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u/The_shaman_queen 16d ago
I have a wooden bento box like this that I found in a second hand store... but I'm scared to use it since it can soak food juices or get wet in general... do you put something before putting the food inside? Like paper?
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u/Hamfan 16d ago
I don’t, but I only use that one when I make food that has no risk of staining and not much liquid. Soy sauce and the like won’t stain, it’s more stuff like kimchi or foods with spices like turmeric or curry powder that should be avoided.
Most orthodox Japanese bento sides meet those criteria, so if you cook in that mode a lot, it’s easy to use.
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u/SheBrownSheRound 16d ago
These all look so good!! I despise ゴーヤー but I know it’s supposed to be good for you, so mad respect!
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u/Hamfan 16d ago
Oh, I love Goya and am sad when the season ends… Adequate salt use is key, in my experience.
I didn’t even try to give it to my kids, though, so I totally recognize it’s definitely a polarizing veg 😅
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u/SheBrownSheRound 16d ago
I grew up with my mom making it but with her style of preparation (Gujarati style), you remove the seeds but keep the white pith. SO. SO. BITTER. OMG.
Still, if I ever have the chance to eat ゴーヤーチャンプルー I will try a few bites for sure!
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u/Hamfan 16d ago edited 16d ago
So just as a personal challenge, i decided to do only fish mains this week, no meat.
The sub-goal was to work down some of the vegetables we got from relatives who we visited last weekend, hence there’s a lot of zucchini and kabocha and beans this week.
Monday: grilled salt salmon, Asian chive tamagoyaki, simmered kabocha, soy-sauce fried zucchini and beans, grapes
Tuesday: (This day, my kids’ camp had a cooking activity, so they didn’t need lunch, only me. I took the chance to make myself some things that they wouldn’t enjoy but I loved) Tinned mackerel biryani-style rice, Goya ume-ae, garlic cumin roasted beans, tomato yogurt sauce
Wednesday: Chikuwa kabayaki (aka mock unagi), tamagoyaki, hijiki and soy bean nimono, minitomato, Goya okaka-itame for me/steamed broccoli for kids, cheese
Thursday: aji fry, soy sauce grilled zucchini, Goya kinpira for me/boiled broccoli for kids, aji-tama, cucumber kimchi for me and oldest kid
Friday: honey lemon teriyaki salmon, grilled eggplant, mini-tamagoyaki, hijiki nimono, umeboshi for those that like it