DIY: Back to School Bentos

By Vivian Le, Arts & Entertainment Editor 

 

1. Katsudon

Ingredients:

•1 Pork loin

•Bread Crumbs

•Flour

•Salt

•Pepper

•3 eggs

•1/2 onion

•rice

•1/3 cup of dashi

•1 tablespoon soy sauce

•1 tablespoon sake

•2 teaspoons sugar

•2 teaspoons mirin

•scallions (optional)

•rice

•vegetable oil

1. Prepare an egg wash, whisking one egg in a bowl. Cover your cutlet with the egg wash, flour, and then proceed to coat it with bread crumbs.
2. Using a frying pan, add vegetable oil and your breaded cutlet. Try both sides until crispy and brown.
3. Heat a stir fry pan to a medium heat and add the dashi, soy sauce, sake, sugar, and mirin.
4. Add thinly sliced onions onto the pan and stir until slightly brown.
5. In a separate bowl, crack two eggs and whisk as you would making a scrambled egg. Add soy sauce to your egg mixture if desired.
6. Cut your cooked cutlet into vertical slices and put into the pan with the broth and onions.
7. Add half of your egg mixture around the pork and the rest on top of the pork.
8. Cook until the eggs are scrambled and turn the stove off.
9. Garnish with scallions to finish off the dish.

2. Corn and Spinach Stir Fry

Ingredients:

•Corn

•Spinach

•Unsalted butter

•Salt

•Pepper

1. In a pan, melt your unsalted butter at medium heat.
2. Add your corn and spinach, and fry.
3. Once thoroughly heated, take the pan off the heat and serve as a side dish.

3. Seaweed Eggroll

Materials:

•5 eggs

•1 Tablespoon mirin

•salt

•dried seaweed sheets

•cooking oil

1. Crack your eggs into a bowl and whisk entirely until the mixture is yellow. To get a smoother consistency, use a strainer and pour the mixture into another bowl.
2. Add mirin and salt, and whisk until the ingredients are combined.
3. Cut your seaweed into approximately 1 ½ inch wide stripes, and set aside.
4. Pouring oil into your pan, proceed to pour in a thin mixture of egg mix into your pan. Rotate your pan to coat the entire surface.
5. After the sides of the eggs are cooked and a majority of the surface is cooked, place your seaweed stripe in the middle and using a spatula, roll the egg from one side to meet the next.
6. Remove the roll from your pan to cool and cut into smaller rolls. Enjoy!

4. Rice Dish

Materials:

•Rice

•Bonito flakes

•Funkake

1. Cook your brown or white rice according to box instructions.
2. Sprinkle on bonito flakes on one side and funkake on the other side. Enjoy with side dishes!