BBQ Chicken Bento

Have I mentioned how I love this time of year?  Fresh veggies from my friend's and family member's gardens are pouring in to my kitchen.  The little tomatoes below are compliments of my sister-in-law.  Thanks!

This bento contains:

• white steamed rice
• grilled chicken
• mini cookie cup
• BBQ dipping sauce
• black & white sesame seeds (garnish) 

The little "cookie cup" was made while I was playing around with my friend Ann's Demarle at Home muffin tray.  It is unlike anything I have ever baked with.  I'm in love with it.  So I had to throw some cookie dough in there to see what happened.  These cute little cookie cups happened.  And they didn't stick!  Yay!  If you want to order something out of the catalog, let me know.  I'm having a party soon.  ;)

Happy bento! 

Bento Simplified

Now that you know how to pack a bento lunch, I'd like to convince you how simple it really is.  

Repeat after me:  Bento is easy!

It really is.  If you are a person who 

1. eats dinner    -and-
2. owns a container to store leftovers in

You can make a bento lunch!

First step, eat dinner.  I went with Pineapple Pork Chops and rice:

Second, pack your left-overs in a container.  To show how easy this is, I am using a Pyrex dish I picked up at Winco:

Embellish or garnish as you feel moved.  (This is optional!  You will still get the portion control, budget saving benefits without making faces on your food.  But it is kinda fun.)  Today I was feeling sesame seeds, cilantro, and a quick nori face.

Third, put the lid on and throw it in a paper sack.  Or use a reusable container like this thermal tote from Thirty-One Gifts:

Done!  You are ready to take your bento lunch to work or send it to school with your little one.  Now, wasn't that easy?

If you are inspired to try this yourself, please leave me a comment below.  I would love to hear about your first bento experience!

Happy bento!

Colorful Leftovers Bento

Today's bento looks like this:

A little less childish, but still kinda whimsical.

This bento contains:

• brown rice
• porcupine meat balls
• roast chicken
• lettuce
• red pepper
• black pepper sprinkles
• grape tomatoes
• carrots

Here it is all packed up and ready to go.

Happy bento!

Squirrel!

For those of you who read my blog way back when, you may remember my dog, Dioji:

This bento was made with him in mind.  The lower tier has a dog and the upper tier, a squirrel.

This bento contains:

• brown rice onigiri
• turkey slices
• egg
• broccoli
• almonds
• red pepper & sunflower seed "collar" 
• food coloring / sesame seeds accents
• brownie
• mixed nuts

Here is the dog:

Here is the squirrel:

Hope you had a great Monday.

Happy bento!

How to Cook Rice in a Steamer

There are lots of ways to make rice. Here is a look at how I steam brown rice for use in bentos and dinners.

On the inside of the steamer, I pour in water until it is at the "HI" marker. This is very important. If I forget to refill the water high enough, by the end of the long cook time it will be depleted and the rice will be crunchy. Not pleasant.

Next, you put the top back on the steamer. For rice, you will be using the container that does not have any holes in it. Add a cup or two of your favorite rice.

Pour two cups of water in for every cup of rice.

Some sea salt goes in there too, to bring out the flavor.

This is what your rice will look like at this point. It will just be in a bunch of standing water. No worries, it will absorb.

Set the timer for 75 minutes.

Edited to add: For white rice, set the timer for 35 minutes.

Make sure it is plugged in and the light is on. You should start to see steam filling the inside.

Pretty simple, huh? I serve it right to the table in the container it steams in and people can dish out how much they want.

Enjoy!

A Bento for Bryan

Tonight I steamed some rice and spruced up our left-overs to make an appealing bento lunch for Bryan to eat tomorrow. Dioji was near at hand during the photo shoot, which was held (uncustomarily) on a diningroom chair to catch the last rays of the setting sun.

Sorry the picture is dark, like I said, it is just the time of day the photo was taken:

Bryan's lunch contains:

• Steamed rice (sprinkled with poppy seeds)
• Grilled teriyaki chicken (sprinkled with sesame seeds)
• Pineapple skewers
• Seasoned almonds
  

Here, again, is Dioji pretending he's not interested:

Happy Bento!

Believe it or not: Bento!

Hi everyone!

I know it has been an age and a half since I posted any bentos, so here is one for you:

Top tier:

• sliced turkey
• sliced roast beef
• carrot shapes

Bottom tier:

• brown rice w/ pineapple
• carrot stars
• celery slivers
• teriaki sauce
  

Please note the collapsible fork, donated to my bento stash by my friend Matt. Thanks, Matt!

All ready to go:


Happy Bento!

Friday's Bento

Where are the veggies? Where is the fruit? I need more color!

Embarrassingly simple bento contains:

• White steamed rice
• Chicken tender with mesquite seasoning
• mini banana muffin
  

Don't worry, I made it to the grocery store yesterday afternoon - so more colorful bentos are on the way. In any case...

Happy Bento!

Chicken and Rice

Bento #22 was put together directly after dinner, utilizing the left-over chicken and rice. It also is the first bento to contain bell pepper grown in my garden:



I tried something different with the rice in this bento. I added lentils to the brown rice to make it a little more interesting. In the future, I will add them near the end of the cooking time, as they ended up a bit overcooked, but I liked the look and taste.



Besides the rice & lentil mixture there are bell pepper strips, tomatoes, sliced chicken breast, grapes, and a brownie made for me by my husband.

October Onigiri

Bento #20 features a jack-o-lantern onigiri coated in soy sauce with a nori grin. It is surrounded by fried rice and tomatoes. Simple but delicious, here it is: