By Jordan Lunasco
I never understood the American palette. Growing up, I was made fun of for eating Spam. We would eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I never thought twice about eating Spam until I brought it for lunch in grade school. Kids would say, “Ew! What is that?”
Spam grew popular during the Great Depression because it was cheap, had a long shelf life and did not need to be refrigerated. Spam was sent overseas to feed the troops, and slowly seeped into local cultures.
Whether you love it or never had it, here are some recipes from different cultures in order to bring your Spam to glam.
Spam Kelaguen: Guam
○ 1 can Spam
○ 2 large lemons
○ ½ cup grated coconut
○ 1 Thai chili chopped
○ ½ cup green onions chopped
○ ½ cup of cilantro chopped
Slice the spam into six pieces, then grill until golden brown. Chop it into small diced pieces and add into a bowl. Add lemon juice, peppers, cilantro, green onions and grated coconut. Mix well and enjoy!
Serves: 4 to 5 people
Pro Tip: Eat with tortilla chips. It’s like ceviche, but cheaper!
Spam Musubi: Hawaii
○ 1 can Spam
○ ¼ cup oyster sauce
○ ¼ cup soy sauce
○ ½ cup sugar
○ Nori
○ 6 cups cooked sushi rice
○ Musubi mold
Slice the spam into eight to 10 slices. In a bowl, mix the oyster sauce, soy sauce and sugar together until the sugar is fully dissolved. Add spam and marinade to a ziplock bag and marinate for 15 minutes. Fry spam until crispy. Place a strip of nori on a cutting board. Add rice to a musubi mold and place the rice on the nori. Pack the rice using the mold and add cooked Spam on top. Wrap the nori around like you’re wrapping a cute package. Eat it while it’s hot!
Serves: 8 to 10 people
Pro Tip: Save the marinade and use it as a dipping sauce!
Macaroni and Spam Soup with Fried Egg: Hong Kong
○ Elbow pasta
○ 1 can Spam
○ 2 eggs
○ 2 teaspoons wonton soup base mix
○ 1 tablespoon canola oil
○ ¼ teaspoon sesame oil
○ Green onion
Cook the pasta as per directions. Strain and set aside. Cut Spam into cubes and fry until crispy. In a pot, bring about 3 ½ cups of water to a boil and add the wonton mix. In a pan, add canola oil and fry the eggs sunny side up. Taste the soup for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Divide the cooked pasta into bowls and pour the soup base over the pasta. Top with Spam and eggs. Garnish with sesame oil and green onions.
Serves: 2 people
Pro Tip: Add veggies to make it fancy!
