Vegan Bento

I’m a big fan of the Lock & Lock brand for containers. Stuff in there stays put and doesn’t leak. The only thing is that I can’t find any place online other than ebay where you might find the lunch sets.

So I when I found someone auctioning three of these….

…I snapped them up!

It’s not as nice as the Zojirushi lunch jars, of course, but at $10 each, a steal and perfect for the working lunch swap we do. Just a lunch bag is going to be close to $10 without all the cool containers!

So now I don’t have to have my food storage containers out on loan and then be struggling til I get them back, and I can approximate what other people are feeding me on my food log. I hope the gals like them when I take them to work on Sunday.

 I already love them and am plotting what to put in there when it’s my turn again to make work lunch. The drink one holds 10 oz, the main one holds 1.5 cups, and the divided holds 1/2 cup in each of the small compartments so you get 3 cups of food + drink.

(For comparison, the Tupperware Crystal Wave Bowl I like so much does 4 cups.)

The only things wrong with it is that the bag doesn’t have room to stick an icepack in and the drink container is #7 plastic. The other containers are #5.

Old entry, new photo.

I always loved arroz con pollo as a child so finding a vegan version of some kind of Spanish rice or paella was always hard.

Here’s my adaptation of a Vegetarian Times Vegetarian Paella recipe that’s become my new "arroz sin pollo."

Arrroz Sin Pollo

• 14.5-oz. can diced tomatoes
• 4 cups water
• 2 vegetable bouillion cubes
• 2 cups long grain brown rice or long grain white basmati
• 1 tsp. saffron threads
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme

In separate pot or pan…

• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
• 1 medium green bell pepper, diced

• 14-oz. can artichoke hearts, rinsed, drained, chopped
• 1 1/2 cup of frozen peas and carrots mix
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat parsley
• 1/4 cup green  onion, minced
• 2 generous tbs of capers, drained

OPTIONAL ADD INS:

• 1 can pinto beans or black beans, rinsed and drained
• chopped up, cooked veggie "sausage"

I like it best with brown rice, but Paul likes the yellow color to show so sometimes I use the white rice when making it instead so it’s brighter from the saffron. Taste-wise the brown rice is a bit firmer.

Forgot to to measure how many cups total before we started eating it so nutrition will have to be the next time I make it.  That’s the only thing it needs — a nutritional profile.