School time is once again in season, unfortunately for parents that means making lunches for the school children. There is always those days when your child can not find his/her homework, the alarm does not go off on time or some other obstacle that consumes the already limited amount of time in the morning schedule. There is a solution and the answer comes from afar in the Asian country of Japan. It is easy and simple for all parents, creative or not.
Deciding between making a school lunch and going the easy route of handing over a few dollar bills to the child to purchase a hot lunch at school is always a thought that lingers in the back of each parent/guardian’s mind. Although my parents provided me with the best education and home life as possible for two working parents, there were very few days that I had a homemade lunch. Sure, the ever popular brick pizza days with a side of greasy french-fries were my favorite however all other days of the week I was envious of other student’s homemade lunches. My thought as a child was that a homemade lunch represents the parent/guardian’s love in a special form.
Finally when I went to Japan to go to school, my lunches slowly evolved into homemade lunches. It is more common in Japan to take a homemade lunch called a “bento” in Japanese instead of eating school lunches. Although Japan’s school lunches are very healthy, it is almost looked down upon if a student eats more than one school lunch a week. So, after living in Japan I grew to love bento’s everyday. The best part, it is easy and fun to make as a parent/guardian.
A “bento” is basically leftovers that are placed in lunchboxes for consumption the next day by either adult or child. Usually in Japan, lunchboxes are usually two-tiered. The first layer usually has some form of rice. The two most popular forms are a rice ball and loosely packed rice. The second layer is the fun part which usually contains a vegetable, fruit and meat (fish or other meat). There are no rules to creating a bento though besides having fun doing it.
The main difference between an American lunchbox and a Japanese one is the box itself and the contents appearance. For instance, Japanese bento’s are usually made of a lacquered material that was begun in Japan and mainly consists of cute rice balls formed into shapes such as a pig or cat. Rice balls can be formed not by hand but by placing rice firmly packed in a cookie cutter. Slide the rice out of the cookie cutter and ta-da! Cute and easy! For just general rice, easy seaweed shapes can be cut out of seaweed sheets or purchased in shapes and sprinkled over the rice for decoration.
If leftovers are available, place small amounts in special bento cups. If you do not have Japanese cups, do not worry. When ours are dirty, we like to use regular mini cupcake paper wrappers from the grocery store. They are usually less than one dollar for around 100 count. These paper cups are cheap, easy to use and can be thrown away after eating. It means fewer cleanups as a parent/guardian. Place the filled paper wrappers into the lunchbox and the lunch is ready to go. These wrappers are also a favorite in our household because they come in different designs depending on the seasons. Once you get started with the wrappers, new creative material ideas will also come into mind. Creativity will get even the picky eaters to start eating again.
Some other of my ideas that are used:
*Use egg molds to form boiled eggs into fun shapes.
*Use Furikake on rice – this is a cheap rice seasoning that is sprinkled over rice.
*Make small cuts into carrots or cucumbers to make fun shapes such as flowers.
*Add a small piece of candy for dessert.
*Freeze rice balls to be used during the entire week and place a frozen rice ball in the bento on those hot days.
*Soup can be added to any bento on a cold day.
How to Make it Fast and Cheap:
*Freeze like crazy! When I make family meals, I prefer to make a little extra to place in the freezer. You might be amazed at how much can actually be frozen and still taste good. For instance, I make a fantastic Japanese curry in the beginning of the week and make extra to be frozen. Then, I take a Ziploc bag (or whatever brand you prefer) and freeze individual portions or just enough for everyone in the family. Make sure if you have two people in the family to put two servings in one bag. Then, on the day you want to have a curry bento, unfreeze the curry and place it in the bento. The same goes for pastas, rice balls, fruits and so much more.
*Food Saver can actually save your life! The food saver is a device that is inexpensive from my home stores that sucks all the air out of a special bag and preserves your food. It is great for making homemade french fries, potato chips, fruit or anything else. Again, on a day that you have a little more free time that usual, make a few things and place the foods in the food saver bags to use later.
*Purchase small foods to place in the bentos. If you are not a chef or feel as though there is not enough time, try purchasing small sized foods from the bakery or deli and place in the bento for the whole week. For instance, try purchasing small rolls, pastries, wieners, cheese cubes, carrots and so on. Then, all you have to do is place the food in the bento and leave the house in the morning.
*Purchase a rice cooker that is electric, not a microwavable one. In Japan I found that I love to use a rice cooker because most have timers. In my household, I place rice in the cooker at night before bed and then get up in the morning and fresh white rice is waiting for me to serve. We like to eat rice in the morning on some occasions, for lunch and for dinner. A rice cooker, which many people are not aware, can keep rice warm for up to 24 hours without going bad. This means that you can make your rice before you go to bed, throw some prepared rice in the bento before leaving the house for lunches and then come home at night and eat rice for dinner. It means you have rice waiting for you when you get home, no cooking that night!
*Make the same for everyone. This is the best tip for any parent/guardian making lunches, (tip) make everyone in the family the same lunch! This will save time in the long run and all family members will get a quality lunch each day. Making the same meals will save money and your time.
* Purchase items from an Asian store, either in person or online. There are many stores around the country, even in smaller cities, that have at least one stores for Asian products. Purchasing in large quantities from these stores will save you lots of money in the long run. I prefer to purchase Japanese rice, seaweed, fruits and vegetables and other prepackaged items from our Chinese market in our town. Regular grocery stores sell “exotic international” foods at high prices when you can run down the street and purchase the same product for half the price.
Bento’s are just an easy way to make leftovers fun for children and adults. There are so many days that we wish there was something easy to do for lunch but who wants to eat the same thing over and over again. By decorating the lunch with simple embellishments, a lunch can turn from drab to fab! It is simple and cheap! If you are new to Asian cooking, do not worry there are many websites, including my AC content page, that has some authentic Japanese recipes. In addition, a bento does not have to contain Asian food, it can be a simple sandwich and sides dishes, it is more an art than the recipes. It is about having fun and saving money!
