Easy Bento tutorial for kids. Prep all ingredients. Using nori sheets, cut and shape parts for eyes (iris) whiskers & 4 equal squares of sheet for soot sprites (see pic #5). Cut cheese slice for the eye balls (slightly bigger than nori eye parts - iris) and one big round for Totoro belly.

The rice - cook rice. Place cooked rice in a bowl, mix in 3 tbsp of sushi vinegar, 2 tbsp of castor sugar and 1/2 tsp salt. Cool rice before using.
Variations:
1. You can flavour your rice with your preferred japanese seasonings.
2. You can also colour your rice with your preferred colours.

The octopus - cut mini hotdog diagonally (see pic 1, 2 & 3). See pic 4 & 5 to create octopus arms. To have equal arms, start by cutting or slicing the middle part all the way down. Then work on both sides. Curling the arms can be done by deep frying over medium heat OR in hot boiling water. Pic below is using hot water. For the eyes, you can use cut nori sheet or black sesame seeds by pricking holes using any sharp object (or tooth pick) before placing the black sesame seeds inside. See last pic

Totoro - decide on the size of your Totoro then place enough rice on a piece of cling wrap and cover it completely. Shape it into Totoro's body shape. See pic below. Next place the eyes, nose and the whiskers.

Susuwatari (the soot sprites) - cut a big piece of nori sheet into 4 equal squares. Cut corners of each square. See pic 1, 2 & 3. To make Susuwataris, place a piece of square on a big piece of cling wrap. Take enough rice (to your preferred size), then roll into small balls. Place each on the square. Wrap and use little water to glue the rice and nori square. Securely shape each using cling wrap. See pic below. Glue the eyes using mayonnaise or some water.

To assemble - Arrange your salad leaves in your bento box. Place the bigger characters first, then move on to all the smaller details. Arrange as desired. Bento is ready!

Itadakimasu 😊🙏🏻