Today’s bento was “Typhoon Bento”! Not the one that crashed on Taiwan last week, but the next one which veered onto Japan today!
I can assure you that the Missus was “pretty” grumpy!

In Summer I very often get these cold noodles/”men-ramen-soba” bentoes. I can keep the in the fridge at the office and eat them chilled.
Very much appreciated in these hot days!

Today’s was mad of ramen first boiled then cooled under running cold water. They were topped with finely choppe veg, pieces of lettuce, boiled shrimp, home-made chicken ham, Soft boiled egg seasoned withblack sesame seeds and steamed edamame.

Here’s a side view!

I was provided with “men tsuyu/cold noodles stock soup) to add to the noodles. I added some dressing from the bottle kept in the fridge.

Great dessert for once: Fresh “nashi/Japanese pears”, figs and blueberries!

I’ve been asked a lot of questions about my origins and family recently.
I will include a few pics of the (surviving) family from time to time to give you an idea of my (very normal) roots!

The Tricolour (unintended!) Picture taken inside my Dad’s (big) home in Givry, Bourgogne, France:
Andre, my Dad (86 years old)
Myself (60 years old)
Francois, my second younger brother (52 years old)

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Today was clear and bleeding hot, but contrary to Jenn might think, the Missus came up with the comment this morning: “Kyo wa, te-nuki bento da!/Today, lazy bento!”
I know better than to argue. It is the best way to provoke the Missus into a little more work she had intended first!

She boiled potatoes, cool then under running cold water and drained them before adding dressing, beans salad and choppes veg to them.
She added red and yellow mini tomatoes from Shizuoka, soft boiled egg, lettuce and olives before closing the box.

For extra garnish, she deep-fried chicken, one plain and the other with black sesame seeds. Lemon for extra seasoning and lettuce to wrap them in.
Red cheddar cheese and red grapefruit for dessert.

Not bad for a lazy bento!

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Monday!
For once it was not raining this morning, meaning that the Missus was in a fairly good mood and accepted my requests for today’s bento!

“Today’s bento might be a bit small. Is that ok?”
“No problem!”. Actually it looked as there was plenty.

“How many musubi/rice balls do you want?”
“Three will be enough!” (I know how big they come…)
“I include dry nori/seaweed in a separate pack for you to wrap them in!”
“Fine!”
“Three different kinds: one with sweet seaweed, one with minced red cucumber pickles and one with salmon furikake/seasoning powder!”
“Very fine!”

“As you requested, I put edamame tamagoyaki! Is that enough?”
“Sure, as I have already eaten two pieces!”

“As for the garnish, gyuniku saikoro/beef dices, beans salad, mini-tomatoes and celery!”
“Perfect!”
“For dessert, nectarine!”
“Thank you so much, dear!”

I wonder how long this fine weather will hold,…

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Since my new Friend Marya has decided to try and make bento for her husband, expect Japanese bentos from two different Foodbuzz members in Shizuoka!

The Missus came up a totally different type of bento today: “Hiyajiru/冷汁/Cold Soup”!

She first prepared a soup with konbu/seaweed stock to which she added Japanese spices and all kind of fresh vegetables including tomatoes, okra, cucumbers and so on. To coll it down quickly she added ice and let chill while she prepared the rest.

She prepared two large musubi/rice balls seasoned with sesame and I on’t know what (secret) and let these cool down two.

She then steamed goya stuffed with chicken paste.

I put the whole bento in the office fridge first thing.
When I took it out for lunch, I first open the cold soup box which was perfectly chilled by then.

I put the rice balls in the soup. With a spoon I broke them and ate them with the soup.

As for the “salad” I used the miso-pickled soft boiled egg to seaon the chicken-stuffed goya the Missus had cut into slices.

Very good cold bento for this very sultry summer!

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It has been raining for a full week now, and apparently we are in for another week of it.
That certainly does not put the Missus into the right mood, but she somehow managed to prepare my bento this morning after a lot of grumbling!

It was simple but healthu and plentiful (actually she had warned me not to take pics….):
The musubi/rice balls wer mixed with “ume kake/pickle plum seasoning powder and wrapped into fresh shiso/perilla leaves.
The Missus added “chikuwa/fis paste rolls stuffed withe fresh cucumber, fried kinpira including konyaky, carrots, beans and seaweed, and som Renaissance tomatoes grown in Kakegawa City.

As for the salad, it consisted of a bed of chopped veg, some home^made pickles onions, smoked salmon and a soft-boiled egg.

I must admit it was very satisfied in spite of all the grumbles!

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Yesterday’s bento was typically Japanese in concept and ingredients.
The Missus tried to make it more “stamina-like” as they say in Japan, but at the same time, keeping the calories in check.

The “musubi/rice balls” were of two types: one with sweet konbu/seaweed” the other with “sweet umeboshi/pickled Japanese plums”. All balls were wrapped in “shiso/perilla” leaves.

As for the garnish, the Missus aded “chikuwa/fish paste tubes” filled with fresh cucumber.
Home-made cucumber pickles were also included.

Sweet and sour chicken “dango/balls” she had coated with black sesame seeds beforehand.

And of course “tamagoyaki/Japanese omelette”!
Mini tomatoes for the Vitamin C and plums (not pictured) for dessert.

Bewteen you and me, I felt pretty satisfied!

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When the very hot days of summer come, the Japanese consume a lot of eel for the stamina they are losing through the enormous amount of sweat.
The Missus thought it was about time to take care of my stamina!

The accompaniment cosisted of boiled egg later marinated in soy sauce and sprinkled with black sesame seeds, home-made pickled mini-melons and local tomatoes (the yellow ones from Shizuoka City, and the red ones from Kakegawa City)

The Missus had bought the broiled eels the day before. The technique is to “soften” them with tea, before putting on top of steamed rice with chopped shiso/perilla leaves, home-made cucumber pickles and white sesame seeds.

The salad was marinated vegetables. The Missus first grilled the aubergines/egg plants, sof red pimento and okra and the marinated them (secret…) in the fridge overnight.
As I know that she has made a big batch them, I’ looking forward to eat more tonight with some cold sake!

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I think I can safely assume that today’s bento is of the “healthy type”!
Plenty of vegetables and more as you will see!

The Missus first prepared konbu soba from Shiretoko. Shiretoko is a great UNESCO World nature Heritage in Northeastern Hokkaido we visited last year. They are famous for their knobu/seaweed and a derivated products such as the konbu soba we brought back. They are green and might look like tea soba, but they aren’t. Extremely healthy!

On top she placed hand-broken lettuce and shiso/perilla leaves, home-pickled mini lemons, home-pickled myoga and onions, pickled ginger, red and yellow tomatoes from her family’s garden, thinly cut cucumber, boiled shrimps, boiled egg marinated in soy sauce, and black olives.

She provided me with “mentsuyu/めんつゆ/cold stock soup for the soba. You just pour them on top as it goes well with the veg, too.

And for dessert red grapefruit, mini kiwi and blueberries!

Simple, tasty and healthy!

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The Missus felt a more grumpy than ususl today. What with my recent antics at cricket and my busy schedule, she feels like a mid more than a partner….

She was in the mood to make something too fancy and had to think about her own lunch.

The main dish consisted of cold ramen boiled and lightly seasoned with a little sesame oil and chopped thin leeks. On top she placed pieces of lettuce, thinly chopped carrots, cucumber and string beans, thin slices of pork, first lightly boiled then seasoned with gomadare/sesame dressing, sweet ammera rubbins mini tomatoes and home-made cucumber and aubergine pickles.
The was first soft-boiled then marinated in soy sauce, cut in half and served sprinkled with black sesame seeds.

Her is a side-view!

I was provided with men-tuyu/めんつゆ ascold stock soup for the ramen.

Simple and tasty dessert with South African grapefruit and Japanese blueberries!

I left the whole in the office refrigerator until lunch, making a “cool”/refreshing lunch!

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Back to some rice at last! I must confess i eat more rice than the Missus who is obsessed with anything in the shape of pasta or noodles!

The bento was definitely adult-size (or hungry high school stdent-size!)

The “musubi/rice balls” consisted of fresh syeamed rice mixed with very tiny pieces of red cucumber pickles and umeboshi/Japanese pickled plums, the whole wrapped inside a shiso/perilla leaf.

The garnish consisted of meat rolls: boiled string beans rolled inside cheese, bacon and chicken, the whole fried with soy sauce and I don’t know what (?). Succulent with the French cornichons and the minuscule and very sweet Ameera Rubbins tomatoes exclusively grown in Shizuoka Prefetcure!

Naturally some feshly-made tamagoyaki/Japanese omelette (beware of the cheap article sold at markets wrapped and all. Thay are full of sugar and preservatives!).

The salad, a very simple affair, consisted of cress (Shizuoka-grown), walnuts, kiwi and American dark cherries!

Alright, I reckon the Missus worked hard on that one!

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Apparently as far as the Tuesday’s bentoes are concerned, the Missus has turned into “Sandwich mode”!

Now, for the greens, she had come with the interesting notion of a veg sticks dip with celery, boiled asparaguses, cucumber and red radishes (and their leaves). One half-boiled egg for the balance and mayonnaise/mustard dip.

The sandwich, once again, was a big affair.

As for the filling, she first fried duck confit, then potato sticks in the remaining fat and inserted them in the French bread (soft type) with lettuce, cassis mustard and French conichons.

This time she didn’t forget the dessert: Japanese cherries!

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Mondays, for all the Missus’ grumpiness, see typical Japanese bentoes coming my way! Weekends mean busy days at work at my other half works for an orthodontist, meaning that most patients visit the clinic on weekends.
Although I did cook some tasty cold pasta and seafood salad for dinner last night, The Missus hadn’t forgiven me for not checking the wine avaibility!
A back massage this morning did some good in re-establishing a modicum of peace, though!

The main dish did take some work to do:

The rice was steamed with red miso-flavoured konbu/sweet seaweeed mix, making for the unusual colour of the musubi/rice balls.

The Missus’ specialty: Japanese-style (twice) deep-fried chicken with deep-fried renkon/lotus root chips (with some lemon handy).

Homemade pickles: Mini-melon with salt-preserved cherry blossom.

The salad was a very simple affair: lettuce and boiled string beans, “grated” carrots, mini tomatoes and walnut (was the last for dessert?)

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After yestreday’s small tour de force, the Missus wanted to take a break and make things simple!

I think I can qualify today’s “bento” as “American/French Lunch”!

The reason is the enormous sandwich prepared with a French baguette!

Mind you, the filling was a healthy fusion of home-made chicken ham, boiled egg salad and cornichons!

The salad was Japanese in concept: shredded vegetables, deep-fried renkon/lotus root chips, lettuce and mini tomatoes.

American Darkk Cherries for dessert.
Quite voluminous, maybe fitter for a young sportsman!

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I must admit that the Missus worked hard toady to create a slightly different bento, albeit using the same ideas!

She opted for the healthy and fulfilling combination of maki/rolls and tamagoyaki/Japanese omelette.

Having steamed the rice (she added a piece of konbu/seaweed today), stirred and cooled it, she mixed in a generous amount of tobikko/flying fish roe, “white” and black sesame seeds. She then made sushi maki with fresh lettuce instead of seaweed, and placed smoked salmon and avocado in the middle (she had them with lemon juice beforehand). Californian Bento? LOL

As for the tamagoyaki, she made it according to my request: She mixed the eggs with fine pieces of pimento and chopped thin leeks. The result? Spanish Tamagoyaki or Japanese Tapas? I leave it to yuo!LOL

As for the salad: shredded vegetables, mini tomatoes, French cornichons.
Got American dark cherries for dessert!

High-class bento, I must admit!

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It was back to classical” bento today!
That is rice topped with all kinds of ingredients!

For once I managed to steal into the kitchen to take a quick pic of the rice being steamed with the beans!

It was a pretty voluminous bento as you can see!

As for the main meat the Missus fried slices of tuna in soy sauce and covered with cheese and chopped thin leeks.

The rest of the garnish consisted of renkon/lotus roots, shiitake and stringbeans fried together in the same pan as the tuna. She added a fresh plum tomato, boiled egg seasoned with black sesame, home-made piclled mini melons and myoga and lettuce. I probably forget something!

Chopped veg salad with pieces of lettuce and walnuts and cherries from Yamanashi Prefcture for dessert!

I can guarantee you I was full after that!

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