Kids Lunch Bento Boxes

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For my next trick, super cute and easy kids’ lunch box ideas! I won’t lie, I also pack these for myself sometimes, and yes I do cut my sandwiches into shapes. Bento boxes are super customizable and tidy, which is honestly my favorite part. You can pack a complete and wholesome meal without any mingling or spillage… what’s not to love?

For more kid-friendly options, check out my Back to School Snack Board, Soft Pretzel Board, Rainbow Board, Green Snack Board, Cinderella Board, Shark-coochie Board, and Beach Candy Board.

What Are Bento Boxes?

In its essence, bento is Japanese single-serve meals made for packing and going. You may have seen bento on the menu at your local sushi restaurant–it usually comes with some hand rolls, dumplings, teriyaki, a salad, and maybe some spring rolls. Traditionally speaking, bento includes rice or noodles for a base, a protein, and some veggies. It’s a balanced meal you can take with you!

This take is pretty far from the traditional (see more below!), but has become an increasingly popular way to serve lunches in the last few years. The most important part of a bento box is that all the goodies are separated into their own sections and that it’s packed to take on the run.

Bento Box Lunch Ideas

I have 3 approaches when it comes to bento boxing for kids…

• Sandwich + Sides: Sandwiches are a beloved staple for kids lunches! I like to take it a step further and use cookie cutters to make cute little shaped sandwiches (these heart and star-shaped cookie cutters  are my faves). Then I include dips (like nut butter, ranch, or hummus) and some fruit and/or veggies for the dipping.

• Leftovers + Sides: In this case I had leftover pasta salad and then added some fruits, veggies, pretzels, and a little cookie treat. I like pasta salad because it travels well, but you can do this with any of your leftovers!

• Charcuterie Lunchable: Who doesn’t love cheese and crackers? This one’s not just for the kids–feel free to pack it for your next picnic or winery tour! I packed it with some of my favorite charcuterie accouterments (see more in my charcuterie 101 and find some budget-friendly charcuterie items in my Trader Joe’s Cheese Board post), but feel free to swap in your personal faves or more kid-friendly options.

How To Make Kids Bento Boxes

Sandwich + Sides

• Nut butter & Jam Sandwiches, cut into shapes with cookie cutters

• Edamame, shelled

• Veggie straws

• Apple slices

• Nut butter, for dipping 

In a 4 to 5-compartment bento box (like this one), add sandwiches, edamame, veggies straws, and apple slices to separate compartments.

Add nut butter to its own compartment or add it to the same compartment with the apple slices.

Leftovers + Sides

• Italian Pasta Salad

• Cucumber, sliced

• Clementine, peeled and segmented

• Raspberries

• Pretzels

• Alphabet cookies

In a 5 compartment bento box (like this silicone one), add pasta salad to the largest compartment. Then add the cucumber, clementine, raspberries, and pretzels to separate remaining compartments.

Add letter cookies on top of pretzels. I spelled out “Hi” for a cute note.

Charcuterie Lunchable

• Salami, sliced

• Peppered Salami, folded

• Dill havarti, cubed

• Raspberries

• Green grapes, halved if necessary or desired

• Assorted olives

• Roasted almonds

• Crackers

• Mini chocolate chip cookies

In a 5 to 6-compartment bento box (like this stainless steel one), add the sliced salami, dill havarti, and folded salami in separate sections to the largest compartment. Combine the raspberries and grapes in another compartment. Add the olives and almonds to another compartment (if there is an extra compartment, add them to separate compartments). 

Add the crackers and cookies to separate compartments.

Note: this is a large serving of charcuterie, so it’s best for an adult or teenager, but could easily be shared by younger kids.  And if you want a smaller option, try this awesome stainless steel bento box.

Best Bento Box for Kids 

These bento boxes serve as food containers AND lunch boxes, so they’ve gotta be good. I love shopping for them on Amazon because there is a lot of selection, but you can also find bento boxes at a lot of your local shops–I’ve even seen them at TJ Maxx. Here are my favorite finds, but no matter what you end up with always make sure you buy BPA-free! Check out my favorite Stainless steel bento box, Leakproof bento box and Silicone Bento Box with details below.

Stainless Steel Bento Box

If I had to choose only one bento box, this would be it. Stainless-steel is a great option when it comes to anything food related because it’s plastic-free, non-toxic (meaning it contains no lead, PVC, phthalates, or BPA material), easy to clean (i.e. dishwasher-safe), and super durable. 

The 5 compartments make variety easy and fits plenty of food to satisfy you or your little one. 

However, if this one is a little bit big for you, this other stainless steel option is a favorite among my friends’ kiddos and comes highly recommended.

Leakproof Bento Box 

You pretty much always want your bento box to be leak-proof (especially when packing dips!). While many of them are, my biggest tip is to READ. THE. LABEL. No one wants ranch all over their backpack! This one says it’s leakproof and it’s “Amazon’s Choice” bento box, plus you get to pick from a bunch of colors. 

Silicone Bento Box 

Silicone is also a great option for food. This one is leak-proof and the compartments are deep, which makes it particularly good for larger portions of food like pasta, salads, and such. Check out this great video PSA about properly cleaning silicone products (see her caption for details).

Do Bento Boxes Keep Food Warm or Cold?

The answer is not really. You can certainly buy insulated bento boxes that will help keep the temperature, but it definitely won’t be piping hot or ice cold by the time lunch rolls around. 

Other than insulated options, stainless steel is probably your best bet. My general rule of thumb is to pack things that aren’t super temperature sensitive and to also pack things with similar temperature needs. For instance, I wouldn’t pack hot pasta with cold apple sauce.

You can also consider a bento box with built-in cooler or pack any of these bento boxes in a mini lunch box cooler with reusable ice packs. 

Bento Box Lunch Sides Ideas

The options for bento box sides are endless, but in terms of variety, I like to pull from those traditional tenets and include a carb, a protein, and something fresh. I also like to add a fun little treat! 

• Fruit Ideas for Bento Boxes: Use what’s in season and safe for your kid.
  • Grapes, halved if necessary (or preferred)
  • Raspberries
  • Cleminitines 
  • Apple slices

• Veggie ideas or Bento Boxes
  • Cucumber slices
  • edamame, shelled
  • Carrot sticks or baby carrots

• Carb Ideas for Bento Boxes
  • Pretzels
  • Crackers
  • Popcorn

• Something fun
  • Cookies (I like these letter cookies)
  • Gummies (I like this dye-free option)
  • Chocolate or M&Ms

Show Me Your Bento

I hope this post inspires you to make a bento box. Nothing makes me happier than seeing the snacks and meals you create from my tips. If you make something inspired by this post, please tag me at @ainttooproudtomeg so I can see and share! 

And, If you liked this recipe, please rate and review.

Photos by Haley Hunt Davis of Salt Worth Creative. Food styling with Ryan Norton.