Hanami means "flower viewing", and is the tradition of Springtime picnics and gatherings in Japan to enjoy the beauty of the blossoming cherry blossom trees.
A bento is a boxed lunch, and there are many traditional ingredients used during Hanami. The goal is to have a lovely picnic with your friends and family!
This wouldn't be inside a bento per se, but it is generally agreed that you absolutely cannot enjoy viewing flowers without a lot of sake.
Dango are small dumplings made of rice flour. They are usually served 3 or 4 on a skewer. Traditional hanami dango are green, white, and pink.
A perfect picnic food, karaage (kah-rah-ah-geh) is something breaded and deep fried--usually chicken. It is often referred to as Japanese fried chicken, though it is more like popcorn chicken, since it typically does not use bone-in meat.
Sakura (cherry blossom) mochi is a pink rice cake filled with sweet red bean paste and wrapped in a sakura leaf. It is traditionally served on Girl's Day (March 3rd.)
Also known as "fat rolls", futomaki are large rolls of sushi, usually containing some mixed vegetables (cucumber and gobo are common), egg, and sakuraebi (tiny pink shrimp.)
There are no strict rules to making a hanami bento, but common ingredients are foods available in Spring, anything pink, and foods that taste good with sake!
I will have to try these after reading you interesting list.
I've alway wanted to try Bento box lunch but don't know what to put in it.Thanks for these ideas.
I like eating out of a bento box. Japanese food is lovely.
This is the second time this week I've learned something new about bento boxes. I guess I'll need to try one soon!
Yum? I do like Sake .... lol!
select one here...