I am so super excited that my brilliant Bento box arrived! I enjoy packing it to send to school each day as it makes packing lunches and snacks so much easier!
So – brilliant Bento boxes seem to be taking households and anxious parents and lunch-packers by storm!
Carry on reading to find out everything you need to know about these amazing little boxes and how they can change your world…😉
What is a Bento box?
Bento boxes are originally Japanese and describe a way of packing food in different compartments within one box. The word Bento is derived from a Southern song dynasty term biàndãng, which means convenient. I think this is still exactly the purpose that they serve today!
They were originally used to store cooked rice and be able to serve it at a later stage as early as 1185. But from it’s humble beginnings, the Bento box has grown in popularity and is now common across all of Japan – and making it’s way all across the world as a convenient way to serve and store lunches.
Brilliant bento boxes are essentially designed to hold all the essential food groups in one box – dairy, grains, vegetables, proteins and fruits. Of course, the advantage of the modern-day society that we live in, is that people can take these great ideas and adapt them to suit their specific lifestyle!
Benefits of the brilliant Bento box
Less waste and individual packaging
The individual compartments in a Bento box allow you to pack different types of food without the risk of food touching each other – therefore reducing the use of single use plastic wrappings and containers – win-win! You can also often buy different number of compartment inserts for your Bento box – for example if you want to pack smaller or larger goods, you would use either a 3, 5 or 7 compartment insert, depending on which Bento box you have.
Healthy
You can place a variety of foods in the Bento box to offer a varied diet. Because the compartments are generally small, portion control is achieved easily!
Where to get yours
So many great options for Bento boxes are available:
BentgoKids Children lunchbox – available here
Omiebox Bento Lunch box for hot and cold food – available here
And…I haven’t forgotten about my South African blog readers…
Here are two links for ones available in South Africa!
Yumbox Panino Leakproof Bento lunchbox – available here and here (for SA)
My Crunchbox – available here (locally manufactured in South Africa)
(This is the box that I ordered- I like to support local where possible ☺️)
Also, Cloud+Co also has the most gorgeous accessories for Bento lunchboxes available here.
Places for inspiration for brilliant Bento lunches to pack in your box
Check out my Pinterest board for some great sources of inspiration! (And while you’re there, why don’t you follow along with me on Pinterest?)
And there you have it guys – the amazing world of the brilliant Bento box!
I am absolutely loving ours!
Is this something you would use, or already use?
PS: If the food quantities in my images look small – please bear in mind that I am packing lunches and snacks for my two-year-old daughter…I can’t wait to purchase Bento boxes for my boys so I can fill them to the brim! 😉
