Bento Monday

Today's bento is another bit o'this and bit o'that. Bottom tier is rolled up ham and salami on a bed of salad with containers of bacon bits and sunflower seeds. Top tier is cat shaped cookies, grapes, salad dressing, and crabby crackers. Veronica is thrilled (she is so easy to please) because of the cute animal picks that the meat is rolled onto. This is bento fun!
This bento is the first box that I purchased so it is a bit near and dear to my heart. Veronica loves it particularly because it has a tiny tray that she can use as a little plate. It will work for the meat roll-ups - she will take them out and put them on the tray while she eats the salad. Woohoo!

AWOL

Well, I didn't take a picture yesterday or today. Today Veronica just took a sandwich (cut into hearts) with grapes, etc. Yesterday, she took Mei Wei leftovers in a Ms. Bento (by Zojirushi) thermal container. It is pricey (unless you catch one used on ebay like I did) but really nice.

Little of this, little of that

Today's bento for Veronica was a study in left overs. It is in a giraffe themed box with the (somewhat inexplicable) wording that says: "Around the year when we would like to stand on tiptoe." The dining selections include some pork chop cut up into bento friendly pieces, left-over julienne au gratin potatoes (from a box of course), the ubiquitous strawberries and carrots, some Hot and Spicy Cheese Its, plus a few chocolate granola bites. She is happy and will probably heat the potatoes in the microwave if it is available.

And the children shall lead

Several people have asked about the bento boxes - whether they are microwavable. The short answer is that some are and some are not. A funny thing happened just today though that made me rethink the whole hot food/cold food thing. Today, Veronica took the following bento:

The blob in the silicon form is a mini shepherds pie. She was given the choice of having it hot in a thermal (Ms. Bento) container or eating it at room temperature. She opted for the regular bento and room temperature. When she got in the car she told me that her lunch had been great but that she saw an open microwave and had decided to heat up the shepherds pie. I blanched because the bento box she took was not microwave safe. She assured me she had not put it in the micro - she just popped the shepherds pie out in its silicon holder, popped that in the microwave for 30 seconds and it was "fabulous, just like it was fresh out of the oven." I admit; I wouldn't have thought of that. Once assembled, I tend to see the bento as a whole, she saw a microwaveable component and took advantage of it.

As a side note, the silicon baking forms are great for bento, as dividers and also for mini casseroles. When you are making something like lasagna, shepherds pie, or any "bake it" dish, just get a couple of these silicon baking cups out and make a couple of small "extras". Pop them in the freezer and you develop a stock of quick lunches. Just a thought.

Random Thoughts for Those New to Bento

Most boxes (especially if more than one tier) will need a bento belt (band) to hold them together. This is just an elastic band of the proper size. Many come with a belt; others require a separate purchase. With the band, your bento will be a compact and handy unit. Without it, it will not hold together because for most boxes, the upper tier is the top of the lower tier so the band is really not optional since the two tiers do not "seal" together. The top will fit into the bottom, but the band will be the only thing holding them in place.

In a two tier bento, the top tier usually does have a water tight seal. This is where fruit or other wet foods can go without leaking. Don't plan on putting soup or stew or something really liquid in there though.

An onigiri bento box is made to hold rice balls in the top, so it is kind of domed. Some people use these for sandwiches instead, but watch the dimensions and even if it is large enough, you would have cut the sandwich in half and stack it under the dome.

Bento boxes are filled by volume and hold more than you would think; but you have to think about packing them full in each dimension. Little (non squishy) things like grapes and cherry or grape tomatoes work well to fill little gaps.

Where can I get a Bento Box?

I started doing bento lunches for the girls and I about a year or so ago. I love them because they let me use up leftovers quickly and easily (frugal); they stop me from using so many sandwich bags and disposable lunch paraphernalia (eco-friendly); they are very adaptable to eating well and focus on nutrition (healthy); and they are so very cute to open up at lunchtime (fun.) So there you have it, for me bento means frugal, eco-friendly, healthy, and fun lunches. Wow, I am a geek.

Most people are asking me where they can get a bento box for themselves or their child. (The rest of you think I have too much time on my hands, which is so untrue.) My favorite place for cheap but great supplies was Ichiban Kan, but they stopped their online sales and focus only on their retail stores (in California of course.) The following are links to sites that I have found via other bento bloggers (and they are legion.) Prices vary greatly, but you can look around and price shop ($5 and up.) The starred entries are sites I have used myself and been happy with. YMMV:

Online Retailers 

* http://shop.iloveobento.com/

http://bentocrazy.com/

http://www.asianutensils.com/

http://veryasia.com/bentobox.html

* http://www.jbox.com/SEARCH/bento/1/

http://www.from-japan-with-love.com/index.html

http://www.plasticashop.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=P&Product_Code=BENTOSMALL&Category_Code=

* http://www.sugarcharms.com/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=50


Ebay Sellers

* http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Bento-Obento-Shop__W0QQ_armrsZ1

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Bentos-and-Beyond__W0QQ_armrsZ1

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/JAPAN-BARGAIN__W0QQ_armrsZ1

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/JAPAN-SOUVENIR__W0QQ_armrsZ1

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Nagomi-Inc__W0QQ_armrsZ1

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Store-in-Japan__W0QQ_armrsZ1QQ_fsubZ16

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Tokyo-Gift__W0QQ_armrsZ1QQ_fsubZ559006

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Yingkadeco-Store__W0QQ_armrsZ1QQ_fsubZ4159700

In the sidebar, I have the links to some of my favorite bento blogs and how-to sites. But be assured, there is no wrong way to do a bento. Mine are all made up of a bit of this and a bit of that until a healthy (and cute) meal results.

Feel free to share your bento experience here and if you are new to bento, let's learn together.