Japanese Food Glossary

I've prepared a Glossary of Japanese ingredients which I use in my Bento blog. I've linked the Japanese name of the item to a previous post in this blog. The post that is linked may not be specifically mentioning the ingredient but there is some indication of the Japanese ingredient in the mentioned post.

I will be adding on more items to this list as I use other Japanese ingredients. I hope this will be helpful to some of you who are new to Japanese ingredients. Enjoy!


1. Abura-age - fried tofu slices. (abura = oil, age = fried)
2. Azuki - Small red beans used to make an.
3. Bento - traditional boxed lunch.
4. O-cha - green tea.
5. Chawan - rice bowl.
6. Chawan mushi - egg custard with diced vegetables.
7. Daikon - white carrot shaped Japanese radish.
8. Dashi - Fish stock for cooking, generally made from kombu (a type of sea weed) and
katsuobushi (dried bonito fish shavings.)
9. Donburi -This is a traditional lunch dish referring to the ceramic bowl and matching lid the
contents of this dish are served in.
Below are the individual names of each donburi dish depending on the contents.
• Gyūdon - rice with a beef topping.
• Yakitori donburi - rice with a chicken topping.
• Tendon - rice with a tempura topping.
• Unadon - rice with an unagi (Eel) topping.
• Katsudon - rice with a pork topping.
• Oyako donburi - rice with a chicken and fried egg topping.
10. Gohan - formal word for rice, also meaning "meal".
11. Gyoza - Chinese style dumplings of meat or vegetables.
12. Hijiki - a variety of seaweed.
13. Inari-zushi - sushi rice in fried tofu pockets.
14. Kombu - kelp - used in making dashi (soup stock).
15. Konnyaku - a gelatinous substance made from the "devils-tongue" tuber.
16. Kyuri - long and thin, Japanese cucumber.
17. Mirin - sweetened cooking sake.
18. Miso - fermented soybean paste.
19. Mochi - Sweet glutinous rice cakes.
20. Mochiko - Sweet glutinous rice flour.
21. Natto - sticky fermented soybeans.
22. Nori - dried seaweed which comes in very thin sheets.
23. Oden - fish, fish cake and vegetables simmered in broth.
24. Okonomiyaki - egg "pancakes" containing diced seafood, vegetables, or meat, that are grilled and topped with a savory sauce.
25. Onigiri - rice ball.
26. Ramen - Chinese style egg noodles.
27. Saba - Mackerel. 

28. Sake - Salmon.
29. Shoyu - soy sauce.
30. Soba - buckwheat noodles. Can be served hot or cold.
31. Tamago - egg.
32. Tamagoyaki - Fried egg.
33. Teriyaki sauce - A sweetened soy sauce.
34. Tempura - Battered and deep-fried seafood or vegetables.
35. Tonkatsu - Breaded and fried pork cutlet.
36. Usukuchi shoyu - Light Japanese soy sauce.
37. Wakame - a variety of seaweed.
38. Wasabi – a pungent mustard, made from green Japanese horseradish.
39. Yaki - grilled.
40. Yosenabe - A fish, seafood and vegetable soup made in a clay pot.

BENTO #96

#2 had a discussion with me after school about how she was putting on weight with all the food I was packing for her. Good gracious! I thought that I was already 'under packing' her food!

Apparently that is not the case. She insisted that she's putting on weight. She is declaring this week a "Fruit and Vegetable" Bento week!!

She's involved with a musical which will be launched next week end and she's already been measured for her costume since April. "Mum, I can't afford to be squeezing into the costume if I've put on weight"! She retorts with a grim face!

What the heck! She's taller than I am and certainly much thinner than many young girls her age. *Screams in my head but grins at #2* (Mum gets into this chilling mode again). Okay, I'm not going to argue about weight issues with #2. I just need to deal with it more positively.

Sometimes, even #3 will pose in front of the mirror with her bulging belly and ask if she's considered FAT? *sigh*

I decided to make #2 a fruit salad this morning. I cut up bananas, golden kiwi, apple, orange and strawberries. I squeezed the juice out of an orange, added some honey and some lime juice. It was a lovely and refreshing combination.

The citrus juice helps to keep the fruits from turning brown and gives it a light and refreshing taste.

The Bento box on the right is filled with a croissant cut into three pieces and slathered with Nutella. This is for #3. There is a pack of NIPs, just in case she wants to eat more.

I'm going shopping for salads later.
(My kid's diet has just turned into that of a COW! Moo!)

BENTO #95

When I was planning #2's box yesterday, we agreed on Mac & Cheese. This morning when she came downstairs, she said that she wanted her Mac & Cheese hot. How in the world was I going to keep the Mac & Cheese hot other than using a flask and for a 9 year old it could get tricky to have to wrestle with the screw top of the different layers. After much haggling, we decided on Chipsmore chocolate chip cookies and a bar of Cloud 9 (courtesy of Grandma).

I didn't think it constituted a "Bento" so I didn't take a picture to post in my blog. #3 pouted the whole morning and felt unhappy. I explained to her that if she didn't start eating more varieties of food then I was not going to post about her "Bento" because basically it isn't one!

One could hear pin drop SILENCE in the car the whole way to school.

When I went to fetch #2 yesterday from school. The first thing she responded after I asked if she finished her food was that she wanted more of those 'delicious, juicy sausages'.

Every night before I go to sleep, I would sit at the dining table with my green file and start planning the next morning's Bento box content. I would first write out the different types of food I planned to prepare the next morning, etc. I would then draw out the two layer box and roughly draw or write out the content in its sections. For example, for the top layer box, I would draw a divider to half the box, write the name of the food item on one side and another food item on the other side.

I would only decide on the size of the silicon cups on the morning itself because I had to have a gauge of the quantity. Obviously, what I plan to pack has to be in stock.

Late last night when I got home, I checked my green file to make sure I had everything in order, I saw this message scribbled on some empty space.
"Mum, I want breakfast too, please. Thank you. #1".
It's obviously the sausages!!!!

This is #2's Bento box for today. Her daddy is taking her to the dentist at 11.30a.m. That means she has to leave early today. I half expected her to tell me that she didn't need a box but that obviously didn't happen.

In the left lower box, are strawberries again (she loves them). Some more sausages, cut and skewered for easy eating. In the right upper box is a simple supply of crisp bread and a wedge of Happy cow Salmon cheese. I fried some French beans with prawns for a change.

Look at the Close-Up!

Viola! Another day! Another Bento!!

BENTO #93 & #94

Last weekend has been back to back with activities. Good thing I planned ahead to purchase strawberries from the Curve. They bring them in from Cameron Highlands and it's cheap. RM11 for three boxes. Only thing is you need to make sure not all the boxes are ripe and ready to eat unless you can finish them in a day or two. I usually tell the stall owner to select some not so ripe ones so that they can keep the week.

#3 was busy going out with Grandma. I didn't have time to discuss her menu with her. What I did was order two sourdough bread from Wilson. He freshly baked them and when I went to collect them I was surprised that he had fashioned one 'plait' style. #3 was with me then, she gave a squeal of surprise and was happy beyond words. In the car, she asked if she could pinch a piece to try. She finished half the plait loaf!

She was very upset this morning to find that #2 and mum had finished the balance half while she was away gallivanting with Grandma. Oopps! I had to spend the morning cajoling her into a better mood.

Finally, we discussed on the spot the contents of her box. It was going to be Sourdough bread and the last balance of tuna. She asked if she could have the 'Mr. Potato crisps' that Grandma bought for her. I had to try maintain her improved mood this morning and I had to respond positively, so I said yes.

#3 was gleaming and was happily helping me to set the Bento boxes for photography. Hmmm...the things we mothers have to undergo with young children. Gosh! I'm just glad she's growing up real fast. Jewel as she is, some mornings she can be a pain for all the wrong reasons!

#3 doesn't eat vegetables or fruits other than apples. In fact she doesn't eat most foods. There is a slight improvement lately but it's still a long and tedious journey. She does like McDonalds fried chicken, fries and junk foods. Personally I don't encourage my kids to patronize the fast food outlets but occasionally, we find ourselves there because of convenience. *sigh*


#2 has a box of fruits galore this morning. I filled the right lower box with some salad leaves, lined them with orange slices and topped with lovely strawberries and longan (all peeled, where can one get so good service?).

In the left upper box, I fried some cocktail sausages and skewered them with the balance salad leaves. This is a treat because we've not had sausages for a long while. Read here to know why.

I added the the last two slices of Brandy laden fruit cake and a heart shaped hard boiled egg. She didn't want Shoyu so there is no sauce bottle.

There is an Oshibori box which I think they both can't do without now. I don't hear any complaints or whining and that's a good sign!



p/s I managed to purchase another few Oshibori boxes from the Curve when I was there.
*grins*

How to select the right size Bento box

I picked this chart from : http://item.rakuten.co.jp/yellowstudio/c/0000000352/
This chart recommends the Bento box size to use for age group and height.

Biggie has a detailed, translated version but lately I've not been able to access her site. Another good reference for choosing the right Bento box is from Just Bento. The pink chart on the left is for female and the blue one on the right is for male.

• The first column is the age group.
• Second column is the height.
• Third column is calories/meal.
• The last column on the right is the recommended size box to use.

If you look under your Bento box, you will be able to see the capacity of the Bento box.
I remember reading somewhere that if your activity level and height exceeds the recommended size Bento box, you should add on 100ml capacity to what is recommended. The same vise-versa.

It's something you just adjust to suit your personal need. There's no hard and fast rule. If one is dieting, obviously pick a smaller box. I realized that my third daughter doesn't finish the two layer Bento box that I pack for her.

When I questioned her, she says that there is not enough time during recess. Being a mother, I'm all the time concerned that she's not got enough food to eat.

Looking at her age - 9 years old and her height at 139.7cm, she should be taking a 600ml Bento box. There's no way she can finish so much food - we're talking about packed capacity here, not loosely packed food. Knowing that she should have a 600ml box is one thing, the reality of it is she won't be able to finish the food. So, I just have to follow my gut feeling and go with the flow.

My second daughter is 16 years old and her height is 168cm. According to the chart above she is 11cm taller than stated and rightly should add another 100ml to the recommended 700ml box, which makes it to an 800ml box.

However, #2's a weight watcher and there's no way she'll eat so much. She's already on a permanent fruit and vegetable diet.

The boxes that I pack for her range from 500ml-600ml.

An example below would be the 330 ml for the upper box and 250ml for the lower box which makes a total of 580ml.




This one below also has two layers. The upper large box capacity is 320ml and the smaller box at the bottom is 180ml which makes a total of 500ml.

I usually use similar size boxes for her Bento. She's cool with it and most days finish what's inside if she's not rushing from one thing to another. I have larger capacity boxes but that's only used if I pack sushi for her.

BENTO #91 & #92

Yesterday afternoon when I brought #2 home, I asked her what she wanted to pack for her Bento on Friday (today). She said "I'll discuss with you later mum. Let me come back from my Chinese Oratory class first". "Huuuhhh? What if we forget and then what are you going to eat?" She gestures with her hand as if to calm me. "Wait till tonight first okay."

So mum just gets into this 'chilling mode'. Late last night when I was planning Friday's menu, #3 comes to me and says this "Mum, tomorrow, just give me croissant only lah." "What croissant? I don't have any croissants left" - I responded. OOoooops! #3 plucker's her lips in surprise. I wanted to rebuttal her about deciding so late but I responded "So how?".

She said simply, just give me biscuits will do. I didn't have the heart to revert to biscuits so I scanned around and rummaged the fridge. I found a packet of Soudough bread and Nutella. Before this, #3's tried Nutella but didn't like it. I told her about the Soudough bread - this is hand made by Wilson from my favorite tea time haunt. #3 likes Wilson because he's young, patient and very friendly with her. "Oohhhh! Wilson 'ko-ko' (a respectful greeting towards an elder young male) baked the Soudough bread. I like, okay I want".

"What so you want to eat it with?" She shrugs her shoulders and smiles at me. "What about Nutella?" I ask her. She looks at me and said "Can I try?" I spread some Nutella on a slice of the Soudough bread and she took a bite..... mmmmm....okay, taste nice, can I have some more for supper, I'm hungry". Bingo!!! Another food item added to her consumption menu!


#3's box is very simple and I can hardly call it a Bento other than the Box that she's asked to use. *shakes head from side to side*.

It's simply Sourdough bread with Nutella and another slice with tuna mayo from yesterday. I wanted to give her a variety and assure myself that she won't go hungry. She asked for her favorite fruits - apples, which I cut into huge tulips and 'apples'. LOL!!


#2's box is a real treat today. I boiled one potato and made potato salad last night. I am sure she will love this. So, in the bottom box I had potato salad, another Kiwi and two pieces of Brandy laden fruit cake. #2 told me that she shared a piece of fruit cake with a friend the last time and she's been raving about it - probably because of the Brandy, I quipped.

In the top box, I skewered halved tomatoes and crabstick rolled in grated cheddar cheese and wrapped in a salad leaf. Added another slice of fruit cake for #2 to share.

I have a busy week ahead. Here's wishing all of you an enjoyable weekend. Cheers!!

P/S
I'm having a time of my life with the silicon cups!!!

BENTO #89 & #90

Yesterday when I went to fetch #3 from school I asked if she finished her food. #3 said she finished the sardine croissant but not the cookies or bisccotti. "I ate half of the chocolate crayon, can I have the cookies for tea afterwards?" - said she. "Sure, I responded".

Then she added, "Mum, you know my friend Brenda?" (her best friend at school). "Ah ha" I responded while driving. "She says she loves my mummy best!" "Huh? What? Why?" I asked dumbfounded. She says you make the best-test food and she loves you best!

Wow! I was blown away by that statement! A kid I've never met making a statement like that. I hope her mother never hears it!

Last night I prepared tuna mayo. It has chopped yellow onions, gerkins, mayo, pepper and salt. I also cut up slices of bread into animal and flower shapes to bake. All I had to do this morning was to pack the tuna mayo into the Hello Kitty box and add the bread crisps. There is a little fork for use and a little tub of Meiji Chocolate for a treat.

I'm using the new single tier Bento box that my friend Felicity brought back from Singapore. There's a pink Oshibori to go too.


#2's box is made up of half a golden kiwi and a mango pudding. There are 3 pieces of animal face onigiri packed with tuna mayo on a bed of salad and two cherry tomatoes. Simple and easy this morning!

More Eye Candy

For me, Christmas has certainly arrived early! I feel like a 6 year old in Santa's toy factory! I've been Bento-ing for almost one whole year. During this journey, I've scourged many shopping outlets for Bento accessories and had to make do with the miserable few and far in between things being sold in non-Bento speciality shops (not that PJ or KL has one anyway).

The 100 Yen store was the best (of the worst) store which had limited collection and because I was kind of a local pioneer, I managed to build up quite a collection of Bento boxes from them. Often I would sweep across the store and manage to buy 8-10 Bento boxes plus it's limited accessories. But after a while, they ran out of stock too.

It's frustrating for Bento enthusiasts like me. I thank God for good friends who travel and bother to entertain my passion for Bento. Most of my Bento accessories was brought back from Japan by my friend Alice.

Since then, I've been surfing the internet and found lots of things that I like but didn't want to pay a ridiculous price for. I've had one bad encounter with an e-bay seller (now defunct) who conned me and I wasn't too keen to put my money where I already had a bad experience.

Often, I was tempted to purchase the Wilton silicon cups - something like RM55 for half dozen or something and that too you only get them in one size and shape. Wilton has two or three shapes I think.

One of the things I appreciate of my late Dad is, he forcibly taught me to be PATIENT. It's not my best virtue but "I can wait". That's what I did and today, my friend Felicity who travels Singapore quite often brought these back for me!! I am so excited, she bought 30 items from Daiso at 2 Singapore dollars each. I almost died of elation!

New Bento and Onigiri boxes - my dream come true!
I had seen the Onigiri boxes selling for RM39.90 and I refused to buy them.
Felicity bought them at 2 Sing each!

A pink furoshiki, Onigiri molds and tiny condiment boxes and another pink Onigiri box. *swoons*.

Silicon cups in all shapes, sizes and colors. SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT!
*Thank you! Thank you!*

New age Bento straps? Kung-Fu Panda - I think #3 will be trilled!! Cute chicky faces and matching pink balloon straps for the single tier balloon Bento box.

Sauce bottles, furikake shakers, mayo boxes. *I'm going crazeeeeee with happiness*

My dream food picks! *God is good!*

*I'm currently floating on 7th Heaven, walking on clouds and dreaming dreams*

Hugs to everyone. Thank you friends!

BENTO #88

I have to go to school to collect #2's report card this morning. It's 'open day'. #2 knows I have a busy schedule and has been reminding me the whole of last week.

Last night, she reminded me again and added "No Bento tomorrow mum". "Ah! Okay!", I responded.

I already planned to make tuna mayo and croissant for #3 but this morning realized that I ran out of tuna. I substituted with sardines instead. She had sampled sardines twice and it was 'okay' with her. I just hope it'll be okay when she eats her croissant later this morning.

For insurance, I put in some Chipsmore chocolate chip cookies, some Almond and orange bisccotti and a stick of chocolate crayon as a treat.

Everything looks too Blue and Brown this morning.

Good News or what?

I read My Lovely 'A' blog about her recent fruitless visit to the 100 Yen store. I just got back from the SS2 outlet and sure enough there is hardly anything for Bento enthusiasts like us. The Bentos left on the shelf are really OLD STOCK and there are only 2 or 3 pieces left.

I visit the SS2 branch almost weekly and the last time I was there I saw 3 packs of 'onigiri face molds' and they were all gone today. I guess I am able to get the stuff I want because I am very regular. I used to visit the Puchong branch once a month until the petrol price went up and I've decided that once in two months is good enough.

Anyway, after this morning's visit to the 100 Yen store I called one of their managers whom I had encountered before, about the status of their miserly Bento stock. He admitted that they had not been focusing on Bento because there was a lack of interest and sales turnover in that area was pretty slow.

We had a long chat and he assured me that he'd look into sourcing for Bento accessories again. He also mentioned that they've recently cleared some containers of new stock which will be hitting their 100 Yen stores soon. But, he also mentioned that there is minimal Bento stuff.

The other news that he shared with me is that they are opening another new outlet in Uptown, Damansara Utama. For those of you who work around there, you can visit the new 100 Yen store after mid July 2008. It is opposite to Uptown towers 2.

I don't know about you, but I'm sure to check out the place, with all the new stock coming and all, who can resist??


Disclaimer: Please be informed that I have no affiliations with the 100Yen shop other than being a regular paying customer. All opinions are mine personally and does not serve to be or claim to be an authority of any sort. I receive no monetory rewards or discounts from 100Yen shop (other than commercially available discounts for all customers) or any other companies or persons mentioned in this article.

BENTO #86 & # 87

Posting early this morning because #1 is driving the two sisters to school. She's got an early class so that saves me a trip.

#2 stays back till 3.00p.m. for Choir practice and so has two Bentos today. Hers is packed with Futomaki because she insisted for more. The blue break-time Bento contains her favorite Futomaki and two pieces of Gyoza from yesterday's dinner. There is some Gyoza dip in the 'car shoyu bottle'.

In the mustard colored two tier Bento, there is more Futomaki, another cheese tart from The Loaf, some Longan and three chocolate sticks. This time, I didn't forget the Oshibori. I wish I had more co-ordinated Bento sets and accessories but unfortunately they are too scarce to source locally and far too expensive to purchase over e-bay. Personally, I don't believe in splurging on expensive postage.



I think I'm doing pretty well with #3's daily Bento. She looks forward to it and is excited to help pack her food and even attempted to take this photo which I think is pretty good.

I'm really happy that she's bringing decent food to school to eat. It is just that mummy has to work a lot harder and put on many 'thinking caps' for menu ideas!!

#3's Bento is Futomaki laden with Japanese Kewpie Mayo and Sakura Denbu. She doesn't like it any other way. Whenever we lunch at any Japanese Restaurants, she would order 5 hand rolls with her specifications. Yeah! She knows what she wants, and it'll cost something like RM8 each! Same price as a California roll and far more expensive than my set lunch!! I try to avoid Japanese lunches when I'm out with her. Not worth it at all!


I added some chocolate sticks for just in case. #3 accessorized her Bento with the Bento strap, chopsticks and Oshibori.

I quipped - "Hey, you know how to use the chopsticks?" #3 replied - "Hehehe, just to make the picture look nice mah!" That's a 9 year old for you!

BENTO #83 & #84

I've been on an 'overdrive' mode over the weekend. Saturday night, we hosted a farewell party in our home for some of our senior youth members who are leaving for further studies overseas. Thank God it was pot luck and cooking was minimal for me.

Sunday morning, #2 had a Confirmands coffee morning at church. This 'food fest' was to raise money to fund their Confirmation camp leading to their sacrament of Confirmation next year. It's not so much for the monies raised but for the activity which brings the children to work together with their parents and with each other for the common purpose of the common faith.

I would have just sold sushi as I most often do for these fund raisers but with the recent increase in prices of Japanese ingredients, it was impossible make a decent margin from the effort.

I asked my mum if she'd help me make "Emperor noodles" (Wong Tai Meen - read in Cantonese) in Chicken soup for the coffee morning fund raiser.

A little insight on my mum - My late father says this of her "Give your mother anything "including a blob of sh*t" *joke* and she'd turn it into a gourmet dish"! My mum is an amazing cook and a terribly fussy one too.

She insisted on buying the chickens on Saturday morning itself and cooked and boiled the soup the whole day in preparation of the coffee morning on Sunday! Everything was FRESH and immensely delicious, as usual.

People kept coming back for seconds and 100 bowls were sold out on Sunday morning! It was exhausting and #2 quipped that 'hawkering' seemed like fun. At the end of the morning #2 added that perhaps studying for a Degree would better suffice!!! LOL!!!

After an exhausting morning and afternoon practice at Church, #2 had to go to Pudu for dance practice. On the way down, she said that she missed the bread from "The Loaf" owned by our former PM Tun Dr. Mahathir, which opened their first outlet in Langkawi and now at the Pavilion.

Hubs dropped #2 off to Pudu and zoomed off to Pavilion. So, we had tea at The Loaf and spent RM93 bucks on bread and cheese tarts!! Okay, I was a little greedy and I got carried away with all the nice looking pastries.

Hubs sat himself at a corner seat facing the main road overlooking a busy road. I ordered two cappuccinos and some pastries. First order RM49.

Then #1 calls hubs and asks him our whereabouts (she was out for an event with some friends and just got home). Hubs finishes his conversation with her and turns to me, asking me to 'ta pau' (take away) some 'plain' buns. Second order RM19.

Then I remembered that they had Cheese tarts, which incidentally I forgot to try the last time we were here. I went and 'ta pau' some. The girl behind the counter greeted me and told me the cheese tarts promo was buy 5 get 1 free. Being Malaysian and prone to greed I took up the promo. That cost me RM25.

Honestly, we enjoyed the cheese tarts and the pastries. It was delicious and it was worth every cent. Hubs teased #2 that she missed watching Dr. Mahathir tossing dough in the kitchen of The Loaf!!

Hahaha!!
Her reaction was classic - Yeah man! Dad!! *a little unsure* - looks in my direction - Huh!! You bluff me Dad!! As if Dr. Mahathir WUZ there!!! We all laugh and she had a great time munching her breads in the back of the car.

***********************************************
Monday morning today! Woke up tired and dazed. Never mind, I already did my Bento homework last night.

#3 was going to have left over butter cake with butter icing from the party and the last 3 chocolate chip cookies. I packed an apple in the top box. The apple slices were soaked in salt water - #3 reminded me so that the apples won't turn brown.


#2's box had a cheese tart and a pumpkin seed bread from The Loaf. I blanched some broccoli and cut carrots and packed them into a silicon cup.

The blue tub contains frozen lychee in syrup. This is to keep the contents cool so that the cheese tart won't go bad. You notice that I put a silver foil cup under the blue tub to contain the liquids from the condensation as the contents defrost. I didn't want the bread to get soggy.

Both bento ready to go. After I sent them to school, I realized that I forgot their Oshibori! Blame it on Monday morning blues!!

Plastic Bento boxes

If you look at my chatter box, you will notice a query that NEE has posted:
21 Jun 08, 12:31

NEE: Hi Bento great reading your posts. i love all the cute bento boxes. I have one by thermos for my hub and it has three little containers stack up on one another and it will keep warm.

21 Jun 08, 12:32

NEE: my constant worry is whether those containers are good for eat from. you have any idea?

I'd like to link you to the Institute of Agriculture and Trade Policy (USA)/Food and Health website for some references and information. Look at the topic Healthier Food Uses of Plastic and download the PDF article on Smart Plastics Guide. In there you will find information of the different types of plastics used for different products and purposes. There are also recommended safe plastics and explanation of plastic labels.

I have several of those 'keep hot' bento flasks from Thermos and Tiger - both made in Japan. Come to think of it, I've never questioned their plastic composition. I guess it's because they have such a long standing reputation in the market.

In one of my previous post on Bento shopping @ the 100Yen shop, I wrote about buying Bento boxes made in China from the 100 Yen shop and how I had called one of their managers to check on the plastic material used to make the Bento boxes.

From my conversation with them and the documents I was provided with, I found that the Bento boxes from Japan and China which they carry are made of PP: Polypropylene which according to IATP/Food and Health reports is safe to use for food products.

Read this article about lead in lunch boxes by Simple Steps. There are steps which can be taken like buying a lead test kit to make a swab test. I read somewhere that the swab test basically tells you if there is lead in the plastic but not the content level.

To be honest I have asked myself the same plastic composition safety questions many times. I am no expert but I read a lot about lead in plastics, chemicals in plastics that can contaminate the food and plastic/ containers that are wrongly used for microwave purposes etc.

It's scary to imagine that I may be giving my kids a dose of 'poison' daily in the process of a loving sacrifice in preparing all the lovely and delicious food for my kids. I've tried to do some research and made calls to some of these suppliers of Bento boxes which I have purchased. I've come to a satisfactory conclusion that I am contented with my findings and pray for the best.

Disclaimer: Please be informed that I have no affiliations with the 100Yen shop other than being a regular paying customer. All opinions are mine personally and does not serve to be or claim to be an authority of any sort. I receive no monetory rewards or discounts from 100Yen shop (other than commercially available discounts for all customers) or any other companies or persons mentioned in this article.

BENTO #81 & #82

Bento for #2 was free and easy this morning. I marinated the salmon last night and fried it this morning. There was some Kewpie Mayo in the little Hello Kitty tub and a wedge of black pepper Laughing Cow cheese in the same box.

In the other box was some blanched broccoli, butterfly cut carrots and a mix of peanuts and golden raisins.

#2's Bento and Oshibori ready to go.

This challenge to pack #3's Bento box is quite encouraging. This morning, I quickly spread some pizza sauce on a ready made pizza base and topped it with lots of cheeses. Put half a piece into the toaster and when ready, I cut it into eight slices. I packed six and #3 ate two slices for breakfast. She was very happy with her pizza!!

I packed some biscuits and roasted almonds in the other box and gave her some golden raisins.

The box of biscuits, almonds and raisins came back un-touched! #3 said that she didn't like them and anyway the pizza was enough food for break time. Oh! I took the liberty to finish them up - I thought they were delicious!

See #3's Bento and Oshibori all ready to go with it's fancy strap.

BENTO #79 & #80

I was thinking aloud last night about packing #3's Bento box. Being an extremely picky eater, I couldn't think of anything other than her favorite tuna sandwiches and Oreo biscuits. How does one survive only on such limited food???

Oh! And #3 likes her food hot and literally pukes when served cold food. Biscuits, sandwiches and sorts are okay but otherwise, her stomach just convulses and the food cannot or refused to be consumed.

#2 suggested that I spread the soft 'President herb cheese' on her sandwich. "Huh?? When did she learn to eat that, I asked". Apparently the two of them had tea together yesterday and #3 tasted the sister's cheese sandwich and enjoyed it. #3 even chipped in and agreed that I should pack the herb cheese sandwich for her. Viola!! Another item added to her consumption list! LOL!!!

You can see below, the blue dog oshibori box and #3's simple Bento. President Herb cheese sandwiches cut into tulips and elephant shape and her favorite peanuts. You can't see the elephant shape because I was in a hurry and didn't have time to place the items properly. There is even a sandwich cut into a shape of an apple (hidden).



Salad days are back! Yesterday, #2 specifically asked for vegetables. Nothing heavy okay mum? I finish at 2.00p.m. after a quick Choir run-through and I'll be back for lunch. Okie dokie...instructions taken, so it's just Asparagus spears, plum cherry tomatoes with baby corns. Lots of hard veggies and crabsticks with a little tub of salad cream in this traditional looking Bento box.

In the bottom box, I put in two pieces of fruit cake (laden with lots of Brandy) and some home made chocolate chip cookies.




Before I could grab a strap for the Bentos. #2 took hold of this white fluffy one and declared that she wanted it for her box. Sure thing, there are lots to choose from so no need to fight.

I used the matching clickety click Bento strap for the matching box for #3.

All at peace and off we went to school!!!