What is a Bento Box? Full Guide + Helpful Tips

You’ve probably heard the term, but what is a bento box, and why are they so popular?

What is a bento box?

Quite simply, a bento box is a Japanese-style lunch box.

The thing that makes them different from the lunchboxes you grew up with is that the foods are put directly into these boxes, with no extra packaging, and boxes typically have one to six compartments. Traditionally, each food storage box contains protein, starch, vegetable, and pickled vegetable or fruit for a well-balanced meal.

Oftentimes, bento box preparers use food to create cute scenes, so the recipient gets a nice surprise when they open it.

When were bento boxes invented?

Bento boxes have been around, in their most primitive iterations, for hundreds of years. The word comes from the Chinese word biandang, which means “convenient.” These small, single-serving size boxes are indeed a convenient way to have a healthy lunch. They are great for taking lunch to work, school, or even a picnic. Each box contains a mix of foods for a lunch that’s full of flavor, plus healthy and less expensive than going to the drive-thru on your lunch break.

Why do people use Bento boxes?

The reason they have gained popularity in recent years is that the pictures that make it onto the internet are oh-so-cute and make even the least home-ec inclined person want to spend an hour creating cute bento boxes for their kids. On a more practical level, because the overwhelming majority of people do not have time to make Instagram-worthy bento boxes every day, they are a great way to ensure you’re getting a well-balanced meal.

What foods should you put in a Bento box?

Bento boxes made in the traditional Japanese way use a ratio of 4-3-2-1 ratio which means that they include in each box:

• Four parts carbohydrate
• Three parts protein
• Two parts vegetable
• One part pickled vegetable or fruit

Of course, you can fill your bento box any way you want. The are no hard and fast rules that you must follow.

Boxes that have multiple compartments lend themselves to including a variety of foods in small portions. You can make leftovers look less “leftover” when they’re put into cute compartments. For bento boxes that have just one or two compartments, you can put in the fixings for salad or “stir-fry.” Just mix the contents of your bento box with your fork before you eat.

Examples of common bento box foods

Here are some foods that work great in bento boxes:

Proteins

• Hard-boiled egg (peel and cut in half)
• Cheese cubes or slices
• Sliced deli meats
• Tuna salad
• Hummus
• Egg salad
• Nuts

Starches

• Crackers
• Tortilla chips
• Pretzels
• Rice
• Noodles

Vegetables

• Peas in pods
• Carrot sticks
• Celery sticks
• Cucumber sticks
• Cherry tomatoes
• Mini bell peppers
• Lettuce or spinach leaves

Fruits

• Blueberries
• Strawberries
• Grapes
• Orange slices
• Apple slices (dip in lemon juice and then cinnamon sugar to keep from browning)

Nine bento box meal ideas

Not sure where to start with making a bento box? Use these bento lunch box meal ideas to get started:

1. Nachos:  Place ground beef or shredded chicken, tortilla chips, chopped tomatoes, lettuce, guacamole, and shredded cheese in the compartments.
2. Wraps: Make a wrap with sliced deli meat and lettuce or spinach leaves. Fill other compartments with sliced cucumbers, baby carrots, ranch dip, and mixed berries.
3. DIY sandwiches: Fill the box with small pieces of bread, cheese slices, deli meat, lettuce leaves, cherry tomato slices to make mini sandwiches.
4. Chicken and rice: Include cooked rice, chicken (sweet and sour or honey siracha are delicious options), and a side of broccoli and carrots.
5. Mini wraps: Make your favorite wrap and cut it into four or five pieces to fit in the box. Serve with mini bell peppers and apple slices with peanut butter dip.
6. Salmon and rice: Serve brown rice with salmon slices and vegetables on the side. Cooked greens (spinach or cabbage) go well with this meal.
7. Tuna salad: Place a portion of tuna salad atop a lettuce leaf. Add almonds and apple slices. For variety, use egg salad or hummus in place of the tuna.
8. Vegetarian bento: Serve roasted red pepper hummus with blue tortilla chips. Add a side of walnuts and dried cranberries.
9. Spaghetti and meatballs: Place a portion of marinara sauce on the pasta and add a few meatballs. Add some grapes and hard breadstick crackers.

Tips for making bento boxes

• Don’t leave excess space. While you shouldn’t pack more than what can be reasonably consumed, extra space will allow things to move around and mess up the aesthetics of the bento box.
• When making bento boxes for your child’s lunch, start adding the foods they know and love. Then, as they get used to bento boxes, start adding new-to-them foods. Eating them in small portions and from an adorable bento box is always a plus when introducing new foods.
• Don’t compete with the Pinterest parents. If you’re making this for your children, chances are, they don’t even know that the original bento boxes are very detailed and meticulously put together. So unless you’re objective is for them to win a “cutest lunch arrangement” award, a simple box is excellent.
• Bento boxes are a great way to give leftovers a refresh. For example, last night’s fried chicken can become the shredded chicken for a chicken salad bento box, and sliced tomatoes can be chopped up to go on nachos.

Start making bento boxes today

Brown bagging your lunch, bento box, or otherwise, is a cheaper and healthier alternative to most other options. Want to save time as well? Order your groceries through Instacart and get them delivered to your door by a personal shopper.

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