Bento of Recent Article

The side dish of today's main is Yakisoba.

I cook nearly every day bento.
And, I eat the bento in my company at noon.
Bento for lunch cooked by oneself is low cost and low calorie.
In addition, it is very good for "my health and food cost".

Well, I explain the content of today's bento to you.
Can you see the number on the bento's photograph?

 

A, B, and C are おにぎり[Onigiri].

Tawara: the bag of straw to wrap farm products

These おにぎり(Onigiri) is very small.
And, this Onigiri is shape that is called "Tawara type", it is called the "俵おにぎり(Tawara-Onigiri)".

*Tawara;
Tawara is a bag of the straw knit for the column type.
Tawaraha is used to wrap farm products chiefly, and indicates the straw rice bag.

Tawara: たわら(tawara in hiragana)/俵(tawara in kanji)

I cooked three kinds of Tawara-Onigiri today.

A is Twara-Onigiri of the black sesame and the salt.

B is Tawara-Onigiri of Ume-Katsuo.

C is Tawara-Onigiri of Nori and the salt.
The triangle and the circle of the shape of Nori-Onigiri are general.

D is Ohitashi of the chrysanthemum.

*Ohitashi;
おひたし(ohitashi in hiragana)/御浸し(ohitashi in kanji), boiled vegetables seasoned with blended soy sauce.

Medamayaki

E is Tsukemono of Hakusai.

*"Hakusai" is a Chinese cabbage.
In general, because Tsukemono has a strong smell, "Tsukemono with a faint smell" is suitable for Bento.
Because Takuwan is Tsukemono with a very strong smell, it is unsuitable to Bento.

When the temperature and the room temperature are high, the stink of Takuwan becomes strong further.
Therefore, if you brought Takuwan with Bento to your office, the stink of Takuwan might be filled in the room.

 

F is a fried egg.

The fried egg is "目玉焼き(Medama-yaki)" in Japanese.
"目玉(medama)" is meaning "Eyeball".
"焼き(yaki)" is meaning "frying with pan".

 

G is Benishouga.

Benishouga is used as the most general Yakisoba's garnishes in Japan.
It is especially garnishes to "焼きそば(Yakisoba)" and "牛丼(gyuudon)".

*Benishouga; べにしょうが(benishouga in hiragana)/紅生姜(benishouga in kanji)

Yakisoba source

 

H is yakisoba.

Yakisoba, literally "fried noodles", is a dish often sold at festivals in Japan, but originates in China .
The dish was derived by the Chinese from the traditional chow mein.
And, the Yakisoa's noodle has been gradually changed by a Japanese culture.
Even though soba ( noodle s made from buckwheat ) is part of the word, yakisoba noodles are not made from buckwheat, but are similar to ramen noodles and made from wheat flour .

Yakisoba is usually seasoned with the Worcester sauce (source for Yakisoba).

Japanese Yakisoba is prepared by stir-frying ramen-style noodles with bite-sized pork , vegetables (usually cabbage , onions or carrots) and flavoured with yakisoba sauce, salt and pepper. It is served with a multitude of garnishes, such as aonori (seaweed powder), benishoga (shredded pickled ginger), katsuobushi (fish flakes), and Japanese mayonnaise.

Medamayaki

Yakisoba is loved as the main dish or a side dish by Japanese people.

By the way, Yakisoba of today's Bento is Yakisoba with the easiest recipe in Japan.
It is a chow mein set of the manufacturer named "Maru-chan" of Japan.

There is steaming noodle and powdery Yakisoba sauce in this bag.

The steaming noodle is stir-fried with meat and the vegetable, a powdery source is sprinkled at the end, and this Yakisoba is stir-fried further.

The recipe is only that.
It is very inexpensive.

It is about two dollars per three food.

Moreover, it is sometimes sold cheap for about one dollar in the supermarket.
Moreover, it is very delicious.

And, this is Yakisoba that sells most in Japan.

 

 

Hararie

 

 

The side dish of today's main is deep fried cod.

I cook nearly every day bento.
And, I eat the bento in my company at noon.
Bento for lunch cooked by oneself is low cost and low calorie.
In addition, it is very good for "my health and food cost".

Well, I explain the content of today's bento to you.
Can you see the number on the bento's photograph?

A is ご飯[gohan].

Japanese rice cooker

Gohan is plain rice.
Gohan is boiled with the rice cooker.

The rice cooker is very convenient, and, it cooks rice very well.
Everybody doesn't fail if the amount of rice and water is accurate.

B is 梅干し[umeboshi].

Umeboshi (Japanese; literally" dried ume")" are pickled ume fruits common in Japan.

Ume (Prunus mume) is a species of fruit-bearing tree in the genus prunus, which is often called a plum but is actually more closely related to the apricot.
Umeboshi are a popular kind of TSUKEMONO (pickles) and are extremely sour and salty.

Umeboshi

 

They are usually served as side dishes for rice or stuffed inside of rice balls (sometimes without removing their seeds inside) for breakfast and lunch.

Umeboshi taste salty, and are extremely sour due to high citric acid content -- in the past they were known to corrode their way through aluminium lunch boxes if kept in the same spot every day.
Umeboshi per 100g contains elements as follows.

White-rice and red Umeboshi: this looks like the national flag of Japan.
The national flag of Japan is "日の丸[Hinomaru]" in Japanese.

So, this is called "日の丸弁当[Hinomaru-bento]" in Japanese.

Katsuo bushi

Hakusai: Chinese cabbage

Abura-age

Naga-negi: Leek(Welsh onion)

C is 梅かつお[ume-katsuo].

Ume-Katsuo is a crushed bonito soaked in umeboshi seasoned liquid
An original name of UME-KATSUO is "かつお節[Katsuo-bushi]".

Katsuo-bushi is a raw material of "だし[Dashi]".
Katsuo-bushi brings food a delicious flavor.

 

D is 黒ごま[kurogoma].

Kurogoma is black sesame.
Black sesame is often sprinkled on Japanese ONIGIRI and Japanese BENTO.
Black sesame is nutritious.

 

E is 鱈フライ[tara-furai].

Tara-furai is a cod fry.
The deep-fried cod fry is very delicious.
The Japanese likes cod fry as the side dish of bento.
Because breading is thick, the frozen codfish fry is high calories.
Therefore, I make it by oneself.

 

F is "煮浸し[nibitashi] of 白菜[hakusai] and 油揚げ[abura-age]".

Hakusai is a Chinese cabbage.
Abura-age is TOFU processed food(a piece of thin deep-fried bean curd).
Nibitashi is like nimono(vegetable or fish cooked with soy, sugar, and other condiments).

 

G is 玉子焼き[tamago-yaki].

Tamago-yaki is rolled fried-eggs.
As for Tamago-yaki, the variation of cooking is abundant.

I mixed Japanese Leek(Welsh onion) with today's Tamago-yaki.
Leek(Welsh onion) is 長ねぎ[Naganegi] in Japanese.

And, I thinly seasoned today's Tamago-yaki with the soy sauce.
Shoyu is the foundation of Japanese cuisine, and it is the essential ingredient.

 

 

Hararie

 

 

 

What is Japanese BENTO?

弁当/べんとう[Bento] is a　takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine.

A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables, usually in a box-shaped container.

Tsukemono(Pickled vegetables).

Containers range from disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware.

Although bento are readily available in many places throughout Japan, including convenience stores, bento shops, train stations, and department stores, it is still common for Japanese homemakers to spend time and energy for their spouse, child, or themselves producing a carefully prepared lunch box.

Moreover, Bento can be very elaborately arranged in a style called キャラ弁[kyara-ben].

Bento for which animated cartoon character of Japan is used.
Japan's mothers cook Kara-Ben for own child every morning.

Bento contests is often held where bento arrangers compete for the most aesthetically pleasing arrangements.

Kyaraben is typically decorated to look like people, animals, or characters and items such as flowers and plants.

Various enterprises in Japan sponsor the Bento contest.
And, money and the prize are presented to the prize winner.

 

 

Japanese Bento history

The origin of bento can be traced back to the late Kamakura Period (1185 to 1333), when cooked and dried rice called hoshi-ii was developed.

Hoshi-ii

Bento box in Japan where lacquer was painted

糒[Hoshi-ii] can be eaten as is or boiled with water to make cooked rice, and is stored in a small bag.

In the Azuchi-Momoyama Period (1568 to 1600), wooden lacquered boxes like today's were produced and bento would be eaten during a hanami or a tea party.

Makunouchi-Bento in Edo period

 

In the Edo Period (1603 to 1867), bento culture spread and became more refined.

Travelers and sightseers would carry a simple 腰弁当[koshibento], consisting of several onigiri wrapped with bamboo leaves or in a woven bamboo box.

One of the most popular styles of bento, called 幕の内弁当[makuno-uchi bento]- ("between-act bento"), was first made during this period.

People who came to see 能[Noh] and 歌舞伎[Kabuki] ate specially prepared bento between maku (acts).

Makunouchi Bento

Numerous cookbooks were published detailing how to cook, how to pack, and what to prepare for occasions like 花見[Hanami].

In the Meiji Period (1868 to 1912), the first 駅弁[ekiben] was sold.

Japanese Ekiben

And. as early schools did not provide lunch, students and teachers carried bento, as did many employees. A "European" style bento with sandwiches also went on sale during this period.

In the Taisho- period (1912 to 1926), the aluminum bento box became a luxury item because of its ease of cleaning and its silver-like appearance. Also, a move to abolish the practice of bento in school became a social issue.

Disparities in wealth spread during this period, following an export boom during World War I and subsequent crop failures in the Tohoku region.

Sandwiches Bento

Hinomaru-Bento: Box lunch of child at poor home. Poor Bento only of meal and Umeboshi It looks like the national flag of Japan ( It is called "Hinomaru").

 

Gakkou-Kyuushoku

A bento too often reflected a student's wealth, and many wondered if this had an unfavorable influence on children both physically, from lack of adequate diet, and psychologically, from a clumsily made bento or the richness of food.

After World War II, the practice of bringing bento to school gradually declined and was replaced by uniform food provided for all students and teachers.

It is called 学校給食[Gakkou-Kyuushoku].
And, Gakkou-Kyuushoku is continued in present Japan.

 

Bento regained its popularity in the 1980s, with the help of the microwave oven and the proliferation of convenience stores.

 

Japanese convenience store's Bento

In addition, the expensive wood and metal boxes have been replaced at most bento shops with inexpensive, disposable polystyrene boxes.

But, even handmade bento have made a comeback, and they are once again a common, although not universal, sight at Japanese schools.

Bento are still used by workers as a packed lunch, by families on day trips, for school picnics and sports days etc.

 

 

 

 

I will show you my Bento from next time.

 

Hararie