Japanese Tamagoyaki Bento Recipe

Japanese Tamagoyaki for Bento | Bento boxes has become popular among kids and adults worldwide today. They are a convenient and highly appealing medium for carrying packed lunches to school, offices, picnics etc.

Tamagoyaki – One of the Favorite Bento Side Dishes

One of the most popular bento side dishes that can often be seen as bento content is the Tamagoyaki. Tamagoyaki is a rolled omelette made in the Japanese way and can be of two kinds; sweet and the other is savoury and known as Atsuyaki and Dashimaki respectively. The Dashimaki Tamago is a little complex to make and involves a longer preparation time. Rolling it also becomes a tad difficult due to the presence of greater amounts of liquids in it.

Ingredients Required for Tamagoyaki

Tamagoyaki is prepared by rolling thin layers of eggs seasoned in a frying pan, together, after stuffing the layers with varied fillings. Adding Dashi to the egg mixture gives the final output a deeper flavour. The preparation is quite simple and involves gathering just about four ingredients. They include:

• 4 eggs
• 5 tablespoons sugar or slightly more depending upon the preferred taste
• 5 tablespoons Dashi soup stock
• Some vegetable oil for the purposes of cooking.

Preparation of Tamagoyaki

• After the eggs have been beaten in a bowl, add sugar and Dashi soup stock to it and mix all the contents thoroughly.
• Oil the Tamagoyaki pan which is heated over medium heat.
• Add a ladle of the egg mixture onto the pan and spread it all over the pan.
• Begin rolling the egg toward the lower side after it is cooked halfway through.
• Move the rolled egg to the other side.
• Repeat the process letting the poured mixture flow below the rolled out egg which is still retained on the far end of the pan.
• After the poured mixture is half cooked roll it out so as to thicken the omelette already on the pan.
• Cook it till done.
• Place the cooked rolled egg onto a cutting board and cut it into an inch or so thick pieces.

Importance of the Frying Pan in the Preparation

The pan used in the Tamagoyaki preparation is a special rectangular or square-shaped copper pan known as the ‘Tamagoyakiki’. The use of a copper pan is advisable due to its better heat conduction property. The cooking temperature is a crucial factor if the rolled eggs have to turn out bouncy and fluffy. Copper pans heat up fast, and their temperature does not dip drastically after the egg mixture has been poured into it.

However, before using the copper pan, it is essential to what is known as ‘conditioning’ it with vegetable oil. The frying pan has to be heated over a low flame and needs to be filled with vegetable oil up to 70% of its capacity. The heat needs to be turned off five minutes after the formation of bubbles. It has to be kept aside overnight with the oil which has to be drained off the next morning.  A kitchen paper can be used to wipe off the surplus oil. The pan can be used on completion of this procedure.

Liked this Japanese Tamagoyaki Bento Recipe? Why not try our irresistible Okonomiyaki Recipe for Bento.