Barans on display

Since today is a Saturday, I thought I'd share some of my favourite bento accessories - baran or dividers.

These lovely little things are most commonly found in sushi platters or trays, the little plastic grass pieces that divide up the different types of sushi. The plastic grass types are easily found in Daiso stores everywhere, and most have "antibacterial" labelled on them. Well, they're supposed to help keep your raw fish fresh. For a short time.

But many bento'ers (myself included), prefer to use silicone barans, for a few reasons.

1. They're not plastic

2. They're washable and reusable

3. They're more environmentally friendly since you don't throw them away after one use

4. They're thicker than the plastic ones, which is helpful when you want to fill up a bento box so the food doesn't move around

5. They come in lovely designs

Thanks to an alert from my friend Diane, I got my hands on the latest arrival of new silicone barans.

The one I like best (for now) is the packet in the bottom right of the pic - the silicone grass barans that look just like the plastic ones! Boy, have I been waiting for this! I grabbed the leaf ones (top right) because Takoyaki asked for them. There were also two other packets of flower barans, but we were not interested.

And here's my entire collection of barans. Most of them are from Daiso or another two-dollar shop.

I still have quite a number of reusable plastic ones, which are too cute to throw away. They're also thicker, unlike the plastic grass, which is not made to be reused. My husband has suggested that I use the plastic ones for some art and craft work with the kids (now why didn't I think of that?).

I can't wait to use my new barans!