Meet the New Mason Jar Salad: Instant Noodles in a Jar

Your new favorite — and totally Instagram-worthy — lunch.

By Adjua Fisher· 2/26/2015, 4:30 p.m.

Hold the phone, I’ve got the most important news you’ll hear all week, right here: Packing DIY instant noodles in a jar for lunch is a thing, and it’s genius. And, I daresay, it makes for an even more adorable lunch than the beloved Mason jar salad.

While a lunch of instant noodles in a jar is many things — drool-inducing, Instagram-worthy, healthy — the best thing about this clever brown-bag lunch is that it’s so unbelievably easy to prepare: You just throw some par-cooked (that’s partially-cooked, for you culinary novices) or uncooked fast-cooking noodles, like rice noodles, in a glass jar along with your favorite chopped veggies and some flavoring like miso paste, soy sauce, Sriracha — whatever floats your boat. Then, you put the lid on the jar, throw it in your lunchbox, and when you feel your stomach starting to grumble, add some boiling water to the jar and let it sit for a few minutes. Voila: You’ve got yourself some hot, homemade instant noodles for lunch. The opposite of a sad desk lunch, if you will.

You can pack a bunch of these ahead of time and eat them throughout the week, which means more time sleeping in and less time throwing together haphazard lunches in a rush before work (yes, please!). Once you’ve got the hang of packing instant noodles in a jar, you probably won’t need a recipe — it’s that easy. But to get you started, you’ll find eight instant noodles in a jar recipes below. You can thank us later.

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