Recently, social media is filled with videos of lunchboxes preparing. This activity is satisfying and enjoyable to see so that many people are interested to watch and try it. People like to decorate the main dish and side dish with funny accessories and form. However, this decorating activity has existed a long time ago in Japan. The famous lunchbox decorating art in Japan is called Kyaraben. Swipe left to find out about Kyaraben and the history of lunchbox decorating art in Japan.
Ornamental bento was originally created for children to overcome the difficulty of eating. In order to make the food more attractive, mothers often add “lord octopus sausage” (tako-san winna), a sausage that has the bottom parted so that it resembles octopus tentacles. Yet, in the past, the characters in the bento were not given eyes, nose, and mouth so they were difficult to identify.
It is said that the character bento with a face first appeared in the book “Kodomo no Kawai O-bento” which was published in Japan in May 1997. Since then, Kyaraben or “character bento” has not only been popular among children, but also among adults. In fact, there is a national contest that not only assesses the design of the bento, but also the nutritional balance of the various food components in it.
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The best adjectives to describe Kyaraben are a little unusual, fun, cute, and artistic! Kyaraben is a cute food decoration art of a lunchbox. It is decorated to resemble celebrities, famous characters (doraemon, mickey mouse, anpanman, etc), animals, plants, and so on. It is a bento design that was created to appease picky eaters. Kyaraben style makes lunchtimes an engaging event due to the artistic and appealing presentation of food components.
In making Kyaraben, experts said that we must insert elements of red, yellow, and green to make it attractive. According to research, green color can improve children’s appetite. It’s better to use Japanese rice so that the rice is sticky and easy to shape. The last tip is using nori/seaweed for sushi that is not crispy because nori for snacks contain more oil and break easily when shaped.
Adults are now becoming interested in Kyaraben, as seen by the rise in the number of Kyaraben blogs, YouTubers, and competitions held to find the most inventive bento artist and expert. However, Kyaraben can be categorized more as a hobby than a regular method of packing a bento/lunchbox. What do you think, guys? Have you tried lunch box decorating?
