The Best Lunchbox – Ever!

This bento box is fun, cheap and nutritious.  It goes brilliantly with the quick pickled cucumber.

Serves 2

Ingredients

200g cooked rice

100g edamame or green beans

150g Minced Quorn/ Soya Beef

2 tbsp Soy Sauce

1 tbsp Mirin

1 tbsp Cooking Sake

2 tbsp Sugar

2 large Eggs

1 tbsp Sugar

1 tbsp Mirin

Method

If you don’t have any cooked rice – cook some now. I use any old rice for this. I use 1 part rice to 3 parts water and cook with a lid on until the water has absorbed (around 20 minutes). Then I place the cooked rice in a sieve and run cold water through it until it is cooled. You need to cool rice as quickly as possible to avoid food poisoning. Put the cooled rice in the fridge until needed.

Dry fry the mince in a frying pan, on a medium heat, with 2tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp cooking sake and 2 tbsp sugar until the liquid has evaporated and the mince is dry. Make sure it is cooked all the way through. Put aside and cover until cool.

Steam or boil the edamame beans. They should still be bright green and retain a little ‘bite’. Immediately plunge them into cold water and leave while you cook the eggs.

Pop the eggs, sugar and mirin into a frying pan and cook quickly, whilst stirring constantly (I use chopsticks). The eggs should be dry and resemble slightly rubbery scrambled eggs.

Place the mince, drained beans, cooked rice and egg into a bento box and garnish with the quick cucumber pickles.

Place back in the fridge until needed (eat within a day). Do not reheat this dish – it is meant to be served cold.