Kawaii Bento Boxes: Cute and Convenient Japanese Meals on the Go Paperback – September 1, 2009

I first attempted making lunch for my 2 daughters and myself bento style about 3 years ago. I started by following bento blogs like Just Bento and Lunch in a Box. Both are great resources, but when it came to putting together 3 lunches everyday, I ran out of inspiration (and time). My lunches ended up usually just being leftovers from dinner the night before, which is boring even it it's served in a cute lunch box. I stopped making lunch because this school year we moved to a district with better lunch offerings, and the kids wanted to buy lunch instead of taking it. A couple weeks ago my 11 year old mentioned that she usually got pizza and french fries instead of the daily lunch offering, and I decided it was high time to dust off my collection of bento boxes and get cooking.I have several traditional bento cookbooks, and though they're lovely to look at, I very rarely use them for lunch recipes. This book, however, was a game changer. The pictures and menus give me ideas for combinations that are tasty together, easy to make, and pleasingly attractive. One photo showed thinly sliced beef rolled around green beans and carrot sections. Grocery stores don't have steak sliced as thinly as shown in the book, but breakfast steaks pounded to death with a meat tenderizer worked great. Inspired by the photos, I used leftover taco meat and Mexican rice to make a staggeringly inauthentic (but yummy) version of fried rice, served with a hard boiled egg, corn with blanched spinach, cherry tomatoes stuffed with cheese, and fruit.I don't know how good this book will be for a beginning cook, as the recipes can be sparse on specifics like temperature and cooking times, and some require ingredients that may not be stocked at your local grocery store. I'd still recommend it as a good resource. I'm not going to be decorating my onigiri with pretty little seaweed faces any time soon, but the overall quality and variety in my lunches had taken a huge leap forward, thanks to this book. My daughters love their lunches and both have said that their friends are jealous of the food they're getting.

We're currently living in Tokyo, and I am interested in dabbling with making bento. The stores here sell AMAZING products to aid in the creation of bento, but as my kanji is not the best, buying a Japanese bento cookbook is out of the question. This cookbook, a faithful English translation of a Japanese cookbook, offers authentic recipes, great photographs, and straight-forward instructions for beginning and more experienced bento makers. Some ingredients might not be so easy to find in the US, but I think that is just something an American cook has to accept. The back of the book offers conversion tables for measurements, and the entire book is organized nicely (and easy to read!). I can't wait to begin! Kentaro Kobayashi's Bento Love is also an excellent English language cookbook. His entire "Easy Japanese Cooking" is excellent for people who wish to try making truly authentic Japanese dishes without too much fuss. Kobayashi's bento book is better for people who are interested in satisfying (not cutesy) bento, so I bought both books to have a good balance of practical, "adult" bento and cuter "kid" bento recipes/ideas.

I just received this book and I am very excited about it. I know some other Bento Books have been lacking when it comes to recipes, but this one is loaded with good ones. The recipes are a little quick and are pretty self explanatory. This is a good starter book for ideas, but some people who have never heard of some of the ingredients used will be lost. (That is what google is for) Overall, Its a great book with clear pictures and descriptions. The last few pages are color coded to the color food you want in your bento. If you want more yellow in your lunch, the recipe for curried cauliflower, more red.. shrimp in chili sauce.. etc etc.. Which is a good asset to avoid having a monochromatic bento lunch. I would also buy Hana Sushi for better sushi ideas.

You will be inspired by the full color photographs of bentos, and you'll be armed with the skills you need to make them happen. Several recipes for common bento foods are included, so you can be a more competent and versatile bento maker in no time. If you don't live in Japan, this book is especially helpful for you to learn more about the products you can buy to make your bentos easier and friendlier (many are available on Amazon, and many food items are available at your local Asian market if you have one). Most of the bentos are meant for younger children, but the ideas are fun for all ages once in a while, and the techniques can be used for more ideas of your own!

Just recieved this book and my head is swimming with ideas! The photographs are very inspirational, and the step by step instructions are somewhat simplified, which leaves room for more photos and recipes! I don't need to know how to boil rice or dice an onion, I already know that stuff, so for those who are very "new" to cooking, the book may be a bit confusing. I am not one for following recipes exactly, so this book is perfect for someone like me who just uses the pictures and basic ingredients to create something all my own. The ingredients used are definately not all things you can find in your basic corner store, but that's also why I love this book. I'm not planning on bringing leftover mac and cheese to work everyday...I want new ingredients and ideas! I would recommend this book to any experienced cook looking to make their bento boxes a little more fun, but not to anyone who doesn't know their way around the kitchen (or the Japanese kitchen). Kawaii!