Bento Staples

Rice

Rice is a near-indispensible part of any meal in Japan. In fact, the word for cooked rice, gohan, is used as a synonym for 'food' or 'meal.' Bangohan means dinner, or literally, evening rice. So of course you'll find gohan in most bento boxes. Plain white rice, steamed in a rice cooker, is the baseline, but you may also find yummy fried rice. (Noodles are an alternative to rice, with chilled buckwheat noodles called soba being particularly popular in summer.) It may simply be packed in a layer of the box, or a compartment, or you may find it in the following form.

Onigiri

These are usually translated as 'rice balls' which is a little weird because I've never seen one that was ball-shaped. Disc-shaped, triangular, even capsule-shaped, sure, but no actual balls. A more accurate but less appetising description might be 'moulded/pressed rice.' Cooked rice, while still warm, is pressed into a shape, whether by hand or in a store-bought onigiri mould. Often there's an okazu ingredient mixed in with the rice, or concealed in the middle like the filling in a jam doughnut. Cutely shaped onigiri are popular in children's bento boxes - rice moulded into a bunny or teddybear shape, for example. The onigiri is picked up in the fingers like a cookie - it often has a strip of nori seaweed folded around it, like the wrapper on sushi rolls, to hold it by so that the rice doesn't stick to your fingers.

Furikake

This is not really an item in itself but a sort of accessory to rice and onigiri. Furikake are savoury sprinkles which add flavour and colour to the rice, and are sprinkled over the top or mixed through. Onigiri may be rolled in furikake to give them a tasty coating. Popular furikake ingredients are dried flakes of edible seaweed, shrimp or salmon, or toasted sesame seeds. You can prepare your own or buy shaker-top jars or individual sachets in Japanese food stores. Furikake is also great on hot rice with any meal.

Pickles

I don't mean just pickled gherkins/dills here (although if you like those, by all means put them in your bento), but all kinds of pickled vegetables and even fruit. Umeboshi, a pickled red plum with a tangy sour taste, is a classic, especially when served in the middle of a bed of white rice in imitation of the Japanese flag design. Again, try to find a Japanese food store in your area so you can sample the different kinds. You may get grossed out a few times but you may also find a new favourite, that's always my attitude to trying new food...

Curry

Although people are often surprised to hear it, the most common basic Japanese meal is curry (kare) and rice! The Japanese form of curry is based on the milder British adaptations of the original Indian dish, so while it's spicy, it's not the searing hot stuff they eat in Mumbai. It's a classic comfort food. It's also pretty close to liquid, so if you want to pack curry in a bento box, make sure it has a watertight seal, like a Tupperware lid, and include a spoon.

Bite-Size Vegetables and Fruit

Broccoli and cauliflower florets, celery sticks, cucumber slices or sticks, cherry tomatoes, baby corn, baby carrots or carrot discs (they look great cut into flower and star shapes - try a miniature cookie cutter from a baking shop), snow peas in the pod - they're all wonderful in bento. You could fold or nestle raw vegetables in a crisp lettuce leaf, for an attractive wrapper that can be eaten afterwards. Did you know that the ready-to-eat peeled baby carrots you buy at the store aren't actually baby carrots, but mature carrots chopped into sections which are whittled to shape by a machine? Have I shocked you? Fresh fruit is also a nice touch - mandarin orange segments (with the stringy pith removed) are cute, delicious and won't bleed juice in the box. Fresh summer berries are particularly well suited to the bento box as well as being a colourful representative of the season. Apple slices are not so suitable as they tend to become brownish and unappetising with exposure to the air, unless you rub lemon juice on their cut surfaces.

Eggs

Whether a simple hard-boiled egg (cut in half to show the colour contrast of white and yolk) or a rolled and sliced Japanese-style omelette (typically sweeter than a Western one), eggs are an 'eggcellent' (sorry) source of protein and very convenient in a bento box. Little quail's eggs have a certain miniature charm.

Glazed meatballs, quail's eggs, broccoli florets, apple slices, rice with cod-roe sprinkles. (Naomi Kijima)

Leftovers!

Of course, if you are really dedicated and virtuous you will get up early in the morning to cook everything freshly for bento. But if you are like most people you will often prepare an evening meal with an eye to including leftovers in tomorrow's packed lunches - cooking some extra chicken pieces, for example. To prevent monotony, they may be done up with some seasoning or trimmings to make them a little different. Or you may think, 'screw it, it's different enough that it's cold.' *^.^* Consult your own tastes and conscience! You may also like to make some favourite items ahead of time in a big batch (e.g. hardboil several eggs), and keep them in the fridge ready to use throughout the week.

Other Good Okazu

Chicken nuggets, croquettes of any kind, miniature/cocktail sausages, slices of teriyaki chicken or beef, meatballs, sushi rolls (maki), tofu puffs, sticks or chunks of cheese, chicken nibbles (wing joints), slices of cooked sausages, dim sum dumplings or pot-stickers (you can buy freezer packs in a Chinese supermarket, or indeed some mainstream supermarkets, and steam or fry them), miniature kebabs on cut-down bamboo skewers... You can also make sandwiches, yes, sandwiches, but with a cute bento twist... perhaps use mini-bagels as your bread (they can be cut in half to fit the box), or cut the sandwiches out using shaped cookie cutters. Circular crustless sandwiches are very bento. Try rolling the sandwich fillings up in a slice of bread, like a maki roll, and cut it into segments.

Browse recipe books, and use your imagination for more!