I have a microwave at my office space rental, but I'm on the road a lot with my job, so I've looked into many different solutions. There are a variety of options available.

Non-electronic storage:

They make a squattier version of the Thermos you have from RTIC, which is what I sometimes use:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DRP86T1

Spoon for size comparison:

https://i.imgur.com/AR4itKB.jpg

It's not so deep that I can't get a spoon in. It'd be nice if it were a little wider, but it does the job. A bit smaller than your Thermos at 17 ounces. Pinnacle Thermoware sells insulated a pretty nice insulated bowl set, if you specifically want a bowl shape:

https://www.amazon.com/Pinnacle-Serving-Salad-Soup-Dish/dp/B07RT1X47C/

If you need more food than just one bowl can hold, Ailijin makes a 2-bowl, single-tote insulated solution: (kind of a round bento-style)

https://www.amazon.com/AILIJIN-Leakproof-Insulated-Stainless-Portable/dp/B07QQ9JYG3/

If you need to heat up a soup before you go to put into an insulated storage container, I use one of these vented microwave mugs, so it doesn't explode all over the inside of my microwave when heating up:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01F5IC478/

Electronic storage:

Beyond that, there are 3 common electronic options, depending on what power you have available: (12V in a car or an A/C wall plug)

1. Crockpot Lunch Crock (A/C power)
   
2. RoadPro 300F lunchbox oven (12V car power)
   
3. HotLogic lunchbox oven (A/C power, car-compatible A/C, or 75w+ inverter for car power)
   
   The Crockpot unit is basically like your Thermos, except you plug it in to heat it, and it has a pretty nice wide bowl size. My buddy has one & it's pretty dang handy! My brother has the RoadPro, as he's on the road all day long, and it's super nice because it does a pretty decent job (heats up to 300F, basically like a mini oven), so you can heat up burritos, melt cheesy stuff like lasagna, etc.
   
   The HotLogic is nice because instead of just being a mini portable crockpot, it's also a mini oven, and can be used from a wall plug, a newer-vehicle 2-prong car plug, or with a 75-watt (minimum) inverter. There's a good Facebook group available as well! It heats up to 218F & then holds the food at 180F, so it's more for reheating food than cooking food, like the RoadPro can do (HotLogic says you can cook chicken breast in it in about 2 hours, but ehhh...), but it's also a bit more versatile as you can plug it directly into the wall an hour before lunch & have your food ready to go without needing a microwave or toaster oven.
   
   Homemade soup:
   
   If you're into soup & haven't heard of Souper Cubes, it's basically a silicone ice cube tray with 1/2-cup & 1-cup markings (4 per tray) & lids, plus a wire frame around the top to hold it together, which makes portioning out bulk soup cooks super easy:
   
   https://www.soupercubes.com/
   
   I mean, just look at this insanity:
   
   https://www.instagram.com/p/B0cU_UFBSQp/
   
   Also, if you're into making soups at home, the Instant Pot (electric pressure cooker) is my BFF...it makes cooking soup a lot faster & more automated (aka easier overall!). Poaching from another one of my posts, here are some soup ideas: (I use the IP for soups, stews, bisques, broths, stocks, etc.)
   
   

• Ham & bean
  
• Vegetable beef
  
• Chili con carne (chili is just thick soup...lol)
  
• Olive Garden's creamy chicken gnocchi
  
• Broccoli cheddar potato soup
  
• Asian chicken noodle
  
  Some ideas for soup toppings & easy no-knead breads:
  
  
• Ranch oyster crackers
  
• Cheese & onion roasted chickpeas
  
• Homemade flavored croutons
  
• Crusty rolls
  
• Ciabatta bread
  
  Also if you're trying to get more veggies in your diet, check out this master guide on making blended soups in the Instant Pot, definitely worth a read:
  
  https://allthenourishingthings.com/make-blended-soup-instant-pot/
  
  I tend to make soup about once a week in my Instant Pot at home, then freeze it in my Souper Cube containers, and keep a stash of different varieties in my freezer so I can just grab one & go. When you have a solid storage system setup (electronic or non-electronic), it makes the whole process pretty dang easy:
  
  

1. Store a variety of soup flavors at home (Souper Cubes or canned soup)
   
2. Heat it up in the vented mug if you need it hot before you leave
   
3. Put it into your container of choice
   
4. Heat up your container (if needed) & enjoy!
   
   For me, it's really about nailing down a solid process & taking care of all of the little annoying details. Like you said, the tall insulated mugs are too small to get a spoon into & eat out of, so you have to find something better that meets the needs of your individual situation better. Then, setting up a system to support convenience means you can always have a variety of soups to grab before you leave the house, whether it's a can that you heat up in a vented mug & store in a food thermos or a frozen Souper Cube that you toss in a Crockpot Lunch Crock & plug in before lunch!

No one has mentioned it yet, but I learned a lot from cook books.

These are not just lists or recipes, but instruction about techniques and methods and processes.

Some good ones are:

• How to Cook Everything: The Basics
  
• Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book
  
• Cook's Illustrated Cookbook
  
  Having an actual dead tree book can be more convenient in the kitchen than a laptop or mobile device with an ebook.
  
  If you can find episodes of Good Eats by Alton Brown he is really good at explaining things. Videos can be good, but a lot of times but really only when you know what it is you're looking for. With a book it is going to give you topics that you might never have thought of.
  
  But for reals now, you are going to get the best value learning how to cook the basics. Your Instant pot is AWESOME for cooking dry beans. Get pound of dry black beans and 3 pounds of water (obviously you need a good kitchen scale). I just put the inner pot of my Instantpot on the scale, dump in the beans, tare it, then pour water in with a big cup till I have 3 lbs. Put in 1/2-1 teaspoon of salt. I also add granulated garlic and powdered onion and some cumin but you don't have to. Set your instanpot to manual for 45 mins and wait. Let it naturally release, if you manually release the pressure the skin on the beans will break, to me it still tastes the same but you have far fewer whole beans. Now you have a weeks worth of delicious, healthy black beans. No need for overnight soak or anything.
  
  Small white beans (a.k.a navy beans) can be cooked the same and they taste different but just as good. Or you can add the extra ingredients and make pork and beans.
  
  You can cook pinto beans with the same basic recipe, and they taste great too. When you want to take the extra time, then with a slotted spoon dish the cooked beans into a large frying pan with some lard or shortening and make your own refried beans. You smash the beans with the back of the spoon or a spatula, and use the bean broth to add liquid till you like the texture.
  
  If you can't tell I like cooking beans in my Instantpot. I have a rice cooker but you can cook rice in the Instantpot too. Beans and rice is healthy and cheap!!! (cook them separately and mix them after cooking).
  
  

Fall is in full swing which means it's PUMPKIN time! This muffins are made with coconut flour and almond flour and sweetened with monk fruit and allulose. So tasty and just 3g net carb, 1g of sugar, and 170 calories per muffin.

Recipe Source: Low Carb Keto Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins (includes pictures, tips, and full nutrition facts)

RECIPE: GLUTEN FREE & KETO PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS

SERVINGS: 12 MUFFINS (170 CALORIES EACH)

PREP TIME: 10 MINUTES

BAKE TIME: 25 MINUTES

TOTAL TIME: 35 MINUTES

INGREDIENTS

We were able to grab all of our ingredients from a local Walmart, but you can find the ingredients in most grocery stores or online on Amazon.

• 1/2 cup (56g) Coconut flour (we used Walmart’s Great Value Organic Coconut Flour)
  
• 1/2 cup (56g) Blanched almond flour (we used Nature’s Eats Blanched Almond Flour but Blue Diamond Almond Flour works as well)
  
• 2/3 cup (140g) AlluMonk Allulose & Monk Fruit Sweetener (Hoosier Hill Farms Allulose is also a viable choice if you want to skip the monk fruit; Lakanto’s Monk Fruit Sweetener with Erythritol is another option)
  
• 1 Tablespoon (14g) Baking powder
  
• 1 Tablespoon (6g) Pumpkin pie spice (we used Walmart’s Great Value Organic Pumpkin Pie Spice)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon (3g) Sea salt
  
• 4 large Eggs (200g)
  
• 3/4 cup (180g) Pumpkin puree (we used Walmart’s Great Value 100% Pure Canned Pumpkin)
  
• 1/2 cup (113g or 1 stick) Unsalted butter
  
• 1 teaspoon (4.3g) Vanilla extract (we used McCormick All Natural Pure Vanilla Extract)
  
• 1/4 cup (45g) Unsweetened chocolate chips (we used Bake Believe Dark Chocolate Chips, but Lily’s Dark Chocolate Baking Chips or Pascha 100% Cacao Chips could also work!)
  
  

  INSTRUCTIONS
  

  
  

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Line your muffin baking pan with 12 muffin baking cups.
   
2. Microwave the butter for 30 seconds to soften, but it should not be melted if possible. Stir in the eggs, pumpkin puree, melted butter, and vanilla extract until completely incorporated.
   
3. In a separate bowl, stir together the coconut flour, almond flour, sweetener, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and sea salt. Make sure there are no clumps. Stir into wet mixture.
   
4. Stir in your chocolate chips.
   
5. Spoon the batter evenly into the muffin cups and smooth the tops. (They should be almost full, not 2/3 or 3/4 full)
   
6. Bake for about 25 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean and the muffins are very slightly golden around the edges.
   
   Recipe Source: Low Carb Keto Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

I use 2 to 3 cups of rice which probably makes for about 10 - 18 servings. I typically have a bowl of rice every few days or so, which it's up lasting me about 2 weeks. If I'm sharing with a group it'll last less time of course. This is the exact cooker I have, https://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-CPC-600-Electric-Pressure-Stainless/dp/B000MPA044/ref=sr_1_4?crid=22OPXIM6VHEJ1&keywords=pressure+cooker+cuisinart&qid=1562420388&s=gateway&sprefix=pressure+cooker+cuisinar%2Caps%2C148&sr=8-4 , but there are others out there. Instant Pot seems to be the most common one out there these days but I've had this one prior to that one came to the market.

​

If you do get one, which you definitely should, i HIGHLY recommend checking out this website, https://www.pressurecookrecipes.com/ . It's been a lifesaver in terms of cooking near-perfect meals, like rice, meats, etc. Their recipes are written using the scientific method, meaning they experiment with different techniques (quick release value vs natural release; more vs less time, etc). It's been hugely valuable in terms of getting your food to come perfect. I guarantee if you follow their instructions you'll come out with the same results that they do, or close to it. Serious eats also has some nice articles on pressure cookers.

I don't have exactly what you're looking for, but there are some pretty great bento books that let you make and freeze sides that you can mix and match with fresh or other frozen things to make a balanced, quick lunch in the morning. The two I have are Effortless Bento and The Just Bento Cookbook.

​

I know that's not exactly what you mean, but it's the closest resource that I use.

This Tupperware! I loved it so much I bought 5! I’ve seen them everywhere from target, Tj Maxx, to even my local grocery store!

Sistema To Go Collection Salad Compact Food Storage Container, 4.6 Cup, Blue | Great for Meal Prep | BPA Free, Reusable https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004R97IJ6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_RWhyDbZVDQWQP

I hate handling raw meat as well and how I get around it is I've purchased a container of the no-powder-latex-free gloves like you see at the doctor's office and wear them when handling raw meat.

https://www.amazon.com/AMMEX-X3D44100-BX-Nitrile-Gloves-Disposable/dp/B00CF4AFQI/

Then you 'proper' sterile removal technique I prefer the double fold:
https://youtu.be/dyLEd9cng5U?t=51

Just an idea; Also you can google easy meal prep ideas. I personally love these ones that are 'no cook' for lunches:
https://sweetpeasandsaffron.com/lunch-box-recipes/

​

Hope this helps!

The ones I have are the bento containers (Mr. Bento and Classic Bento). I also have this container here which will hold 25 oz. I like both, but enjoy my bento vacuum containers the most.

One of the best things I've ever purchased: Cuisinart Griddler Elite

Sure, there are cheaper versions of these things, but it's worth it.

Get one of these (or similar) fat separators. Put your pan drippings or whatever else in. It lets you pour out the liquid, while keeping the fat behind.

Or just heat it up, melt the fat, and enjoy the flavor!

Nordic Ware 64702 Microwave 2 Cavity Egg Poacher https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00004W4UR/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_l25YDb56HCDK0