Koinobori Bento for a Four Year Old
Fumie is getting extra creative with Anthony's bentos these days. In honor of the upcoming Children's Day holiday, during which koinobori (carp streamers) are flown to symbolize and hope for children's strength, today's bento has koinobori-shaped wieners.
As a bonus, there are little fish mixed in with the veggies.
We have large streamers that we normally fly from the balcony, but this weekend we're heading to Furano in Hokkaido (Japan's northern large island) for a mini trip. According to Yahoo! Weather, next week's highs look to be about as warm as here (20°C; 68°F), but the lows (freezing) are colder than it got here in Kyoto all winter. It should be fun.
We're taking a car ferry (that leaves at 1:30am.... ugh!) and so hope to be able to drive around to enjoy the countryside. Hmmm, I wonder whether I should bring my camera.....? 😀
Yummy yum yum, veggies sprinkled with shirasu! Our toddler eats freshly-boiled shirasu (白子) plain like other kids chomp on popcorn.
By the way “shirasu” (sardine fry) and “shirako” (soft roe) are kind of like heteronyms（異音異議語） in that they share the same kanji (白子) but have different pronunciation and meaning.
しらす：カタクチイワシ・マイワシなどの稚魚。色は白く透明。食用。whitebait, sardine fry (fry as in young)
しらこ：魚の精巣。表面が滑らかで白色。食用となる。soft roe, the ripe testes of a male fish, especially when used as food.
Source: Concise Oxford English Dictionary and Daijirin (大辞林 第二版)
P.S. My wife really enjoys your bento pics. Any chance of passing along the recipe for that yummy-looking “furikake” adorning the gohan? It looks homemade.
Thanks for the kind words and info, Andy. Yes, the furikake (rice seasoning) is excellent, but I’m afraid that I can’t divulge the recipe, even to semi-anonymous single-named frequent commenters. It’s from a secret family recipe that has been in the family (Fumie’s side, obviously) for some 200 years, and in making it she works with master crasftsmen in the “jusco” branch of furikake culture. If you have a daughter and she ends up marrying Anthony, well, then you’d be part of the family….. —Jeffrey
Nice one Jeffrey. Just wondering because Mie sometimes blends her own furikake for Amy and me. It’s hard to beat the convenience and price of the Jusco craftsmen, though.
Its really nice to see you all keep up the Japanese tradition in many ways. Good job to Fumie. Hope you will have a wonderful weekend. Looking forward to see your new pictures.