We could not resist celebrating the romantic tradition of Valentines, but with a twist. It’s a whole year since we launched The Culture Vulture and last Valentines we delivered a decadent chocolate cake (made by the Leeds based Marvellous Tea Dance Company) to the deserving staff at the Leeds General Infirmary. This time around inspired by Leeds Blogger Mils Barker’s lip smackingly good ‘Not another brown bag lunch‘ we decided upon brightening up a special worker’s lot with a ‘beloved bento box’
So here’s how to enter! Nominate the person you think most delightful in the world (but works in Leeds and will be at work on the 12th February – Sorry the rest of the UK) in the comment box post letting us know their star qualities and why they should benefit from a bespoke bento box created by Mils just for them. (Specific names need not be mentioned in the case of crushes or secret squirrelness) Not only will they be surprised at their workplace but will also gain a whole bento goody bag to get them started on making their own special lunches, or yours if they love you back! We’ll pick the winner Monday 8th February and discuss dietary requirements then! Don’t dispair if you don’t win the lovely folk at Barnsley based Sushi Sushi will supply two runners up sushi making kits. Click here to whet your appetites
For those of you wishing to be enlightened here is more from Mili about the box of delights!
What is a bento box?
“Portion control meets nutritionally complete work of art”.
Bento box is basically a box that you put your food in. If you’ve ever been to a Japanese restaurant, you would be familiar with the plastic mock-lacquer box with compartments that your dinner arrived in. In my opinion (and many others) the hinomaru is the classic bento, freshly cooked white short grained rice with an umeboshi (red pickled plum) in the centre – representing the Japanese flag.
In Japan, bentos are as widely available as Mcdonalds for the lunch-on-the-run, from vending machines to convenience stores (kombini) and railway stations. The credit-crunched version of assembling lunch at home and bringing it with you to eat at work/school has long been part and parcel of the Japanese culture – just as a brownbagged sandwich is to the Western culture.
However, the style of bento that is gaining somewhat of a cult status worldwide are the bentos made for children. This is instantly striking, from the rice molded into adorable shapes like rabbits and penguins. Go a step further and you’ll find great charaben/kyraben (character bento) practitioners recreating whole scenes of computer games into boxes of edible goodness – from a scene out of Mario to Professor Layton! There are competitions in Japan where accomplished charaben artists churn out their most adorably cute creations; from anime characters made out of ham to a whole zoo and Hello Kitty disguised as a penguin!
What do you put in it? Does it have to be Japanese food?
Two words; ANYTHING GOES! There are no hard and fast rules on this – I ensure I incorporate all food groups packed tightly in a box . Traditional bentos usually follow the rule of 4 parts starch, 1 parts fruit/veg and 2 part protein – but this is by no means a be all and end all. I generally try to lower my carbs intake whilst upping my fruit/veg intake, making it more 1:1:1. A bento for me has to tickle my tastebuds and fill me up enough so I do not succumb to a packet of crisps or a bar of chocolate. Fabulous bento practitioner-turned-author advises JUST NO JUNK, whilst another accomplished bento practitioner advises that nothing raw should be packed, and always ensure you use an icepack in summer….nobody wants a spoiled lunch!
Japanese food definitely helps, especially those that are designed to be eaten at room temperature, i.e. rice balls. Again, no hard and fast rules, I have previously packed hummus & crudites. Olives works well, so does cherry tomatoes and mini cheeses (think babybel) Some of the more refined bentoists have turned plain cheese and ham sandwiches into magnificent work of art. The key is to keep each individual item small, that way you are able to add a wider variety of foodstuff.
Is it for one greedy person or for two to share?
That’s the beauty with bentos – and the addiction that many bento makers face with purchasing as many bento boxes as they can possibly find! The variety of shapes and sizes of bento boxes available is astounding, from plain flat plastic containers (i.e. tupperware style) to elaborate cedarwoor crafted ovals and Hello Kitty shaped plastic boxes. Personally, my burger-shaped bento box gets the most laughter when I reveal it at lunchtime .There are boxes out there designed for all appetites, from tiny 350ml containers for toddlers or a snack to giant picnic boxes (kouraku) catering for a family picnic.
The rule of thumb is bento lunches are generally made for one – I keep my boxes tiny (below 600ml volume) to keep a strict tab on the portion size, but the husband gets a man-sized non-cute 1 litre box. Another note; bento boxes comes in all shape and sizes, but generally the cute ones are on the small side, catering to children and adolescent girls!
If you were making a bento box of beauty for your most beloved what key ingredients would you include and why?
Lots and lots of colours! There is nothing more stunning than opening up a box at lunchtime and having a riot of colours exploding from a deceptively simple box. Healthy bento euthusiasts live by the colour rule; Red, Green, Yellow and Orange. This means alot of fruit and vegetables…….but rest assured, I am a self-confessed carnivore, so you won’t be stuck with a vegan lunchbox – unless you want to!
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I would love to nominate my mum for the receipt of the Bento Box.
She is amazing and works tirelessly for a job that she loves but where she constantly under-appreciated by her colleagues. She has had a tough couple of years (sob sob story of my father leaving her) and has somehow found the strength to continue by throwing herself into her work and her family. I love her to bits and I would love for her to receive an anonymous gift so she feels loved in return.
She’s a veggie btw so would love the fresh veggies that come in this beautiful boxes! oh and she works in South Leeds.
Thanks! X
I would like to nominate Jane Earnshaw. She is the festival director for I Love West Leeds and she totally rocks. She works so hard, she brings such fantastic ideas and energy to everything she does but has not one ounce of ego in her. Everyday she amazes me. While most people’s default is to say ‘no’, hers is to say ‘yes’. She is no pushover however! She’s just one of the most remarkable people I have ever met. I think it would be lovely if she got the bento box because she gives so much to other people. It would just be ace for her to get spoilt for a change.
I would like to nominate Richard Ashby who works at the University of Leeds.
Rich is very passionate about all things Japanese, with an encyclopedic knowledge of obscure Japanese films and video games.
He also loves bento food and has been known to eat eel on occasion.
He is also a fabulous husband – it would make his Valentines day and turn lunch making into a work of art: http://bit.ly/kPX7f
Hello 🙂
My best friend Sally really deserves this delicious, wonderful treat! Not only is she my best friend but she is my amazing work colleague too.
She has helped me out and been there for me so many times I have lost count! She is there to support me when both work and life get nuts.
She is beautiful on the inside and out (something that she doesn’t believe because she is stupidly modest), selfless and caring.
She is the best person you could ever hope to have as ‘some one that has always got your back!’.
Please please make her day with this ever so special treat!
Chandy x
I would like to nominate my lovely boyfriend Roger, who works at the University of Leeds.
He is my best friend and soul mate and I couldn’t imagine life without him. We met at Leeds Festival almost 6 years ago and he has brightened up my life since.
He has recently got into cooking and his next project is sushi making. I know he would love a bento box lunch and would inspire him in his sushi making!
I want to nominate Phill Kirby. He will need a vegetarian box as he is lovely and wont eat animals. I think he deserves to have his lunch made as he should have a rest from all the fabulous cooking he does. Also Phil likes to tweet and making lunch just wastes his valuable tweeting time.
Aww, I’d like to nominate Katie. Even though she does eat animals she occasionally stoops to partaking of the odd poorly cooked, legume based comestible and manages to be sweet about her critique. She certainly deserves her lunch delivered as the last time we met she was on her way to a night shift at the hospital with nothing more than half a KitKat for sustenance . . . or was it a Twix? Anyway, she should have better. I’m sure if she did win the Bento Box she would wax lyrical about the gastronomic delight on her wonderful blog. Katie also loves to tweet almost as much as she loves to eat, so I can’t wait to hear what she’d make of the food. It would be a sheer waste to give it to anyone else.
Oh how sweet of you to nominate moi! xxxxxxx
Another nomination from the University of Leeds. Gosh we’re a lovely bunch.
I’d like to put forward my fiance Richard who late last night put together a delicious lunch for me because I had a headache and couldn’t face it. He’s a great cook and one of my favourite adventures was when we made beautiful sushi together (not a euphamism). He’s a big fan of Japanese films and food, loves seeing the creations on the Epicute website and was blown away by the amazing bento box created by Luxirare (check it out at http://luxirare.com/bento-box). In fact I’m going to point him to the notabrownbag website as soon as this competition is over!
IT is frequestly a thankless task, and Richard often works extra (unpaid) hours to ensure people are not left without a usable computer. He’ll usually just grab a plain ham sandwich for lunch and I always feel that he deserves something more fun and flavourful after all the hard work he does. Our “packed lunches” are usually leftovers or sandwiches – tasty, but not a special treat.
If he wins a bespoke bento I know it will inspire him to make more of his own lunches and to treat himself once in a while. Afterall, he deserves it.
Thank you (and fingers crossed!)
Emma
I would like to nominate my stunning, georgeous boyfriend who works @ Lloyds Banking Group in the centre of Leeds. He adores japenese food and sushi is a particular favourite of his. Dave cooks me a wonderful 5 course meal every Saturday night without fail, he is so fab. He would really appreciate a Bento box and it would be well deserved.
Hope he wins !! x
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I would like to nominate Kim Lofthouse who works for Yorkshire Dance on the edge of the Leeds cultural quarter in Quarry Hill. She loves all things Japanese, and has even made attempts at learning to speak Japanese so that we can have mini-conversations (I took Japanese lessons at uni and loved it and we do watch a lot of anime!). She has recently developed an interest in Japanese food and the health benefits of the Japanese diet and even plans to start making her own bento boxes sometime soon-ish!
She works damn hard in her role helping to boost youth dance in Yorkshire and is currently running around like a mad thing trying to organise a big regional event in March as part of this so she’d love to receive an fantastic foodie gift to cheer her up in the midst of event management hell (& inspire her own bento making).
Above all, I think she deserves this for being the most fantastic partner any man could ask for and for brightening up every day for me.
I would like to nominate my husband Nick who works from home in Pudsey. We’ve been married for over 16 years and in that time I’ve probably only made food for him a handful of times. He used to be a head chef and won’t let me in the kitchen – I tease him that I’ve been deskilled.
He works so hard, is incredibly creative (he’s in a band and he works in branding/copywriting)but the main reasons that he should get the bento box are:-
1. He’s always doing stuff for other people – me, the kids, friends, family
2. He cooks a lot, and brilliantly
3. He deserves to be spoilt
4. I love him
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I’d like to nominate my wife Kirsty, who works at the Civic Hall in Leeds.
This time last year we were living in the midlands, then all of a sudden I accepted a job up here in Leeds. She managed to find herself a new job, coped all by herself for several months (without me to cook her dinners!), and is now settling into Leeds and picking up on her part time learning which I rather disrupted.
Winning the bento box would give her a great big boost and go some little way to show how much I appreciate her!
I’d like to see Rob’s wife win. I’ve moved around a lot so can relate to how difficult it can be. Sounds like she’s done well to adjust and this would be a great surprise perk-me-up.
I’d like to nominate Sallyanne McCrory who’s recently started her own business customising clothing in South Leeds. She’s got no fear, is always full of energy and has a great talent. Plus she agreed to make me a hoody with a stencil of my dogs head on it and didn’t think I was mad. I can imagine her sowing with one hand munching from the Bento box with the other, whilst listening to drum n bass full blast!
well i was the winner of this beautiful box, and it looked and tasted amazing! everything i put in my mouth i was saying “wow, how does this taste so good?” – even the brocolli tasted fabulous (seriously, it’s the best i’ve ever eaten!)
i’ve saved a bit for rob, because he was lovely enough to nominate it for me, but it keeps looking at me and saying “but you know i’m lovely, why won’t you eat me?”
and i just want to say thank you to those who voted for me to win. almost as good as my box (it was too yummy to be bettered) was the fact that other people were saying they’d been through the whole up-sticks-don’t-know-anyone thing, and come out the other side. and that meant a lot, ’cause it has been hard, but i’m very lucky to have a lovely husband and now a lovely box!
This is an absolutely fantastic round up of how bento boxes are really used! I also like that you caveat-ted anything goes with “no junk”. There is just something about a bento though that inspires you to eat healthier.