This is a practical and inspiring guide for anyone looking to incorporate healthy, balanced meals into their daily routine. The book provides a comprehensive collection of bento box recipes that are both nutritious and easy to prepare.

Chien's approach emphasizes simplicity and efficiency, making it ideal for busy individuals who want to eat well without spending hours in the kitchen. Each bento box meal is thoughtfully composed to offer a variety of flavors, textures, and nutrients, helping to keep lunches interesting and satisfying.

The book is well-organized, with clear instructions and appealing photographs that make it easy to follow along. Chien includes a range of recipes that cater to different tastes and dietary preferences, from vegetarian options to dishes featuring lean proteins. Additionally, she provides useful tips on meal prep and bento box assembly, which can be particularly helpful for beginners.

However, it's worth noting that the portion sizes may feel a bit small when prepared as instructed, which might leave some readers wanting more. Additionally, while the recipes are designed to be quick and easy, the prep time can sometimes be longer than expected, especially for those new to meal prepping or bento box assembly.

Despite these minor drawbacks, "Healthy, Quick & Easy Bento Box" by Ophelia Chien is a valuable resource for anyone looking to enjoy wholesome, delicious, and visually appealing lunches. Its emphasis on health and convenience makes it a perfect fit for those who are mindful of their dietary goals and time constraints.

This cookbook is full of simple and flavorful recipes. The recipes were written with clear easy to follow instructions. The cover is attention grabbing and it is great for work or school lunch ideas.

Quick, and healthy ideas for lunch packed easily into a bento box with recipes that can make lunch fun again. Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for allowing me to read and review.

Great cookbook - with interesting options. Definitely suggesting to my cookbook patrons. I love the healthy options offered in this cookbook. It was super easy to make these recipes.

I thought that although this was a very interesting recipe book, I was disappointed that the recipes were not quick, nor entirely easy to make. I thought I would be able to make lunches for work using this book but found that it was too much work and I would default back to simpler and easier recipes for myself.

This book was fun, I have always wanted to try doing Bento Boxes and I felt like this was a good way for me to learn how to do it. I also really like that they were healthy recipes and gave good information so it definitely was quick.

Love this, will be buying it for myself soon. Great recipes that are quick and easy to help meal prep and prepare healthy lunches. Recommended to those looking to save time without cutting down and quality and health.

A colorful collection of bento recipes, from traditional Japanese flavors to western-style dishes. Some recipes will require semi-specialty ingredients from an Asian grocery store, such as Japanese stock and mirin. (Or at least, these are not things readily available in my small town.) Recipes are mostly pretty short and easy to follow, with information on storage, hot/cold serving temperature, etc. Colorful textures and photos accompany each page of recipes. This will appeal to a variety of cooks, and would be good for a mid-size or large library collection.

Healthy, Quick & Easy Bento Box is a yummy read. If you've ever wondered how to make food to go into your bento, this book is for you. It has some very tasty recipes that I can't wait to try. I'm giving this book a 4 out of 5 stars. I would like to thank NetGalley for an eARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Healthy, Quick and Easy Bento Box by Ophelia Chien is a great resource for lunch ideas. The recipes are easy to follow and feature clear and crisp illustrations. I enjoy packing my own lunch everyday, so it was great to see other alternatives to what I could pack and learn from Ophelia's creative and delicious ideas!

I really enjoyed the Bento Box ideas. Very creative and well presented. I recommend this cookbook to anyone interested in healthy lifestyle changes.

Healthy, Quick & Easy Bento Box by Ophelia Chien is an excellent book full of wonderful sounding recipes and colorful photos!

I really enjoyed looking through the Bento options in this book. It is helpful when trying to diet and being diverse in what you want to eat.

OK. I've decided I need a personal chef. And I want them to cook me everything in this book!
There are so many great ideas here for preparing healthy lunches. I love how the book provides 30 separate bento box ideas that are equally split: 1/3 protein / 1/3 starch / 1/3 vegetable. And with everything being broken out in separate recipes, you can mix and match different items to tailor to your food preferences or allergies.
Chien even uses Tofu. Beyond Burger and Chickpeas so there are many options for non-meat eaters! There are also Asian flavors as well as Western flavors, so truly something for everyone.

Every Box is photographed beautifully so you know what the recipe should look like. Recipes are easy to read and follow. There may be a few specialty ingredients that are needed but they appear to be easily purchased at the grocery store in the International Foods aisle.

For the creative cooks in your life, this Cookbook along with a cute Bento Box and a few other supplies would be an excellent gift idea for the upcoming holidays!

3.5 Stars

Healthy, Quick & Easy Bento Box by Ophelia Chien is an interesting collection of recipes to pack in a bento box. The cookbook gives quite a few tips and suggestions for how to create a healthy lunch. While these recipes are not the quickest or the simplest for a novice cook to create, this is a great book of recipes for anyone keen on learning how to create a traditional bento box meal.

I have always enjoyed a bento box meal, as it makes for a fun and exciting way to shake up a lunch routine. The recipes in this book are all centred around a classic Japanese bento box that consists of starch, protein, and vegetables. The packed meal is visually pleasing with pops of colour and fun details.

❀ CONTENTS: HEALTHY, QUICK & EASY BENTO BOX BY OPHELIA CHIEN

Bento Basics
Traditional Japanese Bento
Pan-Asian Bento
Western Style Bento
Staples

❀ LOTS OF IMAGES

There are many images in the book that showcase all of the different bento boxes, giving the pages lots of colour and whimsy. Each recipe also indicates the amount of time to prepare and cook the items, as well as how many servings it creates. Most of them require refrigeration, though, so not all recipes are ideal for those without access to a fridge away from home.

❀ NOT AS QUICK AS EXPECTED

I was very excited to try some of these recipes, and I found the instructions to be easy to follow. The ingredients are also not hard to find in a typical grocery store, which is a bonus for me. However, each meal is divided into three portions–the main and two sides–and while each portion that goes into the bento box takes about 10 minutes to make, the prep time is much longer when you account for each one. I was a little disappointed to see that the time spent making a bento box is not as quick as the title indicates. There are also a lot of dishes and pans that are used for the recipes, so the clean up is another time-consuming factor to consider.

❀ VISUALLY STUNNING AND EASY TO FOLLOW

Healthy, Quick & Easy Bento Box by Ophelia Chien is a cookbook that is visually stunning and easy to follow, although the recipes are not as fast to prepare as the title implies. This fun and interesting method for lunchtime meals is definitely a great way to add excitement to your day. If you don’t mind spending a bit more time making lunches and cleaning up the dishes afterwards, this is a recipe book to try.

I have been trying to make easy lounchs for my parents to take to work and this book has helped. I really enjoyed that it gave the serving size and how long that it can stay in the fridge and freezer. I also really liked how everything was broken down and easy to follow. I recommend this to anyone that is new to Bento Boxes like I am. Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for letting me read and review this book.

This specialty cookbook is a good addition for the right collection or collector. The subject matter has appeal (in the United States) for people with global food interests. In addition to bento box basics, the book obviously has a number of recipes. Many of these recipes use specialty ingredients that could be tough to find outside of a major metropolitan area in the US, so this book may be challenging for some people to use. With that said, every recipe looks simple, delicious, and healthy. While it's definitely fish-forward, there are other protein options and some options for the vegan and vegetarian crowd. This is a decent pick for the right reader.

This was not exactly what I thought it would be. I was expecting less meat and processed items. It will be great for others but not so much for my family.

I am a big fan of Bento Boxes and am looking forward to trying out many of the recipes that are in this book!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a copy of this book to read in exchange for honest feedback. I enjoyed this cooking guide. I thought that it was a special interest book with a good execution. I would suggest this to those who are looking to learn more about meal prep, healthy eating, and expanding their meal options. I think it would also be a great addition to a college student or working professional's reading material, as it encourages quick and easy meals that would be good to take to work/class.