Season 7-11 Curry Goya Champuru Bento & Purple Sweet Potato Korokke Bento

Marc makes a bento featuring goya or bitter melon, a specialty of Okinawa Prefecture. Maki makes korokke, or croquettes, with purple sweet potatoes. From Thailand, a bento in a traditional pinto lunchbox.

Transcript

00:01

Today, Marc makes a bento featuring "goya" or bitter melon,

00:05

a vitamin-rich specialty of Okinawa.

00:10

Maki makes fluffy "korokke" or croquettes

00:13

with purple sweet potatoes rich in antioxidants.

00:18

And a bento maker in the Faroe Islands shows us her son's favorite bento

00:24

made with lamb liver paste and dried mutton.

00:27

Obento.

00:29

We love bento!

00:32

We love bento!

00:36

(The Global Lunchbox 7-11)

00:40

Welcome to BENTO EXPO,

00:41

your guide to the wonderful, delicious world of bento.

00:45

Thank you for joining us.

00:46

We love seeing the delicious looking bentos submitted through BENTO EXPO's website.

00:51

They are packed with wonderful ideas.

00:53

So let's start by checking a few of them out.

00:55

Okay.

00:58

First, a picnic bento from Elsa who lives in Japan

01:01

with her Japanese husband and family.

01:04

Hello.

01:05

My name is Elsa. I'm from the Faroe Islands.

01:09

The Faroe Islands are located in the North Atlantic.

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With green pastures and sheer cliffs,

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they look like they came straight from the pages of a fairytale.

01:18

The name of the Faroe Islands means "sheep."

01:20

So, there are more sheep than people.

01:23

Elsa is making a picnic bento for several open-faced sandwiches featuring lamb.

01:28

Elsa uses rye bread and spreads on lamb liver pate for her first sandwich.

01:34

It's one of Kaoru's favorites.

01:37

- Pickles!
- Yeah, how does it taste?

01:39

- Is it yummy?
- Yummy.

01:42

The rich pate goes well with the tangy gherkins.

01:46

So how many pickles are you using?

01:48

- Five!
- Five, oh yeah.

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Next, dried mutton with butter on a piece of bread.

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This is a traditional delicacy of the Faroe Islands.

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This is my favorite bread.

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The Faroes are also famous for salmon,

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and Elsa also tops hers with chopped garlic chives.

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Once, when we were on the Faroe Islands, we used to go to different places,

02:14

different mountains and we always brought open sandwiches for our obento.

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Elsa also packs a traditional spherical sweet snack.

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For my child, I would like them to taste the real taste of Faroe.

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They will never forget the taste of the Faroe Islands.

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Now it's time for their picnic.

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Umm. This is good.

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We like obento!

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Next, from Dian, a bento for her homesick son.

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Hello, my name is Dian. We came from Indonesia.

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Dian's family moved to Japan last year for her husband's work,

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and she's been packing bentos for her son Ruben to cheer him up.

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Today she's making meatballs called "bakso."

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It's an Indonesian comfort food and one of her son's favorites.

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She seasons the ground chicken with salt and pepper,

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and shapes the mixture with her hand.

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Press it, then like this.

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By squeezing in this way,

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you can get the chewy texture of Indonesian meatballs.

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That looks fun!

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Next, she deep fries the meatballs in oil until they're golden brown.

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This is inside it.

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Look at how uniform they are on the inside.

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For her side dish, Dian makes Japanese "tamagoyaki" with crab sticks.

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This is Ruben's favorite Japanese dish.

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Dian rounds out her bento with broccoli florets and sausage and carrot flowers.

03:56

What a colorful bento.

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I believe this will increase my son's appetite.

04:03

So, what do you think, Ruben?

04:05

Thank you, Mom!

04:07

The carrot looks like a star. It's so cute.

04:11

- Good?
- Yeah!

04:14

- We love bento.
- We love bento!

04:18

- It's time to get started on our bentos.
- Okay.

04:21

Today, both Maki and I are going to be using super nutritious vegetables to make our bento,

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like this goya or bitter melon.

04:28

And these beautiful colored, purple sweet potatoes.

04:32

Yeah, and they look beautiful together, don't they?

04:35

I'm going to be making a curry "goya champuru" bento.

04:38

Sounds great!

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Goya, or bitter melon, is super rich in vitamin C,

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and the bitter compounds it contains are said to have medicinal effects.

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Goya champuru is a comfort food in Okinawa

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comprised of the southernmost islands of Japan.

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Champuru is a local word for "mixed," and in my version,

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I add in some curry powder to mix things up.

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Let's start by preparing the goya.

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Okay, we're first going to trim off both ends,

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and then I'm going to go ahead and cut this in half lengthwise just like that,

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and it's going to reveal the pit and seeds in the center.

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So I'll just use a spoon and scoop all of this out.

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Once it's hollowed out, cut the halves into 3mm-thick slices.

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Then I'm going to toss the goya with some salt and let them sweat for 20 minutes.

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I'm just going to use my hand like this.

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So much water!

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That's going to be a lot of that bitterness and it's going to make it a little bit less harsh.

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I'm going to squeeze this with my hands.

05:46

- Wow!
- Yeah, look at that!

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This process also brings out the vibrant green color

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and crunchy texture of the goya.

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Now let's prepare our other ingredients.

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Luncheon meat has become a staple in champuru

06:01

due to the US military presence in Okinawa.

06:04

Now you want to beat the egg,

06:06

and tear the well-drained tofu into chunks like this.

06:11

Okay, it's time to make our champuru.

06:13

- Mix, mix, right?
- Yeah, exactly!

06:16

Start by browning both sides of the tofu in oil.

06:19

Ooh, it's nice and brown.

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Because we crumbled it with our hands, we've got a lot of crisp surface on the outside.

06:26

Okay, and then I'm going to go ahead and add our luncheon meat.

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Add the onions on top of here.

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So this luncheon meat will give us a ton of flavor in our goya champuru.

06:35

- Okay, I'm going to add the goya.
- Goya! Yes!

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It's the star of the show.

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And then we're also going to add the curry powder and toast it a little bit with the goya.

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So colorful!

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To season it, I add honey and soy sauce.

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But there's one more ingredient.

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It's not goya champuru without the egg.

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We're going to scramble this in.

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- Nice!
- So, once the egg is scrambled,

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our curry goya champuru is done!

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It looks so nice.

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What a colorful mixture!

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So Maki, are you ready to try my curry goya champuru?

07:08

Yes, itadakimasu!

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(This food was prepared in a separate, hygienically controlled environment.)

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The spicy curry goes well with the bitter goya.

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A wonderful harmony of sweet honey, rich luncheon meat, and bitter goya.

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- And that's the magic of curry powder.
- Yes!

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I pack my champuru with a shredded carrot stir fry

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called "ninjin shirishiri" for some extra color.

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This Okinawa-inspired bento is sure to spark your appetite.

07:39

So, Maki, what are you going to make for us today?

07:42

I'm going to make purple sweet potato "korokke"

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using these beautiful potatoes.

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I love purple sweet potatoes.

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Purple colored sweet potatoes are loaded with vitamins and fiber,

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and their vibrant purple hue is a result of their high anthocyanin content.

08:01

Maki is going to turn these into Japanese style croquettes or korokke,

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and the fun color and delicious taste makes it a perfect bento item.

08:12

Maki starts by slicing the sweet potatoes into 1cm-thick rounds.

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The skin is also delicious.

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Then she cuts them into small cubes and boils them

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for 5 to 7 minutes until they're nice and tender.

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While she waits for the sweet potatoes,

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Maki sautees the onions and ground beef for the filling.

08:39

I bet that savory beef's going to make a nice contrast with the sweet potato.

08:43

Exactly.

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The potato is sweet, so add a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper.

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Once the meat mixture is done,

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Maki checks her potatoes and transfers them to a bowl.

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Oh, nice color!

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While the sweet potatoes are hot, Maki adds the butter and mashes it in.

09:02

I can't believe there are still skins in there. It looks so smooth.

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It's full of flavor.

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Then Maki mixes in the beef mixture and milk.

09:14

This looks good enough to eat with a spoon.

09:16

Wait for the korokke.

09:18

Okay.

09:20

Maki shapes her korokke into spheres

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and coats them with flour, egg and panko.

09:26

- Okay, let's fry them.
- Okay.

09:30

It's already cooked through, so you just need to make it crisp.

09:36

It smells so good. It's almost like a pastry.

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It smells sweet.

09:41

Okay, my purple sweet potato korokke is done!

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So, Marc, try my purple sweet potato korokke.

09:54

Look at the color of this. It's like my shirt!

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(This food was prepared in a separate, hygienically controlled environment.)

09:59

It's amazing.

10:01

I love the sweetness of that potato with that savory beef and the onion.

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And it was so smooth, I didn't even notice the skin in there.

10:08

- It's delicious, Maki.
- Thanks!

10:11

Maki packs her bento with okra, boiled egg and tomatoes for even more color.

10:17

For kids, she makes flowers cut from sweet potatoes and the tips of a few okra.

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It's such a fun and vibrant bento, I can't help but smile.

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Today, both Maki and I made bentos with vibrant veggies

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that are rich in antioxidants and vitamins. So we hope you'll...

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give them a try!

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Bento Topics.

10:41

Today from the Buddhist country of Thailand.

10:46

Giving alms to monks is a morning ritual

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believed to bring happiness and good fortune.

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The food is offered in a "pinto,"

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a traditional bento box used by people of all ages.

11:00

In recent years, pintos have become more stylish and chic,

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attracting attention from all generations.

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This restaurant features pintos not only in its décor,

11:16

but also in its food presentation.

11:21

I use pintos at my restaurant, because I want to keep the tradition alive.

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Their signature dish is tom yum noodle soup

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with a fried wonton in the shape of a heart. It's so cute.

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I think using pintos is a great idea. It's a wonderful tradition.

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Pinto bentos have gone viral on social media.

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This account has over 20,000 followers.

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Let's meet the person who runs it.

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Hello. My name is Preaw. Nice to meet you.

12:02

Preaw works in the apparel industry.

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She's been posting pinto bentos for about four years.

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People who work in the city say they love seeing the photos.

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They're reminded of their mom's or grandma's cooking.

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Preaw's mum prepares all these bentos for her daughter.

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Today, Preaw is lending a hand.

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First, a traditional soup full of shrimp and vegetables.

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"Krachai" is a traditional herb used to mask fishy smells.

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It's mixed with other ingredients to make the soup base.

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Krachai is very good for you.

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Health-conscious Pon avoids using artificial additives,

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and focuses on bringing out the inherent flavors of the ingredients.

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The soup is infused with the flavors

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of the spicy paste, vegetables and shrimp.

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Next, Preaw makes her mum's favorite.

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Deep-fried pork and salted fish meatballs.

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She adds coriander paste to give it a kick.

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Knead thoroughly.

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Her mum's specialty meatballs contain whole chili peppers.

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Now she just needs to fry them.

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One bite, and a medley of flavors bursts in your mouth.

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How does it taste?

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Delicious!

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Because it's made by your daughter!

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Time to pack the food in the pinto.

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The meatballs go on top of a bed of mixed-grain rice.

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The soup goes into the next layer.

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And for dessert, pumpkin in coconut milk.

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All set.

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The pinto makes the food look so tasty.

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It's packed with mom's love.

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Eating together makes it taste even better.

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We love bento!

14:24

- Bye-bye.
- Bye-bye.

14:28

That looked delicious. Bento packed with love!

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Yeah. And it must be fun discovering what's in each tier.

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Maki and I love seeing your bentos

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you share with us through BENTO EXPO website,

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and we're looking forward to seeing your holiday season-themed submissions.

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Well, that's all the time we have for today,

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but we hope you'll join us again here soon on BENTO EXPO.

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- See you soon!
- Bye.

14:56

Bye.