About this Class
Is there a more exciting lunch than a bento box? Whenever you need a portable meal, a fully loaded bento is a box full of happiness.
Together, we’ll incorporate the five Washoku cooking styles into a Shokado bento, which is often created as a miniature kaiseki multicourse meal. This is an excellent introduction to Washoku cooking and its principles: 5 colors, 5 tastes, and 5 cooking methods. We will fry, simmer, steam, roast, and prepare fresh vegetables in genius ways.
Sample menu (changes with seasonal availability):
Namamono (raw): carrot flowers, star radishes, spiral cucumbers, quick pickles
Nimono (simmering): chicken and daikon and spinach gomaae
Yakimono (dry heat): beef or tofu teriyaki and rolled omelet and sweet potato
Mushimono (steaming): rice
Agemono (deep frying): lotus root and kabocha winter squash
This class starts with a quick lunch of onigirazu, a delicious and fun twist on a sandwich. If origami and sushi had a love child, it would be this.
Then we’ll build our bentos. We’ll discuss time-tested designs and ingredient ratio, which foods travel well, and how to keep them healthy and tasty at room temperature. We’ll play with musubi rice molds and vegetable shape cutters. We’ll flavor and decorate guided by color, taste, and texture – and fun. We'll create two bento boxes for you to take home wrapped in a furoshiki.
The skills you’ll practice:
How to teriyaki – quick skillet teriyaki
How to tempura – the lightest of batters and a quick hot bath
How to tamagoyaki – roll an omelet
How to onigirazu – a rice sandwich to go
How to furoshiki – carry your bento home in style!
You'll create two bento boxes in different styles to take home:
The Shokado Bento: Six compartments filled with an assortment of musubi, tempura, teriyaki, omelet, and vegetable sides. Designed to showcase the five Washoku cooking styles.
The Everyday Bento: A classic beef teriyaki bento for which we'll use techniques for quick and artful bento building. You'll whip up a classic teriyaki sauce that's both versatile and delicious.
You’ll gain a deeper understanding of Washoku, the ancient Japanese food traditions that make meal preparation fun as well as transformative for your health.
This class can work for omnivores and vegetarians.
Private group classes are held at my home kitchen studio.
They are 3 hours and accommodate 4-8 people. Pricing is $145 per person.
They are 3 hours and accommodate 4-8 people. Pricing is $145 per person.