The possibilities with a beautifully crafted wooden bento box are endless. But how far would you go with it?
As our iconic Japanese wood bento boxes travel across the globe, we’re curious to see how people use them. That’s why we’ve created this series to showcase some creative and inspiring uses of Japanese bentwood boxes. If you’ve purchased one of our bentwood boxes—whether from ShibataToku, Sosogi, or Tamaki (be it the round bucket, stacked box, or classic bento)—we’d love to see your photos and hear your suggestions. Include a brief description or recipe, along with your handle or hashtags, and we’ll select and feature your "bento love" on our blog and social pages.
Our goal is to inspire more people to appreciate this iconic traditional craft, learn about its value and eco-friendliness, and encourage the use of handmade wooden bento boxes from Japan. By using less plastic, you’re not only helping the environment but also supporting the preservation of a heritage craft.
For the first challenge in this series, we’re starting with the most obvious use: food! We challenged home chef and foodie Winnie to show us how she would use the stacked wooden bento box. Here’s her submission:
Wood Bento Idea: Versatile Phyllo Cups (Savory or Sweet)
Prepare the phyllo cups
Get frozen phyllo sheets from supermarket, place in chiller the day before use.
Cut phyllo sheets to 8 x 8cm squares, brush top and bottom of each sheet with melted butter, stack 6 pcs loosely into a muffin pan. Bake at 180 degC for 12mins or until golden brown, remove from oven and let cool.
Guacamole & shrimp filling
Mince avocado, onion, bell pepper. Mix well and season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
Steam (or boil) the shrimps, immediately dip them in ice water to make its meat spongy. Remove shell and intestine. Season with salt, pepper, paprika and lemon juice.
On cooled phyllo cups, scoop guacamole and put shrimps.
Tuna filling
Blend minced tuna meat and sour cream. Season with salt, pepper, mustard and lemon juice.
Slice cucumber to long thin stripes, soak in iced water mixed with apple vinegar and black pepper for 15 mins. Drain, towel dry, and roll up.
On cooled phyllo cups, scoop tuna mix then put the cucumber roll and cherry tomato.
Lemon Butter Cream filling (ingredients good for 12 cups)
Soften 230g butter at room temperature, beat it until smooth and creamy.
Add 540g confectioners’ sugar (or icing sugar), 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice, 2 tbsp heavy cream, 2 tsp lemon zest. Beat to blend well everything, say, 5 minutes. Taste and add a pinch of salt.
Put the cream into a piping bag, chill for 15 mins.
On cooled phyllo cups, pipe on lemon butter cream and add strawberry slices.
Leftover cream can be put in an air-tight bag/container and put in fridge for a week, freezer for a month then defrost it before using.
About the Contributor
YOUR TURN! Share your ideas for using classic wooden bento boxes and make us envy your creativity!
Share your bento ideas and be featured in our blog. (and it doesn't limit to only food-use). If selected to be featured, we will send you a coupon for any purchase at our store www.goenne.com
Email your submittal (include quality images, recipes or any brief descriptions on usage/tips, your social handles, hashtags etc...) info.goenne@gmail.com
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