A few years ago we were in Hawaii with friends and had to cut our trip short. As a consolation prize, our friends gave us a can of Spam. Have you ever eaten Spam? We could not recall a time when we had, but thought it might be worth a try someday. Well, that day is here (she says with great trepidation) and trying to figure out how to use it and cook it was another thing. Not being one to shy away from a challenge, especially one involving food, I decided to go for it!
Why do people associate SPAM with Hawaii? “According to the SPAM website, the island’s love affair with Spam began in World War II, when GIs were served the salty luncheon meat because it didn’t require refrigeration and had a long shelf life. The Hormel Corporation, which manufactures Spam, provided 15 million cans to Allied troops every week.”
What is Spam really? The acronym stands for Special Processed American Meat.
I still need to know what Spam was made of (do I want to know)? What I learned is that “SPAM is not the preservative-packed mystery meat you might think it is. In fact, SPAM only contains six ingredients! And the brand’s website lists them all. They are: pork with ham meat added (that counts as one), salt, water, potato starch, sugar, and sodium nitrite.” [Hormel Foods]
Okay then, let’s get started. What to make? I checked the internet and here are a few suggestions I found:
- Spam Mac and Cheese
- Hot Hawaiian Burgers
- Sweet and Spicy Brussels Sprouts with Spam
- Spicy Caramelized Spam Scallion Pasta
- Hawaiian Street Corn with Spam & Pineapple
- Scalloped Potatoes, Spam and Cheese
- Spam Filled Fried Doughnuts
Slice the Spam fairly thin.
Fry it with a scant bit of olive oil.
Create a mock Eggs Benedict by layering English muffin, Spam, poached egg, and sprinkle of cheese.
BTW, Spamalot is a highly irreverent parody of the Arthurian legend from the Monte Python movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail. The musical rang in my head as I was making this recipe.
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- 2 English muffins
- 4 slices Spam
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
- Extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Poach 4 eggs in water.
- Fry Spam in scant amount of olive oil until barely crispy.
- Toast English muffins.
- Assemble egg dish by layering an English muffin with Spam, then a poached egg and topped with cheddar cheese.
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