Insulated lunch boxes
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Yup agreed. Anyway, I will not let DD bring perishables like yoghurt or even seafood (except fish cake) to school. If you go by NEA’s guideline of food being consumed within 4 hrs at SG room temperature, the purpose of the thermal bag is just to prolong this 4 hrs. Try to limit food to those that are dry or seasoned. E.g fried noodles should be dry and not those with gravy. Onigiri are excellent choices too. Jap food are excellent choices as they are designed to be kept in a bento.
The Daiso bag should be paired with ice packs (or frozen juice) to keep cool as its own insulation is not that good. -
Appreciate all your advices! I will certainly take note of the duration between when my food is prepared and the time it is consumed, usually it’s about 4-5 hours in my experience. Yup i was thinking of dried food too like fried rice, bee hoon noodles which i can easily make in the morning before i bring to school.
I understand the need to bring along ice packs to keep the food cool due to the daiso bag being not that good in insulation, however if i were to be staying in air-conditioned room throughout the morning, together with the ice pack, would it be able to be kept longer? -
crazymee184:
I understand the need to bring along ice packs to keep the food cool due to the daiso bag being not that good in insulation, however if i were to be staying in air-conditioned room throughout the morning, together with the ice pack, would it be able to be kept longer?
Yes. -
Recently, I got hooked on preparing TLC bentos.
Per above discussion on ice-packs: May I know why we need to keep the lunch boxes cool? Shouldn't we buy thermal boxes to keep the food warm instead?
I need to keep my son's lunch warm for 4 hrs. But not sure if those Made-in-Japan stainless steel thermal boxes are too heavy. Anyone bought those?
I bought a thermal bag from Daiso yesterday to contain my lock&lock box...
How to prevent cut fruit from being \"heated up\" by the warm savoury food? I hv those bento boxes with partition, but it doesn't stop the rice from warming up my fruit...:(
Need to buy separate cooler bag? Any tips? -
To keep hot food safe, it should be kept at 70C and above. For most small kids, this may be too hot to be safely handled, so I think most parents prefer to provide a cold lunch rather than a hot one.
If you want to provide both hot and cold food, I think you need to separate them. But won’t that make it bulky and heavy for a young child to carry? I went the other way to save them carrying heavy lunchboxes - my kids only brought food that could be held at room temperature, and I told them to get used to the canteen asap. While overseas, the school they went to had a fridge and microwave oven, so that made the options wider. -
jetsetter:
I think you have to experiment with the weight to strike a balance. I only pack warm food occasionally and put it in a small thermos flask. Planning to buy the smaller Tiger soup thermos with wide mouth which is just right for a young child. It is not heavy. You can then add a separate tub of fruits. Put both into a small bag.Recently, I got hooked on preparing TLC bentos.
Per above discussion on ice-packs: May I know why we need to keep the lunch boxes cool? Shouldn't we buy thermal boxes to keep the food warm instead?
I need to keep my son's lunch warm for 4 hrs. But not sure if those Made-in-Japan stainless steel thermal boxes are too heavy. Anyone bought those?
I bought a thermal bag from Daiso yesterday to contain my lock&lock box...
How to prevent cut fruit from being \"heated up\" by the warm savoury food? I hv those bento boxes with partition, but it doesn't stop the rice from warming up my fruit...:(
Need to buy separate cooler bag? Any tips?
Temperature wise, I bring it to boil and then let it cool to just a little warmer than what he normally takes before closing it. No tasting in between or everything may go bad.
On hot days, cold food may be preferred though. If starting with cooked food, let it cool completely if possible before closing to prevent condensation. I will usually put the food under the fan while they are having breakfast and cover it up when ready to go.
(ps a friend does pack hot meals for dc's lunch and she uses Tiger tiered vacuum flask. Very good, I used it as well previously for myself. But I think it is too heavy for lower primary children.) -
slmkhoo:
Thanks for your advice:-)To keep hot food safe, it should be kept at 70C and above. For most small kids, this may be too hot to be safely handled, so I think most parents prefer to provide a cold lunch rather than a hot one.
If you want to provide both hot and cold food, I think you need to separate them. But won't that make it bulky and heavy for a young child to carry? I went the other way to save them carrying heavy lunchboxes - my kids only brought food that could be held at room temperature, and I told them to get used to the canteen asap. While overseas, the school they went to had a fridge and microwave oven, so that made the options wider.
I know! But my boy is sick of his canteen food already;( they hv pot luck every day at the canteen, so in order to let him join in the fun of sharing and food tasting, I hv to \" re-enter my kitchen\".
What sort of cold food can I prepare? Sushi n sandwiches? -
ammonite:
Ok noted! I hv a food jar from his tot years but it's kinda deep.
I think you have to experiment with the weight to strike a balance. I only pack warm food occasionally and put it in a small thermos flask. Planning to buy the smaller Tiger soup thermos with wide mouth which is just right for a young child. It is not heavy. You can then add a separate tub of fruits. Put both into a small bag.jetsetter:
Recently, I got hooked on preparing TLC bentos.
Per above discussion on ice-packs: May I know why we need to keep the lunch boxes cool? Shouldn't we buy thermal boxes to keep the food warm instead?
I need to keep my son's lunch warm for 4 hrs. But not sure if those Made-in-Japan stainless steel thermal boxes are too heavy. Anyone bought those?
I bought a thermal bag from Daiso yesterday to contain my lock&lock box...
How to prevent cut fruit from being \"heated up\" by the warm savoury food? I hv those bento boxes with partition, but it doesn't stop the rice from warming up my fruit...:(
Need to buy separate cooler bag? Any tips?
Temperature wise, I bring it to boil and then let it cool to just a little warmer than what he normally takes before closing it. No tasting in between or everything may go bad.
On hot days, cold food may be preferred though. If starting with cooked food, let it cool completely if possible before closing to prevent condensation. I will usually put the food under the fan while they are having breakfast and cover it up when ready to go.
(ps a friend does pack hot meals for dc's lunch and she uses Tiger tiered vacuum flask. Very good, I used it as well previously for myself. But I think it is too heavy for lower primary children.)
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