A Fantastic method to pack for lunch on the run is using a Bento box. For colourful meals with well-balanced nutrition that are incredibly convenient for work or school, choose a variety of helpful ingredients. The finest aspect? They frequently don’t require heating. Therefore, all you need to do is open the package, eat, and have fun.
Make five different kinds of food
The first step is to have a rough idea of what you want your work to look like. Assume that this is only the best possible version. You would want to include 5 different kinds of food in your bento box.
- Carbohydrates: This face to satisfy hunger. Consider packing multigrain bread, rice, quinoa, or pasta.
- Mains: Proteins, including tofu, fish, salmon, and lean meat.
- Sides: Items made with vegetables, tofu, eggs, or mushrooms. Green beans, potato salad, and peas are good options.
- Fillers: Add on colourful ingredients to make the bento more vibrant, boiled egg, cherry tomatoes, and blanch broccoli.
- Fruits: Place them in a different container or inside the window box. You can include oranges, berries, apples, and grapes.
Bento meal prep
And attractive bento doesn’t just happen; you have to work for it. The question then becomes when and how to complexify this effectively. Here’s how:
- Prepare extra food and keep it cold. People usually make extra when they make a dinner that can be frozen. Any leftover food can be frozen for later use or warmed and added to the following day. I suggest that preparing more is far easier than creating a fresh dish from scratch. When packing the food, remember to date the container. Food typically keeps in the freezer for 2 to 4 weeks.
- After blanching, freeze the vegetables. When you have five minutes to spend in the kitchen, you can blanch veggies, such as corn, broccoli, asparagus, and green beans (typically while making dinner). Put the cooled, unadorned veggies in the freezer. The Frozen veggies can be packed straight into the bento, or they can be thawed overnight in the refrigerator and then quickly pan-fried or dressed with sauce or dressing in the morning. These colourful and fresh-looking blanched vegetables make a fantastic filler. These fillers stand out and enhance the lunch box’s appearance because main dishes are often brown or white.
- Use frozen foods from the shop. You can keep frozen vegetables in your freezer at all times when your inventory is running low or you are developing your frozen meals prep, it is useful.
Tips for Bento Packing
- Use silicone cups that are both microwave safe and colourful. They are the simplest method for reheating, packing, and portioning food so that it doesn’t stick to one another. Additionally, they give a lovely splash of colour to bento boxes. It makes them a more enticing lunch option, especially if you don’t have any colourful vegetables.
- Pack large, heavy dishes first. The largest item that usually fills the bento box is the main course. That should come first, then the sides or dishes in a silicone Cup. Vegetable fillers like broccoli and cherry tomatoes can be used to fill in any gaps.
- Tightly pack. If not, the dishes would be moving up and down, or left and right. You wouldn’t want that.
- Drain the liquid. It’s possible that the liquid will contaminate another dish. It’s also preferable for food safety because the liquid may cause the food to spoil more quickly.
Conclusion: 5 crucial points
I hope this article has been a little helpful for you. Here are five key points to remember.
- Make a 5-food plan that includes fruits, fillers, sides, main dishes, and carbohydrates.
- Prepare vibrant lunches that not only you will love but also your children will enjoy.
- Utilise the food that was left over from the last meal. Never forget to prepare extra food to freeze.
- To make bento without worry, stock up on food in the freezer. In a pinch, use frozen foods from the store, such as frozen vegetables or meats. Restock, regularly check, and arrange the goods.
- To prevent the boxes from mixing up, tightly pack the bento boxes with food.
Avoid trying to create the ideal bento all the time. You are a human with other important things in your life. Cooking a meal for the family is not the only thing you should be worrying about. Make sandwiches 2 days a week at first, and then the other 3 days.