Bento
ben-tō • Japanese
A Japanese packed or take away lunch of rice, fish or meat, vegetables and pickles served in a box.
Bento are Japanese-inspired lunches that are arranged in aesthetically pleasing ways. They’re designed to be nourishing and healthy, but to also create excitement for the meal from the moment they’re opened.
The word bento came to Japan from the Chinese slang ‘便當’, which means ‘convenient’ and ‘convenience’. The word refers to both the packed meal and the bento box it’s served in, which is made up of several compartments, easily storing a variety of food separately and convenient to carry to work or school.
Bento are popular lunch choices in China, Korea and Taiwan as well. India also has their own version of the bento box, called a tiffin, where the different containers are stacked rather than compartments in a box.
Bento History
The first bento can be traced back to the 12th century, during Japan’s Kamakura period, where workers would take a cooked and dried rice dish called hoshi-ii to work.
And the first bento boxes were actually small bags. The wooden lacquered boxes we are more familiar with didn’t appear until the 16th century, when they became popular during hanami, tea parties and picnics held during cherry blossom season.
The food packed into bento has changed over time, and different types of bento boxes and meals were created for different events. This includes special bento specifically made to be eaten during intermission at kabuki performances, known as makuno-uchi bento.
Probably the most common type of bento box you can purchase is the ekiben, or ‘train station bento’. It’s said that the first ones were made and sold in 1885, and it’s still a popular choice for both locals and tourists when travelling long distance on the shinkansen.
Today, many different varieties of bento can be purchased, including ones with international food options. They range from nutritious and affordable from lunch time street vendors and convenience stores, to the more elaborate, colourful and sometimes pricey creations found in Japanese shopping mall food courts (which are an adventure all their own!). Some place even let you create your own bento from an assortment of prepared foods.
Types of Bento
However, traditional bento box meals are still typically made at home and taken to both work and school for lunch, where the focus is on the food to be both nourishing and beautiful.
There is also an art to creating the bento components, and many spend a lot of time carefully preparing the meal each night.
There are even competitions, where ‘bento arrangers’ are judged on how aesthetic their bento boxes are. These are popular among those who like to make elaborately arranged designs, which include bento featuring characters from popular culture, and those that are made to look like animals, building or even people.
Interested in learning more about bento? Here are some recipes and ideas to get you started:
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Japanese Pork Schnitzel Bento
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A Spring-Time Bento Perfect for Cherry Blossom Picnics
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Make your Lunch into a Work of Art
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Animal Kyaraben Rice Balls
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The Bento from ‘My Neighbour Totoro’
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FAQs, Tips and Tricks and Bento Food Safety
What kind of bento are you going to make?
