Just Bento

Noticing several UK based bento-ers signing up lately. Welcome ^_^

Welcome.
You are going to find lots of great ideas here.
I would advise to start with things that you know you will like, and are able to make, and to learn new ideas and how to build a fridge and freezer stash as you go.

I am from the UK too woop! And quite new to this. I used to bento every day when I worked over summer, had this great stash everything. Then my box broke and leaked and my replacement didnt arrive before I returned to the land of uni. Then freshers week etc etc etc. So I haven't done much in a while! Plus I can't seem to find Japanese style or short grain rice anywhere in Leicester!!

I agree with what Trisha says. Start with things you know you will like and can cook! But also I say experiment with flavours all the time! The worst you can do is muck up and it doesn't taste quite right or inedible but that happens rarely. :-) Have fun!

Hi Miriam

I hope you don’t mind me responding to your suggestion about substituting pudding rice.

I’m afraid I can’t agree with this. My own experience is that pudding rice disintegrates and loses its cohesion. Rather than end up with sticky rice you end up with mushy rice.

Maki has written about the different types of rice she uses and those she thinks can be used as Japanese rice substitutions in this blog entry
http://www.justhungry.com/2007/01/looking_at_rice.html

I will add to this by suggesting Spanish rice (but not bomba rice – this type absorbs more water than the other kinds) as another substitution for Japanese rice. A lot of the British supermarkets now sell paella rice. My favourite is the Ballilla X Solana variety from Calasparra but it’s generally easier to find sushi rice than this organically grown Spanish kind.

Raw pudding rice looks extremely similar to the most popular kinds of Japanese, Italian and Spanish rice, but as I mentioned, it doesn’t stay firm when it’s cooked. Unfortunately, it tastes rather bland also. I guess if you add lots of sushi vinegar and flavourings and don’t mind the texture then you can make it work, it is comparatively cheap after all. However, no one in my family will eat pudding rice, not unless it’s been cooked with milk and lemon and cinnamon, and I don’t think you’ll find many Italians advocating it as a substitution for risotto rice for similar reasons.
I once saw a cooking program in Spain which teased the viewers with a perfect use for overcooked rice. What they ended up showing us was a recipe for norimaki rolls explaining that overcooked rice was great for this. I wasn’t convinced, but it was interesting to see that there are others who don’t mind mushy rice. If you don’t then pudding rice IS a cheap option.