Bento for Beginners

Book excerpt: Think inside the box--the beginner's guide to tasty bento boxes Easy, tasty, and healthy are three great aspects of any good meal. Combine them all together--in an easy to-go box--and you have the beauty of bento. In Bento for Beginners, you'll learn how this Japanese culinary art can help you build 60 appetizing, well-balanced lunches that can be taken just about anywhere. In addition to recipes, the book is filled with tons of tips and tricks on streamlining prep time, how to improve the storage life of your ingredients (without using preservatives), the right containers to use, and what foods make the best (and easiest) fusion dishes. There's so much to savor in these to-go treasure boxes. Bento for Beginners includes: Best of both worlds--Enjoy classic homemade Japanese foods as well as staples from Western and American cuisine. Off-the-shelf--Create lunches you'll be excited to eat using easy-to-find ingredients available at the grocery store. Save money--Put an end to spending $5 to $10 a day on lunch--the average cost of a filling homemade Japanese bento is about $1.85. In the world of bento books, this one can take you to tasty new heights.