A cute bento from Adventures in Bentomaking.com
As most of us are well aware, the majority of Japanese cuisine is artfully created, beautiful, tasty and above all, healthy. So it should come as no surprise that a typical form of homemade lunches from Japan is quickly gaining a cult-like following here in America.
This lunch form is called obento or more commonly in the United States ‘Bento Boxes’. They are small, sometimes shaped lunchboxes which offer users a fun way to eat healthier and be more creative with food preparations. But the really awesome part about these boxes is what you put inside.
Bento boxes can be very elaborate, with different foods made to look like little animals, people and flowers – anything you can imagine making out of food, you can do it as part of your bento. They can also be very plain, with delicious bites of food neatly packed away in a single container.
This style of packing and eating lunch makes basic nutrition and portioning amazingly easy. The bento box itself is usually just large enough to hold enough food for one serving for one person. In the Japanese way of selecting foods for your bento, color is everything. By making sure you use a variety of colors in your bento, you are easily assuring that you are creating a nutritionally rich and diverse meal. And because the size of the bento is fairly small, you are only able to pack but so many calories into it.
Food preparation takes time, and bento, whether used as an art form, as a convenience or healthy eating aid, is no exception. For those on the go, there are a few local restaurants that do offer their own varieties of bento. RA Sushi and Umi Sake were recently highlighted in Baltimore Magazine as being great local go-to places for bento.
For those who wish to try their hand at bento, supplies locally are hard to find, as far as the fancy vegetable cutters and even the boxes themselves go. Never fear, the internet takes care of that as there are a growing number of websites where you can order boxes and supplies.
Be creative, be healthy and have fun!
For more info or to find bento supplies: Just Bento, Bento making
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