Deconstructed Pork Carnitas Tacos Bento

Deconstructed Pork Tacos Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Remember the slow-cooked ono pork roast from last week? This bento is an example of repurposed pork leftovers. I sliced some pork and fried it to get nice crispy edges, then packed it with tomato-onion-cilantro salsa and rolled tortillas for him to either build a taco at lunch, or eat separately as he chooses. I decorated with Okinawan sweet potato stars, and added late-season pluots, black grapes and raspberries. Yes, I know I'm using the same three-sectioned LunchBot Trio as I did for the original pork bento, but it's because this box is so ideally suited for deconstructed meals like this one. I've used it numerous times already, and it's still in great shape -- maybe a little scratched with tiny dents, but the lid still fits securely and the welded partition seams have held up without fail. Love it.
Added to What's For Lunch.

Ono Pork & Sweet Potato Fries Bento

Ono Pork Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

This year the kids seem to have a lot more after-school activities than last year, but maybe it's just the scheduling that makes it seem more hectic. Even with only one activity per kid, there are some afternoons where we seem to be rushing from one place to the next, changing uniforms in the car, and squeezing homework in between somehow. After a few very late nights, I've wised up: I dusted off the slow-cooker and plan to use it on those days when we don't get home until 6:30pm. Here's the result of the most recent slow-cooker night - My Mom's Ono Pork Roast (see my method and recipe here). The 3-pound pork shoulder should last for more than one meal, and there are lots of things you can do with the leftovers. We've shredded and fried the meat and made tacos, which are really good. To go along with the sliced pork here, I've added Okinawan sweet potato, baked sweet potato "fries", and roasted brussels sprouts. The fruit section contains a late-season plum, grapes, and raspberries. In my favorite LunchBot Trio!

Pink Ribbon Bento

Pink Ribbon Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, and here is my contribution to ProjectPink, which Bento Blog (@bentoblog on twitter) is hosting at http://bentoblog.fr.nf/. To find out more about this, search twitter for #ThinkPink and #ProjectPink, and see other pink ribbon bento. Tomorrow there will be a posting of all the pink bento that were submitted from all over the world, to draw attention to the disease and the need for research to develop a cure. Do check it out!

This one was made for my toddler girl. Under the black rice is shredded roast pork, which provides a nice backdrop for a pink ham ribbon. I added some carrot and cilantro flowers as well. The rest of the bento includes steamed broccoli, cheese stars, more carrots, peapods, strawberry, cherry tomatoes and the cutest little crabapple. She loved that little apple, and ate around the core in a very ladylike fashion. Hehe. Think PINK!

Pork Roast and Jack Bento

Pork Roast and Jack Bento, originally uploaded by sherimiya ♥.

Continuing on with the jack o'lantern theme... Today's jack is cut simply from a regular orange carrot cross-section. I hand-cut the facial details with my tiny paring knife. Placing it on a black rice ball makes for a nice contrast. I made roast pork over the weekend and since it was so big it may make several appearances in bento in the near future. I used my mom's recipe; called Ono Pork Roast, which says it all.

Mom's Ono Pork Roast
Rub a 3-4 lb pork shoulder with the following mixture: 1-2 minced garlic cloves, salt & pepper, and 2tsp Worchestershire sauce. If using stovetop, brown on all sides in a large pot. I just put mine in my crock-pot. Add 1 cup water and 1/4 cup shoyu, and cook on high for 3-4 hours, turning occasionally.

Delicious over hot rice. This is one dish that the kids will be tricked, er, tempted to eat lots of veggies to sop up the sauce. Really! Broccoli goes well on the side. For this bento, I lay the rice and meat inside a green lettuce leaf and stuck some peapods around it. In the other cups I added broccoli, yellow carrots and yellow tomatoes, some black grapes and some red plum.