Bento

I have too many interests. When somebody asks me what I want to be when I grow up, I think “A carpenter! Writer! Electrician! Mechanic! Gardener! Student! Chef! Chauffeur! Photographer! Astronaut! Missionary! Librarian! Seamstress! Artist! Interior designer! PR specialist!” (etc etc etc…) If I can’t actually be all of these things full time, at least I can dabble freely and write about it.

My latest love? BENTO BOXES.

What, pray tell, is a bento box? Glad you asked. There’s no need to paraphrase when Biggie over at Lunch In A Box says it so well:

“A bento lunch is a compact, balanced, visually appealing meal packed in a box. Historically, it’s a Japanese box lunch, similar in concept to the Indian tiffin, the Korean dosirak, or the Filipino baon lunch. In Japanese, “bento” or “obento” refers to the packed meal, and “bento-bako” refers to the bento box itself.”

Wikipedia claims that “a traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables” but really, if it fits in the box it’s fair game as far as I’m concerned!

I realized last year I’m all about food presentation. Then I found out last month I have a hiatal hernia (we call him Herman to reduce the unavoidable gross factor). Herman and I get along best when I eat moderate portions, so packing a lunch to control my sometimes-outrageous food intake is brilliant. But really… they’re pretty. See?

From annathered.com

 

From justbento.com

I made my very first legitimate bento last night and packed it away snuggly in the fridge. I have to admit I looked forward to lunch all day not so much because I was hungry but because I was absurdly excited. As a wise man once said, I felt like I had “taken my first step into a much larger world”!

Red grapes – mini pitas, halved – hummus – bacon swirls – tamagoyaki (Japanese omelet) with spinach – avocado with lemon juice, salt and pepper (looking a little brown because its a leftover from last night)

Potentially Not Obvious How To Elements:

• tamagoyaki recipe (Japanese omelet): I skipped the sugar and added chopped fresh spinach with each layer. My honest opinion of this food is that I prefer savory to sweet, so I may be altering this recipe in the future.

• bacon swirls: simply wrap half piece of bacon around my finger to shape, skewer with toothpick and broil in oven… magical

• lettuce: just using it until I get some of these

More bento lunches to come!