Food Ideas Please!

I have been awful lately.  It's like I've forgotton what I'm supposed to eat.  I need ideas for protein forward snack/meal ideas that are work friendly (I sit at a desk all day).  What are you favorites?

Jerky, nuts and pork rinds are my go-to snacks.  Plus, I usually have cheese sticks in the fridge.  I can't do the protein bars really.

I keep lunch meat (portioned into 2 oz baggies) in my work fridge. Also nuts or string cheese sometimes, but these have more carbs so I prefer the lunch meat to "save" my precious few carbs for meals. 

to clarify: not 2 oz baggies, but baggies with 2 oz of meat in each. Syntax! 

I like to buy a rotisserie chicken and use it to make chicken salad with greek yogurt instead of mayo. I also try to keep hard boiled eggs and chickpeas around. I make my own chicken jerky. Egg bites are an easy option too. I recently discovered black bean pasta (it's just beans and water), which reheats nicely with parmesan cheese. Ham, cheese, and chickpeas is a go to lunch for me. I also sub a hb egg or chicken jerky for the ham. When I want something that doesn't need to be kept cold, I go for nuts, mr. Cheese o's, or pure protein bars.

I am making my own beef jerky. The chicken scares me. Any special steps to keep it safe?

I did a ton of research before I made the chicken jerky to make sure it would be safe. The most important thing is to use a good dehydrator. You need one with an adjustable temperature control that goes up to 160 degrees. I even tested mine by running it empty with a thermometer inside to make sure it kept a high enough temperature. If your dehydrator does not stay hot enough, you will create heat resistant bacteria. The other option is to boil the chicken in the marinate first, but that leads to terrible jerky.

The other two things I do are marinate the chicken in a lot of soy sauce because the salt cures the meat and finish the jerky in the oven. Some people skip the finishing step, but it is recommended for poultry. Simply remove the jerky a little before it is done, spread it out on baking sheets, and pop into a preheated 250 degree oven for 10 minutes. It is done once the chicken is sizzling hot. This ensures the chicken reaches the proper temperature inside. Then I store it in the fridge once it cools. It does not necessarily need to be refrigerated, but it keeps longer that way. I don't like to leave it sitting out for more than a few days, but I'll keep it in the fridge for months.

It took me a few tries to get a good tasting product, but once you figure it out, you'll love it! It has no carbs unless you add them to the marinate, and it is really low in fat. Chicken jerky is the ultimate source of low calorie protein!

Pork chop. Sit at your desk, eating a pork chop with your hand, no one will bother you. If someone you don't care for comes up and starts to ask a question, hand the pork chop to them and ask them to hold it while you run to the ladies' room.

I snort laughed at this... snorted! Can you hold my pork for a sec?

I have a little fridge in my office, and it is stocked right now with sliced ham, laughing cow cheese, hummus, carrots, Light and Fit yogurt, WLS friendly salad dressing (for when I buy a salad in the deli or bring one from home) and string cheese.  In my desk drawer, I have goodies from Trader Joe's like individual packages of mixed nuts, beef and pork snack sticks, Kind bars and jerky.  

For meals, I bring sauteed prawns, sliced chicken breast or thighs, salads with some sort of protein, portobello pizza, Trader Joe's pizza burger with a little pizza sauce and mozzarella on top, turkey meatballs, sliced steak and grilled/roasted vegetables (cauliflower, brussel sprouts and delicata squash are my favorites).  

The possibilities are endless!