(See it on Flickr)


Contents: chicken wings, mashed potatoes, green beans with a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds.

OK, so I was really tired this morning and as a result I whipped together this quick bento that features an American cuisine. There were some leftover BBQ chicken wings that became the main course. The starch was mashed potatoes made out of flakes, so that didn't take very long. And then the green beans were zapped in the microwave. But, because I was able to whip up a quick lunch, I didn't regret hitting the snooze an extra time.

Features: BBQ chicken, rice, Japanese-style egg, broccoli, and Medjool dates.

This bento was really a treat. The BBQ chicken was simple: just brush on the BBQ sauce (a simple kind bought from the store) and grill on my Hamilton Beach Indoor Grill, flipping it over after 5 minutes to repeat the process. The Japanese-style egg just adds sugar and soy sauce and I wisk it all together until there's a few bubbles on top; I then cut it into strips instead of rolling it. I love bentos which include chicken on a bed of rice, which is probably why I love places like Yokohomo Rice Bowl and Panda Express (although I can't eat there often since they're food is usually fattening -- but mine isn't!).

Now to take a moment to mention the dates. I love dates. I grew up with dates, my whole family would munch on dates and mangos if we wanted a dessert and the inclination has stuck. Medjool dates are easiest to find and most grocery stores will carry them when they are in season. Recently, my university has been trying to promote a farmers market on the campus every Friday and one of the vendors totes farm-grown, organic dates!! I didn't have any money the day I first saw it, but next time, I plan on buying quite a few.

Features: chicken parmesan, broccoli, and mashed potatoes.

These were the leftovers from last night. The chicken parmesan is homemade! It took a while, and it was baked instead of fried, which also added to the time factor -- but it was delicious! Unfortunately, I just realized that I *ahem* seem to have lost the recipe. Don't worry, I'll find it again (it probably just got misplaced in the packing/moving) and once I do, I'll post it here. :)

Features: Garlic teriyaki chicken, rice with black sesame seed furikake, broccoli, carrots, and pig container of soy sauce.

*sniffle* It's so pretty! :wub: The garlic teriyaki sauce is Kikkoman's brand and I highly recommend it. I found it at Albertson's and I marinated the chicken overnight. It was delicious and went perfectly with rice. I simply grilled the chicken in my Hamilton Beach Indoor Grill, but the directions on the bottle suggest baking. Next time, I'll try that. ;)

Features: chicken ka-bobs, salad, Trader Joe's General Cho's as dipping sauce, Thousand Island dressing (not shown).

I grilled the ka-bobs in my Hamilton Beach indoor grill, and while they were grilling, I "painted" them with Trader Joe's General Cho sauce. But, just in case that wasn't enough, I added a little bit for dipping sauce. :) Note: I found the small bamboo skewers at my asian grocery store, and I made sure to soak them before grilling with them.

Features: Chicken egg fu yong.

This is a really quick dish to make and is even quicker if you use one of those pre-cooked chicken bags. I had some eggs to unload, so egg fu yong it was! :) I think this is a recipe that needs a little work, though, so once I've perfected it (specifically so it doesn't look so much like scrambled eggs), I'll post the recipe.

Features: stir fried noodles with peas and chicken and two pig containers of soy sauce (not shown).

Yeah, not very complicated today. I've been pretty lazy lately; I consider it getting "back into the swing of things." Anyway, it was really fast to make and took me something like 15 minutes. I simply threw in cooked noodles into the wok with peas and a package of pre-cooked chicken. The sauce was made from 1 tablespoon mirin, soy sauce to taste, 1 tablespoon sugar, and a touch of sesame oil.