Lunchbox Revolution: 7 Wrap Recipes for Lunch That’ll Make Your Coworkers Jealous
Ever caught yourself starin’ into your fridge at 7am wondering what in tarnation you’re gonna pack for lunch? Me too—like, literally every single morning since 2016 (except that weird month when I tried meal prepping and ended up with seventeen containers of the same soggy quinoa dish). Well, friends, I’m about to blow the lid off your lunchtime rut with these wrap recipes for lunch that’ll make you the envy of every sad desk salad in your office. And let me tell ya about my little kitchen revelation: wraps aren’t just vehicles for random leftovers—they’re canvases for culinary genuis when you master the proper “spiral-stacking” technique (more on that later).
My Wrap Wanderings (Or How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Tortilla)
This whole wrap obsession started back when I was living in that tiny apartment in Portland with the kitchen so small you couldn’t open the refrigerator and oven at the same time. June 17th, 2019. Tuesday. Raining. I’d just burnt my third attempt at making a “simple” peanut butter sandwich (don’t ask). My cousin Marty had just texted me about some fancy Mediterranean place she’d tried, and I was feeling especially sorry for myself.
That’s when I kinda lost it and wrapped leftover spaghetti in a tortilla. With cold butter. And a single pickle. It was… disturbing? But also weirdly good in that specific way that only desperate hunger can produce.
From there, I went down a rabbit hole—Marty calls it my “wrap phase” but it’s been four years, so I think we’re beyond phases here! I’ve since fiddled with approximately 94 different combinations, dragging my poor roommates through taste tests that sometimes ended with them asking, “Is this even food?” (Looking at you, kimchi-banana wrap of July 2020…)
But these seven—these magnificent seven below—have earned permanent spots in my rotation. They’ve survived what I call the “Tuesday test” (when everything feels blah and nothing tastes good).
The Goods (or: Things You’ll Need to Stuff in Other Things)
- WRAPS/TORTILLAS – Store-bought are fine but homemade are finer. Usually I use regular ol’ flour ones, but sometimes I get fancy with spinach or tomato varieties when I’m trying to impress people who frankly don’t care that much. Size matters—get the BIG ones (10-12 inch diameter) unless you enjoy filling spilling out everywhere.
- PROTEINS (pick your fighter):
- Rotisserie chicken, shredded (or as I like to call it, “lazy person’s meal prep”)
- Deli turkey (the good kind that doesn’t taste like wet cardboard)
- Smoked tofu (sliced into rectangles roughly the size of two stacked nickels)
- Chickpeas, smashed with a fork until they’re all wonky-looking
- Hard-boiled eggs, chopped while still slightly warm (I find this weirdly important???)
- Canned tuna—DON’T @ ME, it’s delicious when you gussie it up right
- THE SPREAD SITUATION:
- Herby mayo (½ c. mayo + whatever herbs are slowly dying in your fridge)
- Muhammara (that roasted red pepper walnut dip nobody knows about but should)
- Smashed avocado (not guac… there’s a difference I’ll fight about)
- Cream cheese with everything bagel seasoning mixed in (my “Thompson spread”)
- Plain hummus (boring but reliable, like my ex)
- CRUNCH FACTORS:
- Shredded carrots (buy pre-shredded, life’s too short)
- Cucumber matchsticks (fancy word for “cut ’em long and skinny”)
- Red cabbage, sliced thinner than your patience on Monday mornings
- Those crispy fried onions that come in a can for green bean casserole
- Pickled anything—jalapeños, red onions, those weird little cornichons
- LEAFY BITS:
- Arugula (for when you’re feelin’ fancy)
- Spinach (for when you’re feelin’ virtuous)
- Romaine (for when you just need something to hold the good stuff)
- FLAVOR BOMBS:
- Sundried tomatoes (not the oil-packed kind, unless you want a soggy tragedy)
- Feta cheese crumbles (the more you add, the better life gets)
- Kalamata olives, chopped (leave the pits out unless you hate your teeth)
- One secret potato chip, crushed (yes, seriously)
Let’s Get Wrapping (The Not-So-Secret Society of Lunch Engineering)
1) The “I Can’t Believe It’s Not A Gyro” Wrap
First things first, you need to do the yogurt-strain thing. Take ¾ cup of Greek yogurt and pop it in a mesh strainer lined with paper towels—leave it for like 20 minutes until it’s thicker than normal yogurt but not quite cream cheese. While that’s happening, chop half a cucumber into tiny bits (and I mean TINY—nobody wants a cucumber explosion). Mix the cucumber with the thickened yogurt, add a clove of minced garlic, salt, pepper, and a pinch of dill.
Now grab your tortilla and warm it for 8 seconds—EXACTLY 8!—in the microwave. This activates the gluten-hold (a term I totally made up but sounds right). Spread that yogurt mixture all over, leaving about a thumb’s width around the edge. Add sliced chicken or chickpeas, chopped tomatoes, red onion so thin you can almost see through it, and a handful of romaine.
Now for my special folding technique I call the “envelope-tuck.” Fold the bottom up about 2 inches, then fold the sides in, and roll from the bottom up while using your pinkies to keep the sides from exploding. I learned this from my neighbor Dorothy who makes these incredible tamales, although she’d be horrified to see me apply her technique to this Greek-adjacent monstrosity. Check out our Mediterranean Mezze Platter for more Greek-inspired lunch ideas.
2) The “Buffalo Situation” Wrap
This one was born during the Great Hot Sauce Incident of 2021 (spilled an entire 12-oz bottle in my pantry—everything smelled like buffalo sauce for months).
Start with a spinach tortilla—it adds a nice color contrast, plus you can pretend it’s healthier. Mix 3 Tbsps mayo with 2 Tbsps of buffalo sauce—not the super spicy kind unless you hate your digestive system. Spread that all over your tortilla, then add shredded rotisserie chicken that you’ve tossed with a bit more buffalo sauce.
Now here’s where most people go wrong: DON’T add blue cheese dressing. It makes everything soggy by lunch. Instead, crumble actual blue cheese (about 2 Tbsps) over the chicken. Add shredded carrots, very thinly sliced celery (I’m talking translucent here), and a handful of arugula for a peppery kick.
Fold using what my Aunt Mabel would call a “half-wrap”—fold the bottom up, then roll tightly from one side. The open ends mean you need to eat it like you’re facing into the wind during a hurricane, but the structural integrity is worth it.
3) The “Breakfast for Lunch” Wrap (Because Time Is A Social Construct)
Heat your tortilla first—this is non-negotiable for this wrap! Spread a thin layer of cream cheese mixed with everything bagel seasoning. Add scrambled eggs that have been cooled to room temp (hot eggs make the tortilla gummy—learned that the hard way during The Great Lunch Fail of March 2022).
Layer on some avocado slices—not mashed, SLICED. There’s a textural difference that I will die on this hill for. Add crumbled bacon (or crispy chickpeas if you’re vegetarian), a sprinkle of cheddar, and a few spinach leaves.
Roll it up using what I call the “burrito-but-not” technique: fold in sides, then bottom, then roll while keeping tension on the sides with your thumbs. If you’ve done it right, you can cut it in half without everything falling apart. If you’ve done it wrong… well, that’s what forks are for.
4) The “Clean Out The Fridge” Mediterranean Wrap
This is more of a method than a recipe because it changes depending on whatever random Mediterranean-adjacent ingredients are lurking in my fridge.
Start with muhammara spread (roasted red pepper dip—you can find it at Trader Joe’s ). Spread it all over your wrap, then layer on whatever protein you’ve got—chickpeas, leftover chicken, or even canned tuna works great.
Add chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, red onion, a sprinkle of feta, and whatever herbs are on their last legs in your fridge. I usually go with parsley, mint, or dill—sometimes all three if I’m feeling fancy-schmancy.
The key here is to sort of… squish everything down as you roll. I know “squish” isn’t a technical cooking term, but it SHOULD be. You want to compact all those ingredients so they don’t fall out with every bite. Use the squish-and-roll technique (patent pending) by pressing down firmly as you roll from one end to the other.
5) “The Thanksgiving Leftover” Wrap (But You Can Make It Anytime)
Listen, I know Thanksgiving only comes once a year, but this wrap is so good it deserved to escape the holiday prison.
Spread cranberry sauce (the whole berry kind, not that weird jiggly cylinder) on your tortilla. Add sliced turkey, a schmear of mashed potatoes (yes, COLD mashed potatoes—trust the process), a sprinkle of stuffing crumbles, and some greens to pretend it’s healthy.
Roll it up using what my grandma calls the “Methodist fold” (though I have no idea why—we’re not even Methodist): roll tightly from one end, tucking as you go. The potatoes act as a weird glue that actually holds everything together.
Sometimes—not always, but when I’m feeling particularly chaotic—I dip the whole thing in gravy. I have no defense for this behavior.
6) The “Sushi But Make It Lazy” Wrap
This is… controversial. I served it to my friend Jenna who lived in Japan for three years and she didn’t speak to me for two weeks afterward. But it TASTES GOOD so whatever.
Spread a thin layer of mayo mixed with sriracha on a flour tortilla. Add cooled sushi rice (about ½ cup—and yes, it needs to be actual sushi rice with rice vinegar mixed in), a few slices of avocado, thinly sliced cucumber, and either imitation crab or smoked salmon.
Roll it up super tight, then slice into 1-inch pieces like a wrap version of a sushi roll. Pack with a little container of soy sauce for dipping.
Is it authentic? Absolutely not. Will actual Japanese people be offended? Probably. Is it delicious anyway? You bet your bento box it is.
7) The “I’m An Adult I Swear” PB&J Wrap
Sometimes you just wanna be 8 years old again. Spread peanut butter—the good kind with nothing but peanuts and salt—all over your tortilla. Add a layer of jam (I prefer blackberry but you do you), then sprinkle granola for crunch and sliced bananas.
Roll it up, slice it in half, and pretend you’re a sophisticated adult eating a “deconstructed legume spread with fruit compote and caramelized fruit in an artisanal flatbread vessel” instead of a glorified children’s lunch.
Wrap Wisdom: Tips from Someone Who’s Made All the Mistakes
• DISTRIBUTION MATTERS – Spread ingredients evenly across the whole surface except for a 1-inch border. Nobody wants a bite that’s all lettuce followed by a bite that’s all chicken.
• THE WATERPROOF LAYER – Always put a fat barrier (like mayo, cream cheese, etc.) between your tortilla and wet ingredients—otherwise, you’ll have a soggy nightmare by lunchtime.
• TEMPERATURE CONTROL – Let hot ingredients cool before wrapping unless you enjoy tortillas that disintegrate into gummy sadness.
• SALT AT THE END – A tiny sprinkle right before rolling makes flavors pop without making everything watery.
• THE TIGHT ROLL – Roll these suckers TIGHT. Like, use-your-fingertips-to-tuck-while-thumbs-roll tight. I call this “the baby swaddle method” because it’s essentially the same technique.
My Secret Weapon: The Wrap Press
CookWraps Heavy Duty Wrap Press ★★★★★ – This cast iron beauty has changed my wrap game forever. It’s basically a tortilla press but wider and flatter, perfect for pressing your filled wrap to seal everything together.
Silicone Wrap Bands ★★★★★ – These stretchy bands hold your wrap together during transport. The manufacturer says they’re dishwasher safe, but I’ve found they last longer if you hand wash them with a drop of dish soap and air dry.
Our best healthy and easy lunch recipes
- 4 Ingredient Blueberry Oatmeal Cookies Recipe
- Fudgy Low-Calorie Greek Yogurt Brownies – Healthy & Rich
- 3 Ingredient Banana Brownies – Easy, Fudgy & Healthy
Mix It Up: Wrap Variations That Sound Wrong But Taste Right
• THE BREAKFAST-LUNCH HYBRID: Use a waffle instead of a tortilla, spread with cream cheese, add sliced turkey and cranberry sauce. It sounds deranged but it’s weirdly satisfying.
• THE DOUBLE-DECKER: Use two different flavored tortillas layered together before adding fillings. The spinach + sun-dried tomato combo creates this weird marbled effect that makes people think you’re fancy.
• THE INSIDE-OUT: Spread hummus on the OUTSIDE of your wrap after rolling. Then roll the hummus-covered wrap in sesame seeds. I invented this after a particularly vivid dream involving a giant bagel chasing me down a hallway.
FAQ: “Why is my wrap falling apart like my life choices?”
The number one reason wraps disintegrate is overfilling (something I’m guilty of in both wraps and relationships). The second reason is not creating what I call a “moisture barrier”—something fatty like mayo or cream cheese that prevents wet ingredients from sogging up your tortilla. Third problem is tortilla quality—those super thin “low-carb” wraps are architectural nightmares. Go for the slightly thicker ones that have a bit of stretch. And finally, wrapping technique! You gotta roll these things tighter than my aunt Judith’s curls after a perm. Practice makes perfect, but in the meantime, there’s always forks.
Final Thoughts from a Wrap Enthusiast
Look, lunch doesn’t have to be complicated, but it also doesn’t have to be boring. These wrap recipes for lunch have gotten me through some dark days (like that time my boss scheduled back-to-back meetings from 11-2, THE AUDACITY).
Maybe tomorrow I’ll invent a new wrap—I’ve been thinking about something with roasted grapes and goat cheese that might be either brilliant or disgusting. Only one way to find out!
What about you? What wrap combinations have you discovered? Are you a tight-roller or a loose-wrapper? Do you also sometimes get a weird satisfaction from the perfect spiral pattern when you slice a wrap in half? No? Just me? Well, anyway…
Till next time, happy wrapping!
— Chef Maddie “Wrap Master” Johnson, 3-time champion of the Entirely Fictional Portland Wrap-Off
