Just Bento

Note: This bento safety article is one of the first ones I posted here on Just Bento, back in November 2007. I’ve edited it and added some more information, especially since more and more new people are coming to the site. Even if you’re a veteran bento maker, it’s good to go over the basics occasionally!

A traditional portable bento box meal is meant to be eaten eaten at room temperature. It’s typically made in the morning, then held for a few hours until lunchtime, also at room temperature. Millions and millions of Japanese people eat bentos like this (as well as an increasing number of people all around the world). There are some basic, time-tested precautions to take to ensure that your bento box meals will be tasty and safe when you tuck into them. continue reading...

[Update:] Now with a second page for the weekend plus expanded shopping list! See below.

Last year I introduced the Weekly Bento Planner, a simple form to plan your bento lunches. It’s been very popular, and both files have been downloaded thousands of times.

One comment I got several times was that the form was fine for mapping out the week’s bento plans, but what if you wanted to plan all of your meals for the week too? To address this need, after a lot of thinking and testing - and just in time for the Bento Challenge! - I present you the Weekly Menu Planner With Bento Lunch form.

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I have written quite exhaustively about onigiri, or rice balls, here on Just Bento as well as on Just Hungry. Many people have asked similar questions about onigiri, which seem to just be gaining and gaining in popularity these days.

So I’ve assembled a list of Onigiri FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions). I’ll update this list when I see (or remember) other questions periodically. Hopefully your questions are answered here - if not, you know what to do! (ask in the comments!)

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I recently got an email from a Just Bento reader concerning the plastic used to make bento boxes. She was concerned, since she couldn’t read the Japanese writing on the packaging. I’m sure a lot of other readers have similar concerns, especially given recent scares reported in the media about plastic containers leaching chemicals into food and beverages. So here’s what I’ve been able to find out by digging around on various Japanese as well as English-language web sites. continue reading...

The Weekly Bento Planner is a simple one-page form that I use to plan out my week, bento-wise. I don’t really bother to plan out my other meals, but since time is at such a premium in the morning when I’m assembling bentos, I spend a few minutes on the weekend writing out what I intend to make for bentos during the upcoming week. continue reading...

This section contains the downloadable bento-related forms and other materials available on Just Bento.

This is the start page for the Getting Started With Making Bento series for bento beginners.

I’m always looking for ways to shave a few minutes off bento prep time. One way to do this is to look at the containers the condiments, sauces and other ingredients that you use frequently come in.

I use honey quite a lot as a sweetener. Measuring it out of a glass jar is a sticky, messy business, that more often than not requires washing of a spoon, wiping drips around the lid and jar, and other little things that add up in terms of wasted time. So, for morning preperations I rely on the neat runny honey in a squeeze bottle. It’s not rare gourmet honey gathered from bees who suckle on rare alpine flora (I save that kind for leisurely cups of lemon-honey-water), but it sure cuts down on bento making time in the morning. continue reading...