Bento

No Snacks, no sweets, no seconds. Except on Days that start with S. Too simple for you? Simple is why it works. Look here for questions, introductions, support, success stories.

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NoelFigart
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Bento

Post by NoelFigart » Tue Jul 17, 2007 1:49 pm

I haven't been following the forum lately, so I hope I'll be forgiven if I bring up something that has been discussed.

Of course, a lot of the whole point of the No S diet is very sensible -- PORTION CONTROL!

I discovered something that makes it fun. No, you don't have to make things complicated, but it's kinda neat, nonetheless:

Japanese Bento boxes. This is what millions of Japanese people bring to work and school every day.

They fit in very well with the No S diet.

My bento measures 7x4x3 inches. Ver' small. (And the one I have is billed as a large one!).

Now, if you look up the bento blogs that are popping up, you'll note that these things are packed tight when you make a lunch for them. But there's NO WAY you're going over for portion control.


(And if you follow bento esthetics, you're almost guaranteed a healthy meal anyway because of the colorful fresh food you put in it).

No, it's hardly necessary to proper NoS. But it follows the idea well and is fun.

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reinhard
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Post by reinhard » Tue Jul 17, 2007 2:13 pm

What a great idea. A perfect fit for No-s.

I've actually eaten out of one of these bento trays at a local Japanese restaurant, but I didn't know what they were called or that they were portable (or such a phenomenon!).

Please post links if there's a particularly good bento blog or purchase link to a tray (I did some poking around on amazon but everything I found seemed a little large and formal).

Reinhard

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NoelFigart
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Post by NoelFigart » Tue Jul 17, 2007 2:24 pm

reinhard wrote:What a great idea. A perfect fit for No-s.
Please post links if there's a particularly good bento blog or purchase link to a tray (I did some poking around on amazon but everything I found seemed a little large and formal).

Reinhard
Your wish is my command, effendi :)

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Jammin' Jan
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Post by Jammin' Jan » Tue Jul 17, 2007 7:13 pm

We got into a discussion of bento on another forum, and I thought about buying one. Then I realized that I was already eating like that, but American style. My lunchbag, which I picked up at Borders, holds my little leftover dishes very nicely, and that is what I take to work with me. I really think it's a nifty way to pack a meal!

florafloraflora
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Post by florafloraflora » Tue Jul 17, 2007 7:38 pm

OK, I just ordered a box from Laptop Lunches. I had been coveting one of their boxes but I found it too confusing to figure out what to order. This post reminded me and I finally went and did the heavy lifting. There's no stopping me now!

kccc
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Post by kccc » Wed Jul 18, 2007 8:59 pm

What great timing - right before school starts, and we need to replace lunchboxes anyway.

A little pricey, but SO cute!

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NoelFigart
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Post by NoelFigart » Wed Jul 18, 2007 9:23 pm

KCCC wrote:What great timing - right before school starts, and we need to replace lunchboxes anyway.

A little pricey, but SO cute!
You can find them cheaper on ebay, and in Japanese stores if you live in a large city.

They're very small, though. Won't hold a sandwich unless it has been cut up. A classic Japanese bento is 4:3:2:1 Four parts rice, three parts protein, two parts veggies and one part sweet (but sweet in a bento really means fruit).

Astonishingly, they're filling!

florafloraflora
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Post by florafloraflora » Fri Aug 03, 2007 4:37 pm

NF, I just want to thank you for starting this topic. I've been having so much fun with my new Laptop Lunch box, and I'm eating a lot more healthily too. The little containers make it easy to eat tiny servings of a variety of foods, which I've found is really important to me for sticking to the No-S plan. I'm packing my lunch Western-style for now, although it might be fun to get some cherry-blossom shaped cutters and some furikake sprinkles to dress up my food in the future. Here are some sample menus:

Big Container 1: tuna sandwich on rye
Big Container 2: yogurt with blueberries
Little Container 1: spinach sauteed with red pepper and pine nuts
Little Container 2: a sliced peach, sprinkled with lemon juice to prevent browning

Big Container 1: leftover pasta with herbs (I didn't think this was going to work, but it did, beautifully)
Big Container 2: meat(less)balls (made with soy and mushrooms) and tomato sauce
Little Container 1: lima beans
Little Container 2: a small plum and a few dried cranberries

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NoelFigart
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Post by NoelFigart » Fri Aug 03, 2007 4:49 pm

florafloraflora wrote: The little containers make it easy to eat tiny servings of a variety of foods, which I've found is really important to me for sticking to the No-S plan.
Oh man, I hearya on that one. Variety is what does it for me, too! I feel a lot more satisfied and happier after a meal if it isn't a "one dish" meal.

This is a link to a pic of a representative lunch for me now that I'm doing bento.

http://noelfigart.livejournal.com/1342925.html

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Post by florafloraflora » Fri Aug 03, 2007 4:57 pm

NoelFigart wrote:I feel a lot more satisfied and happier after a meal if it isn't a "one dish" meal.
Yeah, and the compartments are also a reminder not to have a too-huge portion of any one thing.

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