What is “Bento” Like?

Students eat school lunch in the class room at Japanese elementary schools. There may be times when students individually bring homemade bento on special occasions such as Field trips/Excursions and Sports day. What kind of bento do Japanese families prepare? Below is some information about typical bento and where to find some items for packing bento.

What Kind of Bento Do Students Bring to School?

A typical Japanese bento has rice, a main dish, and side dishes. Rice is sometimes formed into onigiri (rice balls in triangular or bale shapes that may contain different fillings or wrapped with seaweed). This type of bento provides your child with nutrients such as carbohydrates, protein, and minerals. Fruits are often included as desserts. Besides rice, sandwiches or noodles are also common in bento.

Bento is normally eaten cold, so it is made with the foods that taste good when eaten cold. It is important to heat the ingredients well and let it cool down before packing the bento to prevent food poisoning. Food that will spoil easily including raw food should not be used for bento.

Notes about Bento for Elementary Schools

Be aware that snacks such as packed juice, jelly, potato chips, and crackers are not allowed to be included in bento for school.

What is “Kyaraben”?

“Kyaraben” comes from character (kyara) and bento (ben), and is unique to Japanese culture. It is a type of bento containing food decorated to look like cute characters (from anime, etc.). There are various recipes for “kyaraben” available on the internet. Although “kyaraben” is a fun to look at, there are some concerns about it, including sanitary concern, due to its materials being touched by hands a lot during preparation. It is also time consuming to prepare. It is not necessary to make it.

How Do You Bring Bento to School? Where Can You Buy Bento Items?

Bento is prepared in a bento box to take to school. It is common to use a reusable bento box made of plastic, aluminum, wood, or bamboo. These reusable bento boxes can be found at 100-yen stores like DAISO, shopping malls like AEON, or online stores (Amazon, Yahoo! and Rakuten).

The other bento items such as divider cups and food picks to use in bento boxes are also available at 100-yen stores like DAISO and supermarkets.

Utensil sets including chopsticks and forks can also be found at these stores, as well as hand towels and bento carrying bags. Shop according to your needs.

The information above is based on the typical bento prepared in Japan. What matters most is to make a bento that your child enjoys, and that it can be prepared without taking too much effort, like by using leftovers.