I have to be honest. I was always in awe of the pictures circulating the internet of bento boxes decorated like album covers like Radiohead and Lady Gaga, but was never a loyal follower of all things kyaraben before participating in the Nagomi Kitchen Kyaraben Cooking Lesson. It just looked too time consuming! However after going through the steps of making the head and ears of the Pikachu face, little tofu ball faces, and cherry tomato and sausage flowers with our charming guest from Malaysia last Sunday, although I might never become a Pikachu fan (sorry!), I now know that I actually like making character bento boxes.

The goal of the class is to make either a Pikachu or Hello Kitty kyaraben but you will be introduced to recipes and techniques that can be used for normal bento making when you are too busy to go through all the kyaraben making steps. The tofu balls are a great example of some good basic bento side dishes.

Bento making in general has become quite popular around the world so we’re hoping to recruit more here at Nagomi Kitchen!

Alisa Sanada, (@asanada) co-organizer for Nagomi Kitchen, is a former Texan currently residing in Kawasaki. She went from craving fresh jalapenos while working 7 years in the web industry in Tokyo and Osaka to craving fresh tofu while traveling across the globe for a year in 2011 as a full time nomad. Alisa joined Nagomi Kitchen wanting to bring together her passions, the web, travel, and food.