11 February 2013

Bento 101 - What Can I Eat?

Maki, of Just Bento and Just Hungry, is putting together a Bento 101 course which can be found under the "bento courses" tag on Just Bento (linked for your convenience). It's a course for complete beginners, people who've never packed a bento lunch before; others may find it too simple.
Although I'm not planning on making bentos for myself for a while, I thought I'd jump in and get started with this anyway.


Proteins Carbs Combo Foods (p = protein, c = carbs, v = veg) Vegetables Fruit & Treats
Roast meats (chicken, beef) [H] Rice [H] Beef stew (p,c,v) [H] Stir-fry veg (various ingredients) [C] Homemade veg chips (potato, beetroot, parsnip)
Lemon chicken nuggets [H] Plain pasta Quiche (p,c) Various salads [C] Single fruits/fruit salad
Tempura prawns [H] Bread -- all types Homemade pizza (p,c,v) [H] Salted edamame Chocolate/pocky
De-boned BBQ ribs [H] Various grains (oats, wheat, barley) Honey + mustard chicken pasta salad (p,c,v) [C] Saag aloo [H] Various sweets
Cheese (all types) [C] Filled pasta (p,c) [H] Radishes Homemade cheesecake
Prawns [C] Lasagna (p,c,v) [H] Carrot Homemade fruit yoghurt/yoghurt smoothies
Nuts and seeds (moderation) Pasta bake (p,c,v) [H] Lettuce leaves
Seafood Sticks [C] Sushi bowl (p,c,v) [H - rice?] Peppers (mini/bell)
Tinned fish Soup (any of p,c,v depending on ingredient) [H] Mushrooms
Curry (p,c) [H] Corn (sweet/baby)

Foods that require cooking marked with a [C]; food that require an insulated container or reheated marked with a [H]

This will likely be added to in the future -- I actually have a huge list of 40(!) bento meal ideas (some of which are to be made specially, but most can be leftovers). I'll be posting those out in the near future once I've got a better idea of what can actually go with them.

Currently, these are the foods that are available on a regular basis in our household -- when I get more space I'll be looking to make some of my various bento meals.