks and a rice Kristen treat in the other sections for her lunch tomorrow.

Microbiologist here - not sure I'm the one you wanted, but here I am I have a child who couldn't open any tight containers for years, so I get your issue.

All the things you list are fine, OP. What matters is how you cook and store them before packing the lunchbox, and how careful you are about not mixing leftovers with newly cooked foods (not using the same utensils either), and not leaving open containers of foods at room temperature for longer than it takes to serve, if you want to eat them again later.

What I preferred to do was cook the morning of, so foods went in fresh and hot, in non-insulated containers at first (then in middle school my son was able to wrestle with his thermos jar). I used those soft insulated carrier bags. The time frame of several hours is not sufficient for toxic bacterial multiplication since the food is cooked in the morning and enclosed immediately. If using leftovers, then the food goes from the fridge to the container with no fuss, and I added a small ice pack to the bag.

The most important thing is being hygienic when cooking and storing the food intended to be eaten later, as mentioned above. Ex: My daughter often left the milk jug on the table after she poured herself a glass, and sometimes even forgot to close it... thus significantly contributing to milk spoilage. I had to teach her to put the milk back in the fridge as soon as she poured some in her glass.

Throw out any food left in the lunchbox at the end of the day. The time frame at room temp gets a bit too long and most importantly, you don't know what the kids did to it

Not a microbiologist, but I used to send cold, cut up, chicken patties, sandwich meat, etc. I made sure the meat was chilled, along with yogurt, juice, etc. I’d use an insulated bag and pack an icepack. I’d wait until the morning to pack the lunchbox, and things stayed cold enough until lunch.

I don’t think you need a thermos to keep cold food safe. If you wanted to send something for a hot lunch, I’d recommend a thermos. I’ve heard they’re a hassle to clean and prep, and I never wanted to bother. My kids had the option of buying a hot lunch or taking a cold one. It was good enough.

Anonymous wrote:I’m packing for my daughter. She needs high protein because of a genetic condition. She doesn’t eat lunch meat. Can I send (cooked, obviously) cold meatballs? Cold chicken nuggets? Or chicken strips, etc? I know I can send foods in a thermos but that seems iffy to me. It seems like they might stay lukewarm, which is exactly the wrong temperature. Also DD is 5 and can’t open a thermos herself.

Not a microbiologist, just a mom of a very immunocompromised kid.

Meatballs, chicken nuggets or strips, chicken drumsticks, etc . . . will do fine if you put them in an easy to open insulated lunch box with an ice pack.

I have this brand of lunch box for my kids that they pack a second lunch to eat between school and practice. The food is still cold, and they're eating many hours after school lunch would be.

https://arcticzone.com/products/titan-expandable-lunch-box?variant=31848130216038¤cy=USD&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gclid=Cj0KCQjwrs2XBhDjARIsAHVymmTpjc05Asq3J-0RYPAI1L9eb_5Gl9WxfjsnKpR5nkql_ML8VEHFer0aAiFuEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Does her classroom have A/C? Then you can send anything you want, nothing will get warm enough to grow bacteria in a couple of hours.

- a biochemist who doesn’t know too much about microbiology but isn’t worried about leaving food outside for a couple of hours.

Not a microbiologist but I always send my kids with thermoses of meatballs, spaghetti bolognese, Asian chicken noodles, etc and they have had no problems.

I’m not a microbiologist, but I pop an ice pack into my kids lunchbox and make sure their sandwich or leftovers are next to it. It’s usually still cold when they get home at 3, so I feel fine about the safety of their lunches.

They’ve been in school 6 years now with no food related illnesses, so it seems fine.

Anonymous wrote:Not a micro biologist but a research biologist. Work with your DD on opening thermoses. Also- there might be a microwave at your school. Lastly- no one should be eating lunch meat.

This is OP. She has a fine motor delay. I promise you she can’t open a thermos.

Not a micro biologist but a research biologist. Work with your DD on opening thermoses. Also- there might be a microwave at your school. Lastly- no one should be eating lunch meat.

This is OP. Not high protein. She needs high iron. And the vegetarian sources of iron don’t generally cut it, unfortunately. So that’s why I’m thinking about meat proteins.

I’m packing for my daughter. She needs high protein because of a genetic condition. She doesn’t eat lunch meat. Can I send (cooked, obviously) cold meatballs? Cold chicken nuggets? Or chicken strips, etc? I know I can send foods in a thermos but that seems iffy to me. It seems like they might stay lukewarm, which is exactly the wrong temperature. Also DD is 5 and can’t open a thermos herself.