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A bento-style lunchbox, one box divided into compartments, makes packing lunch easier, not harder: each compartment is a small decision, and nothing gets squashed into anything else. The key is a formula so you are not starting from scratch every morning.
The formula: one of each
| Compartment | Ideas |
|---|---|
| A main | Sandwich, wrap, pasta salad, giant couscous salad, a cheese scone, a slice of cold pizza |
| A fruit | Grapes (quartered for little ones), berries, apple slices, clementine segments, melon |
| A vegetable | Cucumber, pepper strips, cherry tomatoes (quartered), sugar snap peas, sweetcorn |
| Something crunchy | Crackers, breadsticks, rice cakes, pretzels |
| A small extra | A slice of banana bread, a muffin, yoghurt, a few squares of cheese |
Rotate one compartment at a time rather than the whole box. A child who likes today’s lunch is more likely to eat it if most of it is familiar.
Small touches that help it get eaten
- Colour. A box with something red, green and orange in it looks like more fun than one that is all beige.
- Shapes. A cutter turns a sandwich into a puzzle piece or an animal in seconds, like the box in the photograph.
- Silicone cups split a compartment in two, so dips and wet fruit do not soak the crackers.
- Things they helped choose. Children eat more of what they had a say in. See lunches that come home empty.
Keep it cold
A bento box has no insulation of its own. Pack it in an insulated bag with an ice pack, particularly if it contains dairy, meat or cut fruit. The details are in how to keep a packed lunch cold.
For younger children
The American Academy of Pediatrics lists whole grapes, raw vegetables such as carrot sticks, chunks of cheese, and nuts and seeds among the foods to avoid or modify for young children because of choking risk (AAP). Quarter grapes and cherry tomatoes lengthways, cut vegetables into thin strips or cook them lightly, and follow your nursery’s or school’s food policy.
Where to go next
- Bento lunchboxes: what to look for
- Lunchbox builder tool
- 30 no-heat school lunch ideas
