Bento Boxes

Tawniey

For years, I've had problems with portion control. From stuff that I've cooked myself to stuff that I've eaten at restaurants, I've always had a hard time keeping the food I eat in the right "serving size". While I've come a long way in the last year in terms of portion control, I'm going to try an experiment this summer.

In an attempt to get a better grip on what proper portions are, as in America they're SO distorted, I've decided to try an idea from out of the country. I'd like to try eating meals out of a bento box.
For those of you who don't know what a bento box is, it's essentially a Japanese lunch box that contains just the right amount of food for one person. They come in sizes based on whether it's for a male or female, and age range. They say that correctly packed, the milliliters of space inside the bento roughly equates to the number of calories the food inside contains.


Have any of you ever packed a bento box before? Or perhaps people with a broader understanding of nutrition can help to put into perspective the right carb-veggie-meat (or non-meat protien) ratio that these should contain.


Also-- If any one else wants to join in on this idea, let me know! From a support-network standpoint, we can all swap recipes and keep each other in check. Maybe also, from an experimental standpoint, it would help to collect data and see if this can help other people too.


Let me know what you guys think!

pixelish

I've never tried this before but it sounds wonderful! I'll need to look into it.

kaybelmore

I pack a Bento Box for lunch every day! I even have three different sizes depending on what I am portioning out. I've doing bento's for almost a year now and I love it!

They inspired me to learn to cook and have helped tremendously in my journey to be healthy! I've also tried my hand at making some artsy Kawaii (cute) style bento when i think I'm going to need my day brightened.

I think I'm pretty good with nutrition, and I would be more than happy to join a bento group or answer any questions Feel free to message or friend me.

Here's some of my fav bento pics.


Kawaii (cute) radish lady bugs w/ 1TBS hummus, i think that's roasted chicken in the BG there


Asian Food themed bento with Korean BBQ chicken, sesame/soy sauce spinach, onigiri (rice balls), and fresh veggies for color


My newest bento box, spaghetti squash "flowers", seasoned fiesta veggies, and pan seared tofu over greens

torygirl79

I tend to have a bento box once a week or so, although it's bought from a Japanese market stall

moepwr

Wow that food looks good! Interesting idea!

lakersfan4life

I pack a Bento Box for lunch every day! I even have three different sizes depending on what I am portioning out. I've doing bento's for almost a year now and I love it!

They inspired me to learn to cook and have helped tremendously in my journey to be healthy! I've also tried my hand at making some artsy Kawaii (cute) style bento when i think I'm going to need my day brightened.

I think I'm pretty good with nutrition, and I would be more than happy to join a bento group or answer any questions Feel free to message or friend me.

Here's some of my fav bento pics.


Kawaii (cute) radish lady bugs w/ 1TBS hummus, i think that's roasted chicken in the BG there


Asian Food themed bento with Korean BBQ chicken, sesame/soy sauce spinach, onigiri (rice balls), and fresh veggies for color


My newest bento box, spaghetti squash "flowers", seasoned fiesta veggies, and pan seared tofu over greens

brings me back to when i was a kid. nice job on the onigiri btw

gardenkitty

I know this discussion is old but does anyone reccommend a particular method for freezing sushi rice for later.

lilithsrose

When I use my bento box, I usually just use it for cold stuff. I put things like pickled eggs, meat & cheese rollups, olives, carrots, cucumbers, roasted chickpeas and trail mix in it.

Ginny218

search "using bento lunches" - there is a thread of us on mfp that use american stuff and asian bentos

kommodevaran

It sounds like the 21 day fix without the markup
If calorie counting and macros makes no sense to you, go for it

Gah, old thread