One Fish, Two Fish for Lunch: 9 of Amanda's Best Fish Lunches

Every week we take a peek inside the lunches of the luckiest kids in Brooklyn. Read on, suppress your jealousy, and get a little brown bag inspiration.

This week: We revisit a favorite lunchtime standby for Amanda's kids—fish.

If you're a follower of Amanda's Kids' Lunch, you may have noticed Amanda's kids' affinity for a little lunchtime seafood (especially tuna and salmon). Says Amanda,

"Smoked fish holds up really well in packed lunches. And the smokiness seems more palatable to kids than most plain fish. A default lunch when I'm busy is smoked salmon and cream cheese on brioche. My kids happen to like tuna, too, so I poach it in olive oil with lots of garlic and herbs, which gives it a richness (and helps preserve it). Sometimes I mix the poached tuna into Niçoise-like salad and sometimes I blend it into a mayonnaise-based tuna salad. I like that fish is nutrition rich yet has the freshness you want in a good lunch."

Whether in the summer, when seafood's front and center, or all year-round, borrow some of Amanda's ideas for incorporating fresh or canned fish into your kids' (or your own) lunch. Don't forget to pack dessert, too!

Stir some pesto into your tuna salad.

 

Make sandwiches with baked and smoked salmon spread (a mix of baked and smoked salmons with mayonnaise).

 

Cream cheese-and-lox sandwiches are a total lunchtime treat.

 

Shred oil-poached tuna into a Milanese-inspired rice salad (it's good with salmon, too).

 

Radishes add crunch to a smoked salmon sammie, and tarragon makes it special.

 

Roasted salmon finds a home on a bed of rice.

 

Channel the South of France with tuna Niçoise.

 

Avocado and smoked salmon sliders are get an extra kick from quick-pickled onions.

 

Make a green couscous salad and serve it with oil-packed tuna on top.

All photos by Amanda Hesser