For those having to pack a school lunch every day, whether your child is just starting preschool or a kindergarten pro, often times you're left thinking, "Now what?"
When we discovered Bento lunches, we found inspiration and a solution to our daily lunch conundrum.
Bento is a portable meal -- usually lunch -- packed in a small box. Bento boxes are usually multi-layered so one can include a variety of tastes in the lunches...
Bentos can range from simple to completely elaborate. Traditional Japanese Bentos usually have rice and fish, but just about any ingredient may be used. Using many of our leftovers from dinner and simple fresh ingredients, we were able to pack a tasty lunch for our son.
A PB&J, chicken sausage, muenster cheese, carrots and hummus
Often times, the key to making a good Bento into a great Bento, is presentation. Cute is king in the Bento world! You can buy egg molds to shape hard-boiled eggs into rabbits, bears or stars; sauces and condiments are placed in adorable containers. Many people elevate Bento-making to an art form by going all out. We don't go that far, but we still have a lot of fun making our lunches.
Fried rice, carrots, cheese, a cornichon, and a hard-boiled egg shaped like a bear
For more information on Bento lunches, including recipes and where to buy supplies, visit Lunch in a Box, Cooking Cute and Bento Box.
rotini pasta with cheese, fruit, grilled chicken, cheese and steamed carrots
(Re-Edited from 2007-9-10 - CB)
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These lunch ideas are great. Just the inspiratation I need with my daughter starting school.
I love the lunch bento-box in the photographs. Does anyone know where that one specifically can be purchased? I did do a quick search but didn't find it.
Thank you.
Shasta, I do know where you can get that one. It's called a Leaflet Tight box, and it's available on www.sugarcharms.com . We have the smaller size, and it's great.
I got some bento boxes with Peter Rabbit characters at a garage sale!
Hi, Shasta. HodgePodge beat me to it :) Yep, that's the Leaflet Tight box.
In the picture, does the little boy's shirt say "I'm a noun"?? How cute is THAT?
Hi, Melissa! The t-shirt is from Threadless.
Don't forget to check out the bento lunchbox at http://laptoplunches.com/. And also the inspirational lunches using that box at http://veganlunchbox.blogspot.com/. She is mostly done blogging now, but check out the '06 archives for lots of creative bento lunch ideas.
I got my husband's blood pressure back to normal by feeding him out of a laptop lunchbox!
Thanks so much!
My son has that shirt! In fact, that's him on the treadless page, sleeping in a stroller with his brother.
there's a company called fit'n'fresh that's selling similar boxes (they have them at target) that have a built-in ice pack to keep foor dfrom spoiling. They're pretty nice looking.
My toddler's lunchbox
http://tigeladas.wordpress.com/
I dare you to look through all her photos!
stickyricemama: Cool site!
I also like Vegan Lunch Box, despite not being vegan. I don't like the idea of including meat or dairy products in a lunch that won't be refrigerated, so the vegan route appeals to me.
For those in the Bay Area, make a trip to Daiso (Daly City, Union City), Ichiban Kan (San Mateo, San Francisco), or J-Town in San Francisco and you can find some really cute bento boxes.
I also follow these bento blogs as they are both inventive and make it look so easy to pack a bento lunch: http://www.cookingcute.com/
http://justbento.com/
I have started a bento blog as it's how I've been packing my 3 year old his summer camp and now preschool lunches. I tend to keep my bentos really simple and as my younger son has a peanut allergy, healthy and nut free but interesting.
http://www.petit-tableau.com
I also have an online store that ties into the blog: http://petit-tableau.ecrater.com
Happy Bento-ing!
The Leaflet Tight box on sugarcharms.com does not look like the one that is represented in the photograph, and it didn't have the separate compartments. Are you sure? I really want to try and find this bento box.
Some notes I posted on a friend's blog when she had an entry saying she was interested in obentos:
http://lunchinabox.net/ is a great place to start. Her advice is easy to understand, practical, and fun. She sometimes does cutesy bentos, but most of the time they are made from leftovers and whatnot, which is much more manageable for someone who doesn't eat Japanese food all of the time (most of which is made with bentos in mind). Definitely check out the FAQ.
Though, perhaps you already found the site since the picture you're using is from her. ;)
http://community.livejournal.com/bentolunch/ This LJ community might be interesting to you, too. People will all different levels skill and equipment build their bentos, take pictures, and then post them for others to see. People leave feedback sometimes, but it it's mainly to gain inspiration from each other and to notify all about new bento topics (like a new container available in the states, etc).
Here are the basics listed very quickly:
- You need to find a container that suits your needs (the amount of food you eat, whether it's microwaveable, etc).
- Start making extra for dinner and saving the leftovers for lunches.
- Learn to look at your lunch in colors to keep it balanced (if you can't find information on this, I've got it written down somewhere...let me know and I'll find it for you). This will save you a lot of time when you think, "What else should I put in here?"
- Remember to pack food tightly. It looks nice because it's packed well (use "fillers" like grapes, cherry tomatoes, Babybel cheese, etc). If it's loose, everything will get squished and it won't be appetizing.
My other note there:
For those who don't know and don't feel like looking it up:
Bentos (or "obentos") are just packed lunches. The difference between bentos and a sack lunch is that a lot of thought goes into what should be in it, how it's packed, how much is packed, and what it goes in.
A lot of people get really fancy with it and make the food look like cutesy animals or stylized art, but it doesn't have to be that complicated (like the picture Nicole shows).
It focuses on not over-packing food (proper portions), having a balanced diet that is healthy but still fills you up, and packing in such a way that it doesn't look all mushed when you open the box.
When you're starting for the first time with little knowledge/practice it can take a while to make (it would take me an hour to pack two). But once you get the hang of it (and you help yourself by freezing proper portions ahead of time) you can whip one up in about 5 minutes.
They're fun to have because they're aesthetically pleasing, healthy, and cheap. And it challenges your creativity as a cook.
Those photos are great, but how do you keep the meat from spoiling? My son's lunch sits about six hours before he eats it. Cold pack?
Cooking for Monkeys (http://www.cookingformonkeys.com/) as has great inspiration and a shop for bentos. One of these days I'll get on the band wagon...
Nice lunch bento-box!! It looks delicious and mouthwatering for kids point of view. But seriously this lunch box is full of good food and well presented so that kids can it.
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