Zojirushi make much more than just rice cookers
January 21, 2010 in Cooking
There are many different rice cookers that you can use to get the job of preparing lovely fresh white (or brown) rice whenever you want it. Many Japanese as well as Westerners use Zojirushi rice cookers as they have a good reputation for quality, durability and for making rice perfectly every time. Making your rice is one thing but then deciding on how and where you are going to eat it is another.
For people that really get into the Japanese way of preparing and eating foods, there is a further option worth considering. When you use Japanese bento boxes it means you can prepare a packed lunch comprised of much more than just sandwiches. Not that there is anything wrong with this kind of lunch, for me a decent sandwich can compete with the best ethnic options available.
However to eat like they do in the Far East, using something like a Zojirushi bento box means you can fill part of it with rice and then still have space for other foods too. The lunch box mentioned above actually has four separate parts that are stacked together and are held in a bag. This means that it is actually fairly compact as well as holding a large amount of food. It is not enough for two people but holds plenty and therefore can actually be quite a large meal just for one.
The four boxes that make up this Zojirushi bento set are designed to hold different foods. There is one large bowl that is meant for a soup. Then the second largest one is designed to hold rice. Then on top of that there are two smaller tubs. One of these holds the “main dish” and the smallest is perfect for a salad of some description. Of course you do not have to eat like a Japanese person would. It is easy to hold a pasta and sauce in the soup container. As it has four separate containers, the Zojirushi bento box is a very flexible piece of equipment.
