Furikake Salmon Lunchbots Bento

Two in a row! I'm on a roll now.

I recently learned that to ensure a crispy salmon skin you need to remove all the moisture from the fish first. I patted the filet with paper towels and let it air dry for a while before pan frying. Came out good! I love salmon and cook it once a week. I eat mine very simply with a bowl of 🍚 or on a salad🥗. So ono😋

In TinySprite's Lunchbots Trio: furikake salmon on soba noodles, assorted vegetables (broccoli, asparagus, tomato, carrots, edamame, Okinawan sweet potato), kiwifruit, pickled radish and red onion.

Happy Boys' Day Bento

Growing up in Hawaii, we called it Boys' Day - Tango no Sekku - (Girls' Day is in March) but it has evolved to Children's Day - Kodomo no Hi - since then. However, since I made one for TinySprite on Girls' Day, I'm making one for MisterMan now. His features a boy with a koi that symbolizes strength and determination as it swims upstream. 👦🏻🎏

In the bento: meatloaf, mixed grain rice, asparagus, carrots, raspberries, cara cara oranges, apple and cheese. Happy Boys' Day!

Anpanman Turkey Burger PlanetBox Bento

Round sandwich thin in the square section. It works! And the PlanetBox Rover smushes it down just enough so Anpanman's face doesn't move around. Score! Turkey burger with melty Swiss, romaine lettuce, and varied tomato and Okinawan sweet potato decoration, An ombre selection of blood orange segments, a little cup of cottage cheese with sunflower seeds and granola, carrots, asparagus, and pickled lotus root. Oh and a tiny cup of arare (rice crackers). Happy Bento!

Herby Chicken Lunchbot Cinco Bento

This is my first time using the large Cinco box from Lunchbots, and I was very excited to see what my middle-schooler thought of it! We are heavy users of the company's other boxes (Duo, Trio and Quad, as well as the Clicks series) and I heartily endorse the quality of those containers. I've been packing home lunch in these boxes their whole school lives, and they are all still in use after 6-7 years, none the worse for wear. I thought this larger size would be just right for my boy, who has a pretty big appetite. I took the opportunity to pack a whole chicken thigh and a serving of spinach pasta with potatoes and asparagus in the two biggest sections. That left me still with three more, smaller, sections which I filled with pickled carrots and daikon, sliced kiwi, and grapes, strawberry and tomato. He loved  it; had no problem finishing all the food. While the box is a bit larger in size than our other Lunchbots, it still fit nicely inside his insulated tote bag. I have a feeling this new box will be getting a lot of use in the coming years. Thumbs up!

Salmon, Potatoes and Asparagus LunchBots Bento

Salmon, Potatoes and Asparagus LunchBots Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I haven't used the LunchBots Clicks in awhile, and I really should because I love them. Not only are they stainless steel, but they come with leak-proof translucent lids. You can see what's inside and there's no chance of anything dripping out. How awsome is that? And they are the perfect size for the kids' lunch bento. Here I've packed TinySprite's omega-3-rich salmon furikake in one box, alongside some roasted baby potatoes sprinkled with garlic powder and pencil asparagus. The other (slightly shallower) box contains sliced peaches, pickled cucumbers and pickled red onions. I think this bento is just about the right amount for my chatty girl. She can manage to get everything eaten and still have time to run around outside with her little pals before settling down for the afternoon session of 1st grade. Did your kids settle back into the routine without problems? I think my girl is having a bit of trouble remembering what it means to sit still and be *quiet* during class time >.<

Grilled Furikake Chicken LunchBots Quad Bento

Grilled Furikake Chicken LunchBots Quad Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I felt like using the cute LunchBot Quad today because the divided sections are so handy it almost fills itself. I simply grilled some chicken, sliced into bite-size pieces, lay them in one section side by side, and sprinkled with sodium-free, MSG-free furikake. Next, I cut some garlic-roasted baby asparagus for the next section, and added a couple of grape tomatoes and a flower-shaped steamed Okinawan sweet potato. A third section got tiny silicone cups of homemade sauerkraut and pickled cucumbers (and a carrot), and in the last section I squeezed some watermelon cubes and a peeled satsuma mandarin. See what I mean? You've seen all these components in my bento before; some of them happen to be stocked regularly in my fridge for an easy go-to. TinySprite's kindergarten appetite is fairly small, so a few items of each food group will just about fill her up. The Quad is ideal for this purpose; love it!

Last-Day-Of-School Salmon Bento

Salmon Asparagus and Potatoes Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Wow, it's been so long since my last bento post! Seems like we've been on summer vacation forever! Luckily, it's only the 2nd day of actual summer so far, and I for one am really looking forward to the next 2 months of fun and freedom! We've been out of school since the first of the month, so there haven't been any new bento since then. I'm showing you the last few bento I made during the last week of school, when it was just too busy to post and blog. They should look very familiar, and I've come to rely on salmon/asparagus/potatoes as one of my standard fall-back bento. Happily, the kids love salmon, which I prepare in a few different ways to change it up (butteryaki, furikake, cajun, miso, dijon). Misterman's version comes in the EcoLunchbox while TinySprite's is packed in the cute 4-sectioned plasticware box. There's also yogurt with fruity toppings in there too.

The kids have just now started their summer sessions, so I'm back to packing bento again. But since I've gotten accustomed to not-blogging (and feeling like enjoying a relaxing summer), I may not post each one. Instead, I'm thinking of showing you the other things I'm cooking up in the kitchen these days. I've been baking and making ice cream and have all kinds of good things planned this summer...

Hope you all are enjoying the best season of the year!

Furikake Fish Bento

Furikake Fish Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I wanted to use salmon, but there wasn't any at the market so I used wild snapper instead. This fish doesn't stay together as well, so you have to be more careful if you pan-fry it. I used butter, flipped once, then sprinkled with furikake after it was nicely browned. In the same pan I tossed the pencil asparagus, which cooks up pretty quickly. There are two colors of steamed sweet potatoes cut into flower shapes, and a fruit section of strawberry, cherries and cara cara oranges rounds out this LunchBots Trio. She ate it all. If you think your child won't eat fish, try smothering it in furikake (I used a no-salt no-msg variety). Suddenly, it's delicious!

Purple Bunny Bento

Purple Bunny Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

I know what you're thinking: they just had salmon this week already. But actually the bento from Monday was a late post from a few weeks ago -- so this is the first salmon of the week! I broiled this one with a cajun spice mix, and laid it upon some white/brown/quinoa/millet mixed rice in the lettuce cup. As usual, I roasted some veggies at the same time; this time some pencil asparagus which I tossed with olive oil and parmesan. There's also carrots, peapods, a section of fruit (strawberries, blueberries, grape tomatoes), and a steamed Okinawan sweet potato bunny with rice stick whiskers, because I realized at the last second that Easter is coming in a week or so, and I haven't made any Easter bento yet. Just in case the bunny doesn't cut it, there's a little fuzzy chick to get the point across. Happy Spring!

Butterfish Misoyaki Trio Bento

Butterfish Misoyaki Trio Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Butterfish misoyaki; woo! See the recipe and method I used here. In Hawaii you can find frozen butterfish everywhere, but here I buy it fresh. So good over hot rice. This Lunchbot Trio is perfect to keep the fish (and Okinawan sweet potato stars) separate from the roasted parmesan kabocha and pencil asparagus spears, with the final section going to the grapes, strawberry and cutie mandarin. I put the little piggie dango pick in because otherwise there's nothing very cute about this bento. But on the upside, it only took a few minutes (most of it going to the mandarin carving) to throw together. Yay!

Wings of Bento, and a Celebration

Wings of Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

As I was going through my bento stash, I found this two-tier rectangular stainless steel Ecolunchbox set. It comes with a smaller, lidded box that fits into the top tier and is useful for packing things that you'd like to keep contained. The other Ecolunchbox I have (the oval one you can see here and here) also includes a separate small box, which seems to be where this company stands out. I like the quality of these boxes; the metal is sturdy and well-constructed enough to survive a typical lunchbag-swinging kid. This one, like the other one, has a tight latch, which you might need to practice with your child to make sure he can open and close it easily. Here I've packed some tebasaki (Japanese Grilled Chicken Wings with Sea Salt - method and recipe here), roasted diced taters and asparagus spears in the lower tier, and strawberries, carrots, blood oranges in the top tier, along with cottage cheese and blueberries in the little tin.

As for the kids' accomplishments last Friday, MisterMan finished first in the 3rd Grade District Spelling Bee! He beat out 27 other kids from 8 other schools to take home the medal. Interestingly, although the kids were given a list of about a thousand potential words to study, the second half of the bee drew from a secret list that the kids would only have been able to recognize from their reading. Not surprisingly, most of them were eliminated during that half; and some of those words were tough! MM never cracked under pressure, and spelled the winning word, "admirably", admirably. So proud of him! As for TinySprite, she appears to have performed well in her Kindergarten Readiness Interview, as we received her positive evaluation today. So as promised, they celebrated with their own double ice cream cones this past weekend: pistachio and chocolate chip for him, and chocolate and blueberry cheesecake for her. ^_^

Kerori Bento

Kerori Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Today's bento contains broiled teriyaki salmon and asparagus, along with carrots, tomatoes and steamed broccoli. I used some broccoli to make a Kerori (San-x frog character) onigiri. I guess you could say he's partly white and partly green. I kept the grapes and strawberries separate, which is why I love this LunchBots Trio. It's perfect for just that reason. Today's post is short; TinySprite and MisterMan both had activities after school today, and my little ballerina had official group and individual photos taken as well. So much excitement and fun ~ ^_^

Garlic Shrimp and Farro Bento

Today's bento contains farro topped with pan-fried garlic shrimp and spinach. This grain is pretty hearty and substantial, and I cooked it so that it had just a little chewiness to it. Seems like it would be good as a breakfast meal (like oatmeal, with cinnamon and brown sugar) to me. Or does that sound strange? Anyway, you can use this grain as rice, pasta, and tossed with just about whatever vegetables or meat you like. It's very versatile. I roasted some asparagus and added a steamed sweet potato bear face. Fruit section contains the usual strawberry and grapes. Pretty quick one, but healthy and satisfying for my growing boy.

Chicken Wings Bento

Chicken Wings Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Wings! And drumettes! Yay! All is right in the world. Have you made these for your kids (or yourself) yet? If not, you really should. It's quick, easy and very tasty, especially when sprinkled with togarashi, which is how I eat them (recipe here). The kids get them plain, but they could gnaw on these little guys all day. Make sure you make a big batch because you'll be surprised how addicting they are. Luckily I was able to snag a few for MisterMan's bento, along with some roasted asparagus and satsumaimo, and a side of juicy fruits (strawberries, grapes, kiwi and well, carrots). Done! Who says it takes too long to make home (bento) lunch? ^_^

Four-Part Bento

Four-Part Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Today's bento has rotini pasta with sauteed baby portobellas, chicken sausage and wilted spinach, roasted asparagus, steamed broccoli, carrots, grapes, a mini mandarin, more (yellow and purple) carrots and a strawberry. We got a ton of these mini mandarins from the in-laws' yard, and the kids love them because they're so cute. I don't really like them much because the have seeds and they're kind of hard to peel. I much prefer satsumas, but we have to go through two huge bagsful still. Sigh. Unless I can get them to eat a bunch at breakfast and dinner, you'll be seeing them here a lot. These purple carrots are from L.A. as well, and you can see that the purple color goes almost all the way through the whole carrot, with just a small yellow core. The ones I usually get have just a thin purple skin. These looked nearly black on the outside. Very cool!

Did you notice my cool divided bento box? I found it at Ichiban Kan (I think Daiso carries it too); the brand name is Assist. It's made of hard plastic with two moveable dividers that you can intersect in three different ways -- to create 4 equal sections, 2 big + 2 smaller (which I've done here) or 2 big + 2 tiny. There are raised tracks molded into the box to keep the dividers from moving around too much. The top of this one is light blue, and it has a rubberized gasket seal as well as a rubber vent hole that you have to pull open before you can remove the lid. It seems to be pretty watertight. The one thing I don't like about this box right away is that there aren't any fingergrips to grab onto for opening the box. The lid and box are flush all the way around. I let MisterMan practice opening it before I let him take it to school, to make sure he could handle it. The nice thing about this box, though, is that it comes with an elastic band and a zippered fabric tote to carry it in. There are a few different varieties made by this company. If you live near an Ichiban Kan you might want to check them out. It also feels pretty solid, which is good for a lunchbag-swinging kid!

Chicken Bento

Chicken Bento a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Sliced rotisserie chicken, the usual veggies and the usual fruits. How's that for a quick description? All these fruit are super sweet; you can tell by the intense colors -- dark red strawberries, black grapes and dark orange mandarins. Really happy with this bunch of fruit I picked up this week. Along with steamed broccoli, kabocha and asparagus, I added a yellow and purple carrot skewer, and tossed a couple watermelon radish flower cutouts in there as well. The LunchBot Trio keeps all the parts separate, which I love.

If you'd like a chance to score one of these stainless steel boxes for yourself and donate to a good cause at the same time, do check out the Bento4Japan eBay auctions going on here. Along with several LunchBots, there are all kinds of brand-new bento boxes and accessories up for bid, and more are coming soon!

Salmon and Rice Bento

Salmon and Rice Bento a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Simple pan-fried butteryaki salmon and black/white rice onigiri make up this bento for my second-grader. He also gets a few steamed satsumaimo in the lettuce cup. On the side I've added kabocha, broccoli and asparagus, and in the fruit section he's got grapes and a beautiful strawberry. A really quick one today, which is usually how Mondays go around here.

Last weekend we got wild weather: thunder and lightning storms, and even a freak hailstorm that scared TinySprite at first. Excuse the lousy pictures, but we were caught totally unprepared, and since we never see hail like this (and it was almost snow-like) we got all excited and stuff. Hehe. Too bad we totally missed the supermoon, but it was clearly visible the days before and after. Looked just about how it always looks. Happy Monday!

Oh, and Bento4Japan is getting updated with fresh new auction items every single day; so if you haven't checked it out recently, you may want to take a look. Remember, all proceeds go to Japan Disaster Relief. Thanks ^_^

Chicken Wings Double Bento

Chicken Wings Double Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

It's chicken wings again! I know, I know. It seems like it was just yesterday, but I looked back to see when it was we had them last, and it was 2 weeks ago. Really! Of course, we did have mochiko chicken just last week. But then, don't you have chicken at least once a week too? We probably rotate a few standards throughout the week: chicken, fish, pasta and a rice meal usually make an appearance pretty regularly. Today we had chicken wings that we grilled in Korean barbeque sauce, but the ones I packed in the kids' bento were plain. They really love these. If you haven't made them yet for your kids (or yourself), you really should. Click here for the recipe. I used the EcoLunchBox to pack my second-grader's bunch o' wings in a lettuce wrap, along with red kabocha and asparagus that were roasted alongside the wings. There's also a carrot and some tomatoes for color. In the little cup he has cottage cheese with blueberries and blackberries.

TinySprite's bento has another bunch o' wings in a lettuce wrap (which ends up being decorative, unlike her brother's, which he will eat), a cup of the same kabocha and asparagus, a watermelon radish heart, a mini mandarin, grapes and a strawberry. Who can say no to wings? You should see the giant pile we cooked for dinner; and I won't tell you how many went on my plate... Addictive!
Linked this one to What's For Lunch!

Panda Blueberry Egg Bento and Thai Chicken Bento

Panda Blueberry Egg Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

TinySprite has a finger foods bento again today. She still has that long-lingering cough, which I am hoping will clear up in a few days. Her appetite has been unpredictable lately. Some days she'll eat everything and ask for seconds, and other days it'll take her forever to finish. This afternoon she had eaten her entire lunch and even came home and scarfed up the leftover veggies from my lunch. Today I gave her a bento she can eat with her fingers (her preferred method): hard-boiled egg decorated as a panda with blueberries and nori, sauteed asparagus and kabocha, turkey skewer, steamed romanesco and yellow cauliflower, carrot sticks and blood oranges.

MisterMan has a more standard bento, including many of the same items, along with Thai chicken (not homemade), cherry tomatoes and a cup of yogurt with fresh blueberries and chopped blood oranges, dusted with toasted wheat germ. The cup (included with the EcoLunchBox) comes with a leakproof lid, making it perfect for sauces, gravies and.. yogurt.

Kabocha Bento

Kabocha Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Today MisterMan has a kind of traditional Japanese food bento today. I found asparagus in the market today so I wrapped in turkey and roasted. At the same time I also roasted kabocha, Okinawan purple potato, and satsumaimo (Japanese sweet potato). I bought a regular (green skin) kabocha and cut into wedges before roasting with sea salt. It's delicious just like that. I also made a quick tamagoyaki with shredded spinach to fill in the gap. I cut the satsumaimo into sticks so they kind of look like french fries, and somehow that makes them even more desirable. I topped with some carved carrots and added Fall plum chunks in the final section for dessert. That's it! Even with cooking, this bento probably took less than 30 minutes, and most of that was waiting for the roasting to be done.

Look -- it's Kabochan! Isn't he cute? This little character reminds us not to fear the tough exterior of the sweet kabocha, since it protects the delicious sunset-hued squash within. He is the mascot of the Kabocha Lovers Club, and was illustrated by the talented Alissa Staples. I myself was hesitant to cut into my first kabocha, and asked the vendor to make the initial cut for me. Since then, I've cut numerous wedges with my sharp chef's knife with relative ease. Try the kabocha; join our club! Don't be afraid, indeed -- and you will be rewarded with the delicate flavor of Autumn!