10 Rules for Good Bento
JustBento's Makiko Itoh shares the philosophy that guides her daily bento life.
The Tumbler Bento: Pure Genius!
YouTuber Ochikeron assembles three very different bento-style lunches in plastic travel tumblers. What a great idea!
Our Top 5 Bento Sites
Check out any of these inspiring sites to learn more about the brilliance of bento!
The Sensual Aroma of Sweet Potatoes
There are different ways to make "yaki-imo." Wrapping a sweet potato in aluminum foil and burying it in hot embers is one. Another method is to coat them with a salty batter made from egg whites, flour and salt then slowly bake them for a few hours.
Bacon Pumpkin Stir-Fry
In this salty stir-fry, the flavor of the bacon combines with the Japanese pumpkin and is completed by the richness of the vinegar.
Skull Pancakes
Perfect for breakfast on Halloween morning, this pancake skull-and-crossbones will make your onion eyes pop out!
3 Great Pumpkin Snacks With a Japanese Twist!
Sharpen your sweet teeth: here are three healthy, nutritious and easy-to-make Halloween sweets with plenty of pumpkin!
Wicked Monster Fruits
Have you ever been scared of grapes, kiwis, strawberries and oranges? You will be!
Better Know Your Pumpkin Types!
Renewed interest in heirloom vegetables means a few of the classic types are making a resurgence, with seeds available for growing at home even in Japan.
10-Minute Caramel Pumpkin Sauté
All you need is pumpkin, butter, sugar and soy sauce. Dry roasted almonds optional!
Terrifyingly Tasty Halloween Ramen
Black broth. Black noodles. Black sheets of nori. Black garlic oil. Black everything—it's a bowl of midnight ramen.
Little Miss Bento's Snoopy & Woodstock Bento
Little Miss Bento shows us how to do a proper Peanuts lunch box.
This Kyaraben Tutorial is Totally Kawaii!
Too cute to eat? In this breezy clip, J-food vlogger and cookbook author Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook shows you how to crank the kawaii factor of your bento box to dangerously adorable proportions.
Make a Green Pepper Dinosaur!
Even though dinosaurs no longer roam the Earth, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy eating them!
Our 4 Favorite Bento Channels
A well-done bento is truly a work of art, and a number of English-language YouTube channels have sprung up with the hope of teaching folks easy techniques for preparing a unique and tasty box.
5 Books for Mastering Bento-making
Here are a few bento books that we think you’ll find helpful and inspiring!
Whole Baby Pumpkin Gratin
To up the scare factor, carve a face into the side to make jack-o'-lantern brain stew!
Spring Rolls, Japanese Style
This recipe for spring rolls, or "harumaki," may not be authentic—or at least, not authentically Chinese. It's authentically Japanese-Chinese, or "chuuka"—Chinese dishes that were introduced to Japan mostly in the late 19th to 20th centuries.
Autumn Tipple: Sake & Pear Sangria
Make your own seasonal sake sangria with this simple fall recipe!
