Takikomi Gohan Don with Sauteed Prawns

The Japanese version of the Chinese Savoury Rice (I don't know any official name for it because different regions add different ingredients to cook with the rice). Japanese people call it Takikomi Gohan.

Essentially, it's rice cooked with dashi or some savoury stock, with other ingredients such as carrot and mushrooms and even meat to further flavour the rice. I added some miso to the stock this time, and it was AWESOME.

It's the first day of PSLE for Roast Meat and I am all nerves, despite this being my second child sitting for the PSLE. However, it's HIS first time right? So it doesn't mean I shouldn't be nervous, haha!

Macaroni with Sardines in Tomato Sauce

What an awesome east-west combination!

I quite discovered this dish by accident, when I ran out of fresh ingredients to dish up a bento for RM some years back. My only resort then was to turn to canned food, and since I had some leftover Sardines in Tomato Sauce in a pan (from dinner), I decided to just toss it with hot angel hair spaghetti.

Strike! He came back all smiles and reported that he absolutely LOVED the taste, so this became our not-so-regular bento meal. Unfortunately, no one else in the family, other than myself, likes the idea of that, so it's currently restricted to being a bento dish and not a family dish.

虾仁蛋炒饭 (Shrimp & Egg Fried Rice)

A very easy and common dish found at Chinese restaurants. I added edamame. Oh, and some kimchi.

Fried Pasta with Shrimp

Like Aglio Olio but with wayyyy more additions, this is one of RM's favourite meals. Let's see, I added shrimps, cashews, garlic, parsley... oooh this was so good. I had some leftovers for lunch.

Back to Simple Jap-style Bentos

Roast Meat's has pickled herring from IKEA and cucumber chunks "scattered" over his rice. While not traditional, I hope this can be considered "chirashi don"?

Meanwhile, Takoyaki has chuuka kurage (Japanese seasoned jellyfish) and some preserved veg (all from the Kyushuu Fair) over hers. It is meant to be a surprise as she didn't know I'd bought them. This girl will do ANYTHING for chuuka kurage.

I served up some homemade kimchi to include some fibre and probiotics.

干捞素面 Cold Somen Salad

A delicious cool summer lunch for RM who has to stay in school for supplementary classes.

A small snack box of CNY goodies for his 10 min break in class. Counts as healthy?

Spaghetti Shrimp Aglio Olio

Made with quick-cooking angel hair spaghetti, here's another of RM's favs. Keeping things simple, I only sliced some red and yellow capsicum and cucumber to go with it.

Sino-Jap Bento - Cold Udon with Chinese Stir-fried Greens and Surimi

The weather see-saws between rainy and hazy-hot every few days so I wasn't sure whether I should give it to him or not. It's always a gamble, and I was lucky this time. Lovely hot sunshine for Roast Meat to enjoy his cool noodles.

Cold Asian Noodle Salad Bento

Made with:

Boiled fresh udon noodles (rinsed under tap water till cool)

Mesclun salad

Boiled crabsticks and prawns

Dressing - soy sauce, sesame oil, freshly ground black pepper, pinch of stevia (you can use fine white sugar)

All mixed up and topped with roasted sesame seeds.

2014 Term 2 Week Two - Releasing the bonds

I agree that it takes some time to get the momentum going again after the holidays. Usually I'm ridden with a sense of guilt if I have been sloppy in bentoing, and flagellate myself into putting in more effort for the next week.

Hence, it is with some pride that I present, for the first bentos of this week, Fly Lice. Did more grocery shopping over the weekend so I'm a little more prepared for this week. Don't expect any fancy stuff though - that's only going to be possible after we haved settled into our new home (expected end Jun).

Ham for Takoyaki and Prawns for RM

Why make two bentos when you can make three? This will be lunch for Mouse and me today.

Ham AND prawns for me and Mouse muahahaha!

Frightful Friday - Cold Natto Udon

And that's the last one made in this house because tomorrow we are leaving this house. I'd contemplated getting him to buy in school so I can pack the bentos away, but he's going for a field trip after school so he'd be sick of eating the same food twice in the same day (doting Mummy talking). 

Truth be told, I'm glad to close up this chapter with a bento I'd be pleased to eat d:)

Welcome to another episode of...

You Can't See The Rice For The Toppings!

On the menu are:

1. Korean style Soybean sprout

2. Sauteed prawns with scallions

3. Stir fried greens

Over a bed of white rice

Dessert:

Grapes

M&Ms

And Takoyaki's hot lunch today was...

1. Rice with gomashio
2. Noritama
3. Stir fried 小白菜 xiao3bai2cai4
4. 莲藕汤 lian2ou3tang3 or lotus root soup

Chirashi Don + Review of Kago Onigiri Box

Is a great way to pack the ingredients for a bento if you're running out of time.

RM's chirashizushi don

I knew if I'd tried to push the rice into sushi moulds we'd be late for school, so instead I just packed a bed of sushi rice and quickly arranged the toppings. Roast Meat will be having some aburaage (sweet deepfried beancurd skin), surimi crabstick, arctic surf clams and Japanese cucumber. Oops! I forgot to pack him some soy sauce d:/

Takoyaki doesn't eat any of the seafood (fusspot) so I just gave her inarizushi plus some ham to up the protein factor.

And this one... is lunch for me and Mouse (the tot) in my new Kago Onigiri Box from Bento&Co. I have decidedly more toppings d:P including pork floss tamagoyaki, edamame and seaweed chicken (for Mouse).

Chirashi Bento in my new Kago Onigiri Box

I love love love this box! Just the sight of it fills me with indescribable happiness. The natural smell of the bamboo is calming and adds fragrance to the rice. Ok my rice is sushi rice but I'm entitled to think what I want, yes? d:)

Review of Kago Onigiri Box

The box itself is very sturdy because it has reinforced corners and bottom. I had expected it to be rather soft but it's quite the opposite. This box is as strong as my other plastic bento boxes any day! The food will not be squashed in it. And it's as light as a feather - this is a decided plus. Only thing left is to see how well it washes, but according to Just Bento, all I will have to do is use a non-abrasive sponge to scrub it, then let it dry completely.

(Update: Because I used wax paper to line the box, washing was a breeze with my 3M sponge. I just left it on the dish drainer overnight to dry out completely and back it went into the cardboard box it arrived in - it's own "home", so sweet.)

To hold onigiris is it's original intended function, but here I've packed a bed of rice (on a layer of wax paper to prevent sticking), and I can see myself packing sandwiches sometime soon. It's certainly spacious enough. You can pack a full bowl of rice in for an adult AND still have lots of room left to add sides and fruits. The height is adequate for medium to long picks to stand upright. Since it's porous, it is not advisable to put foods with a lot of gravy or sauce, not even with silicone cups. You will have to put any wet stuff in a small box with a tight-fitting lid, such as the smallest box in my One Piece, Matryoshka or Cowboy sets. The box requires a bento band or furoshiki to keep it closed and secure in transit.

The price is not cheap, but to me the quality is worth every cent. I got it shipped free to me so I certainly saved a bit there!

This box is NEVER going to school with the children.

It's the weekend, yay!

Can't get enough of Spaghetti Pesto

Actually, it's because I have lots of the pasta and lots of the pesto sauce to get rid of and Roast Meat doesn't mind since he loves pesto d:) Yes! RM is finally well enough to return to school today (no more wheezing and shortness of breath) so I get to resume my normal routine, which includes homeschooling my almost 3yo Mouse.

New boxes today again! These are part of a set of four nested One Piece-themed boxes from my (most) recent Bento&Co purchase d:) I love the quality; they are sturdier and better finished than my cheap Matryoshka and Cowboy ones from a Cash Converter store. 

On hindsight, I could have tried to make a Jolly Roger with the crabsticks and ham. Oh well.

Prawn and Leek Stirfry Bento

Nothing much to say.

Salute to a friend and Hokkaido Fair

Today, I met an old acquaintance, a Chinese lady who has a Japanese husband. She told me she wakes up 1.5hrs before her husband and kids leave for work and school, to cook and prepare bentos for all of them. April, you are awesome!

Roast Meat's recess consisted of an edamame korokke (croquette) from the Summer Hokkaido Fair that's happening now at Tampines Mall. This is a yearly event that we all look forward to, when we can indulge in Hokkaido gelato, sushi dons, ikameshi (braised squid stuffed with rice) for me, and I get to buy half a year's worth of chinmi (pickled seafood). Yay!

Korokke bento

 

Then, RM had a Learning Journey to the Science Centre after school, so I brought him lunch when I went to pick Takoyaki, who has a short day. I do think the food looks really good in the new Totoro box d:)

A filling lunch before a field trip

Lunch menu:

- Rice with gomashio

- Blanched long stem broccoli

- Ketchup prawns

- Scrambled eggs with mushrooms and yellow capsicum

- Grapes

Last School Bento for Term 2 2013

I forgot to plan, heehee. And had bad dreams overnight of not having anything to give RM at all, nor time to prepare. Serves me right.

So my last resort was a packet of instant ramen, to which I improved the nutrition by adding some boiled prawns, edamame, and corn. I barely had time to cool everything down and take a pic before rushing out the door with the kids.

I'm looking forward to the June holidays!