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1
Cook the short-grain rice with a small amount of sake and a pinch of salt added to the cooking water. Once cooked, spread the rice in a wide, shallow vessel and allow it to cool completely at room temperature. The test: the surface of the rice is dry to the touch and no steam rises from it.
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2
Prepare the tamagoyaki: beat the eggs with sake and a very small amount of seasoning. Cook in a rectangular omelette pan over moderate heat in successive thin poured layers, rolling each layer over the last to build a compact rectangular block. Allow to cool fully on a rack, then cut into neat portions. The test: the block holds its shape cleanly when sliced, with visible golden layers at the cut face.
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3
Grill the fish until cooked through and the surface has taken colour. Set aside on a rack to cool completely to room temperature. The test: the flesh is opaque throughout and no residual heat is felt when the back of the hand is held above it.
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4
Prepare the seasonal vegetables — blanched or lightly sautéed — and press away any excess moisture with a clean cloth before cooling. Drain the tsukemono of brine. The test: no visible pooling of liquid around any component when arranged on a flat surface.
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5
Pack the bento box in the correct proportions: rice occupying one third of the box (formed and rolled with sesame seed), protein one quarter, vegetables one quarter, pickles and condiments one eighth. This is the step where the dish lives or dies — every component must be at room temperature or below before the lid is closed; any residual warmth will produce condensation that makes every component wet and degrades both texture and flavour. The visual arrangement of the components is a deliberate act: each element is placed so that different colours, textures, and forms are distributed across the field of the box rather than grouped. The test: the lid closes without compressing the contents, and the interior, viewed from above, reads as a composed arrangement of distinct elements with no pooling of moisture.