Panda Bento Online Interactive Cooking Class

Maction Planet is proud to announce a new Online Interactive Panda Bento Cooking Class and Talk Show on 21 February 2021 featuring Mac, Founder and Lead Guide of Maction Planet, and Nahoko from At Home with Nahoko Cooking Classes.

On 21 February 2021 (JST), Mac and Nahoko will hold a very special online Panda Bento cooking class. Together, they will teach you how to make Panda Bento using ingredients you can easily obtain where you live.

What is Panda Bento?

A bento (弁当) is, essentially, a Japanese lunch box! Traditional bento contain rice or noodles with meat and vegetables in a box. They are available throughout Japan, including convenience stores, railway stations, department stores and speciality shops. Lots of effort is spent to make these bento boxes extra special, and one of the ways that happens is through “kyaraben” (“character bento”), decorated to look like cute characters or animals.

Amongst our animal friends, there are not many creatures cuter than pandas! Pandas were first introduced to Japan at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo. Their physique and innocent nature fits in well with the zeitgeist of cute that permeates Japan. In 2017, for the first time in 29 years, a new baby panda named Xiang Xiang was born at Ueno Zoo, sparking another boom of adoration for these creatures… and long lines to see her! Pandas are Nahoko’s favourite animals, and she is really excited to teach this to everyone.

In our bento class we will make panda onigiri rice balls, ebi mayo shrimp mayonnaise and agedashi dofu – fried tofu! These, along with some vegetables, make up a delicious and visually appealing lunch!

Sign me up!

Two sessions will be held: 09:00 JST and at 19:00 JST to cater to your time zone.

09:00 JST:

• New York/Toronto: 19:00 (20 February)
• Los Angeles: 16:00 (20 February)
• Sydney: 11:00

19:00 JST:

• London: 10:00
• Paris/Berlin: 11:00
• Hong Kong/Singapore: 18:00
• Sydney: 21:00

The class will last around 2.5 hours and is limited to 20 groups per session.

Readers of this blog and followers of Maction Planet social media can book direct for ¥3990 per group. Email us at info@mactionplanet.com to take part. 

After booking, we’ll send you details of the ingredients and utensils you’ll need for the class.

Entertaining and Educational

Nahoko started Japanese cooking classes for foreign travellers to Tokyo three years ago, and since then has taught over 250 students from all over the world. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she has switched to hosting online classes via Zoom which have proven to be extremely popular.

Mac will talk about Japanese food culture and share many stories about life in Japan, bringing his expertise on Japanese culture, history, food and drink, baseball, sumo, music… As Nahoko says, “Even I am constantly learning from him and I am from Japan!”

This is an interactive class, different from anything on Instagram Live or YouTube. You will be able to converse with Mac and Nahoko during the class. You can ask us questions about Japan and your cooking during the class. All of the participants can show each other their Panda Bento. We will all be saying ‘itadakimasu‘ and eating our bentos at the same time.

The prior classes have proven extremely popular. Here is a Tripadvisor review from Karen in London, UK, who joined our Chirashi Sushi cooking class on 6 September:

Fun and delicious! You can feel like you are in Tokyo. Don’t miss it!

Email info@mactionplanet.com to take part in this special online Panda Bento cooking class.

Maction Planet runs bespoke Private Tours and Experiences in Tokyo, and beyond. To book yours, or to purchase a gift card, contact us at info@mactionplanet.com

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