Why Bento?

Why bother with bento? Seems like a lot of trouble, especially with all that decorating. Not to mention the portions are so small. Plus, it's a bit "weird" to boot.

These are the questions that I come across the most, so I'll answer them in order.


Why bento?

I chose to bento because of three main reasons. First of all, I'm of Asian descent. That doesn't mean that bento is somehow in my genetics. It's just to explain that I've been around bento more than others may have and the sizing works with what I eat, which I'll explain later. Secondly, I'm diabetic and overweight and know that my main weakness is portion control, which bento-ing helps to control. I've actually lost 6 pounds so far. Lastly, I'm on a budget and find that sticking to an Asian diet helps me control spending. This is because all meals revolve around rice, which is a really inexpensive staple. I think I go through a 15 bag of rice each month, which costs me around 19.00.

Seems like a lot of trouble, especially with all that decorating. 

Decorating can be troublesome, which is why I don't bother with it. Most of the cute little cartoon characters are done by those who have children. I don't. Or they're embraced by those who have a really artistic soul. Mine isn't. However, I do like things to be aesthetically pleasing, which is why I try and stick to a colorful bento which, in turn, helps me keep my diet healthier as most of the color comes from my fruit and vegetable choices.

The portion sizes are so tiny!

I see this a lot. Even when I purchased my Lock and Lock bento from Amazon, all of the negative reviews focused on one main aspect - the size. Most found it too small, but that's because they were looking at it in the terms of not being able to fit certain non-traditional bento foods, such as sandwichs, or are use to a diet where the carbohydrate portion is the same as the meat, which means that once you fill up one tier of the box, the remaining divided tier does look too small. With the first scenario, you can end up with a lot of empty space, thereby definitely ending up with hunger pangs later in the evening. The latter situation is just a reflection of what we mistakenly attribute as a single portion.

Bento boxes are measured in ml. Each ml roughly represents a calorie, if fully packed. So though the box might look small, your average 5-600 ml bento can equal out to 5-600 calories for the one meal.

It's weird

Bento is growing in popularity. However, it's still a bit odd in smaller, less metropolitan areas. I live in the South and have gotten more than my fair share of odd looks and people asking me about what I'm eating and grimaces or "oohs" depending on the answer. I do most of my eating in my workroom and away from prying eyes.

An added bonus is that most of my lunches don't require reheating, so no long lines at the microwave.  ;-)


So there it is. I guess the final question might be "why blog?" Well, I've been so inspired by others that I wanted to create a visual reference of my own. Maybe people will get inspired. Maybe it will serve as a cautionary tale. LoL. Either way, it's just for my own enjoyment.