Onigiri : Hiyoko Chick Yaki Onigiri

This is yet another version of onigiri. It's called yaki onigiri. For your information "yaki" means grilled. But you don't need a griller to make this, just a non-stick pan will do. You may need to be more delicate when making yaki onigiri, because the rice ball easily breaks apart. Don't move it around too much and please use Japanese short grain rice for this recipe (as it is holds together better). Remember this tip or you'll end up with a mess...*hehe*

Tenma Tsukamoto (School Rumble) boo-boo in the kitchen....

Yaki onigiri goes well with any sidedishes. The texture is crispy on the outside and soft in the inside. It requires a little more effort to make but the taste is worth it. Do try it for yourself! Yay!

Bento Project # 8: Ham & Cheese Flower Onigiri

I was in the mood to make onigiri (japanese rice ball) again this week. And I thought I'd make a simple one with ham and cheese filling. Normally a traditional onigiri comes with fillings like with umeboshi, grilled salmon or bonito flakes in soy sauce but today non-traditional fillings are also very popular. I also made a little flower decoration with the leftover ham and cheese to add cuteness to this onigiri. I used a plastic wrap to wrap the onigiri for easy handling and eating. Hope you like this recipe and remember to subscribe to my Youtube Channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/sakurapop21) to get the updates of my videos!



This post is linked to the cooking encyclopedia Foodista:

Bento Project # 7: Panda Rice Ball (Onigiri)

I really love to make rice balls (onigiri) cos it's so cute and easy to eat. I started to be a great fan of onigiri eversince after watching the anime, Fruits Basket. The girl character, Tohru Honda is really good at making onigiri.

Actually, onigiri can be decorated in many ways. This time, I decided to make a panda - due to a special request by one dear subscriber. I hope she'll like this ;-)

This post is linked to the cooking encyclopedia Foodista:

Bento Decoration : Little Red Riding Hood Egg

Hard boiled egg is really good for bento box decoration. Some people make like to chicken or chicks, some make daruma (japanes doll) others make panda etc... Since I've been reading too much fairytale lately, I've decided to create my interpretaion of the little red riding hood (akazukin-chan) - yes, using boiled egg.. Only few ingredients are required. If you don't have imitation crabstrick, try using ham instead. Anyway, hope you like it!

Bento Decoration : Sausage Art

Octopus sausage is a very common item served in Japanese bento box lunches. In this video, I created 3 tutorials - octopus sausage, heart sausage and mushroom sausage - for you to add that Japanese kawaiiness to your lunch box. It's really easy to make and not much ingredients are required. Try it out and let me know if you like it!

Bento Project # 6: Yakisoba Pan Bento

If you're a fan of japanese high school students anime , drama or manga you'll surely come across this food called the yakisoba pan (yakisoba stuffed in a bun).

Boy and girl sharing a yakisoba pan in a scene from Q.E.D Shomei Shuryo... how cute!

This recipe I've created is a simplified version of yakisoba - because I thought it would be hard for some of you to buy the special ingredients like yakisoba noodles or yakisoba sauce. So, I used spaghetti and a self made sauce. Please try it out. It's easy and delicious!

Bento Project # 5: Butterfly Sandwich Bento

This sandwich bento is super easy to make. You don't need to cook anything at all. It's an ideal bento to prepare when you are in a rush. In this video, I used jam for the filling. But you can try it out with different ingredients. Try it, I really had fun making this bento!

Bento Culture In Japan & Meaning Behind Bento Making

I found this nice video on Youtube. It really explains about the culture of bento in Japan and the reason for making it.

Bento Project # 4 : Kuma-chan Bear Bento

The fried rice for this bento similar to omu-raisu (japanese omelette rice) recipe. But most of the ingredients I've used are really easy to come by. Instead of bear, you can make other shapes as well.

Bento Project # 3: Nezumi (Mouse) Bento

This mouse face bento is so easy to make. It consist of baked honey chicken (not many ingredients are needed for this), some rice, cherry tomatoes and orange wedges. I used chocolate chips for the eyes and nose of the mouse. For the whiskers I used seaweed. It is really a convenient bento to make because the ingredients are easily available. Do try it and see!

Bento Project # 2: Rabu-Rabu (Love-Love) Heart Bento

Hello gals, this is the type of bento to make for the guy you admire at school or work. I used a paper stencil to make the heart. It's really easy and fun. Ofcourse you can make more dishes to go with this bento to make it more delicious.

So, may the guy you like go crazy for the bento like this...

Enjoy the lesson and good luck!

Bento Project # 1: Smiley Fried Egg & Octopus Bento

Guys and gals, you've gotta try tris out. This is a quick and easy bento to make. You can substitute boiled rice with pasta or noodles. It's so easy, you'll love it...

Bento Basics 2 - Basic equiptments you will need for packing a bento box meal

There are a LOT of cute and adorable bento gears out there. Therefore it is very easy to get sidetracked to buy the things that you don't really need *always happens to me*. Anyway, to help you out, here's a list of what I think is the the most common, basic and practical equiptments that you'll really need for making your own bento...

Bento Basics 1 - What is a bento?

Bento also called Obento (sometimes spelled Bentou)  is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. With the influence of Japanese culture, through anime, manga, J-drama and etc the trend of making bento is becoming more and more popular around the world.
If you always watch anime, you will notice that there are many reasons, occasions or excuses for preparing a good bento box lunch...

• School lunch box
• Is a must food during picnics, outings and sakura viewing (Ohanami)
• Foor for travelling (in a bus or train)
• And the most popular reason is for expressing love (girl x guy thing).

Never under estimate the power of bento...

Whatever the reason is, today the bento making craze is everywhere. Everyone wants to make their own bento box meal and show off their creativity. It's kawaii (cute) and fun to make, delicious to eat, cheaper than takeouts and can be healthier too (depending on what you put in your bento ofcourse).

Here is a good video from Howcast to give you the concept of bento making...