Bento - Japanese Meals (Engl)

Bento Slide Show (Engl) (Link)

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2009/09/08/dining/20090909-bento-slideshow_6.html

What is Bento?

Bento is the Japanese word for a meal served in a box. There are several different kinds of bento, with different purposes. Makunouchi bento are elaborate bento meals presented at formal meals, meant to be eaten at table. This is the type you will see served in restaurants, arranged in elegant lacquered boxes. Kouraku bento are picnic bento, to be shared by a group of people enjoying themselves outdoors. Finally, there’s the plain simple bento that most people bring to work or school for lunch.
These boxed meals designed to be carried around and eaten away from home, have long been a part of the Japanese lifestyle.In modern times, however, numerous varieties of bento have evolved, including some that are so elegant and colorful in their presentation that they might easily pass for works of art. A boxed lunch typically contains a serving of rice and various small servings of side dishes, including a simple salad or some fruit.Children take bento to school trips and sports days, while adults often take them to work and to outdoor events.
While boxed lunches can be bought at stores, many men and women bring homemade bento to their workplaces. An increasing number of them are devising ways of making their boxed meals pleasing to the eye with decorated bento, or deko-ben for short. Deko-ben were originally popularized by mothers looking for ways to get their children to enjoy eating a nutritious lunch.

This Video is about homemade Bento





And here are some colorful Bento Photos

Bento (packed Meals)

Crafting a Bento




 
Japanese Food Culture, BENTO　弁当





Bento Lunch Slideshow (Engl) (Link)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/laurabento/sets/72157614207302713/show/with/3352740938/


Golden Squash frittata Bento (Engl)

This little heart shaped frittata was made with golden squash, squash blossoms, swiss cheese and onions. Also in the bento: snow pea tops, mini peppers, nasturtium, sweet cherries and a mini vanilla cupcake with kiwi...