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The only thing better than a good recipe? When something's so easy to make that you don't even need one. Welcome to It's That Simple, a column where our staffers talk you through the process of making the dishes and drinks that they can make with their eyes closed.
The craving for Spam musubi always hits at the tail end of winter. (And, okay, plenty of other times of the year too.) But it’s that specific point in time—when the magic of snow has worn off and my fridge is full of cabbage and turnips and I just can’t deal with another hearty vegetable braise for dinner—when the feeling becomes undeniable. It’s then that I dive into my pantry, past the packets of instant ramen and Costco bags of dried fruit, until I find it, standing stalwart against the back wall, the ingredient that is always in season and always delightful: SPAM.
Say what you will of Spam, but you cannot deny that it tastes pretty good. And it reaches peak deliciousness when it’s fried in its own mystery meat fat, slicked with soy sauce, layered with hot white rice and furikake (Japan’s savory sprinkles), and wrapped in earthy, crackly nori (Japanese dried seaweed). This, my friends, is Spam musubi, an all-occasion, all-season Hawaiian snack. And this is what I’m eating tonight.
Spam musubi is everywhere in Hawaii, where my dad grew up and much of my extended family still lives. It’s on regular rotation at any family gathering, from New Year’s fetes to football games. My mom, who is not from Hawaii, eventually added Spam musubi to her own repertoire, making it for my elementary school class parties and any gathering in the Inamine household. When I moved to New York, she made sure I had a Spam musubi mold—not entirely necessary for making musubi but helpful for tuning them out faster, more even, and more compact; people in Hawaii do not joke around—so I could live that Spam musubi lifestyle even thousands of miles away from the homeland. Now it’s become the antidote to my winter cooking blues, an absolute unit of carbs and calories that’s unabashedly salty and fatty and joy-filled. And here’s how it can become yours too.
Start by cooking about 2 cups of short-grain white rice on the stove or in a rice cooker. Any short-grain rice will do, but Japanese sushi rice is the move if you have some on hand. While that’s going on, open up 1 can of Spam (I go for low-sodium Spam, but there are SO many varieties you should choose what you like). Shimmy the Spam out of the container—but don’t toss the packaging just yet. Lay the meat on its side and slice longways into 6 to 8 planks (each piece should have round edges). The number of slices depends entirely on how thick you want your Spam to be (I prefer mine thinner).
Throw the Spam slices into a hot nonstick pan, frying and flipping until each side has patches of crispy golden brown deliciousness. Then turn off the heat and add a splash of soy sauce, letting the sugars in the sauce caramelize and cling to the fried Spam in a thick glaze (if the sauce starts to look burnt and smell toasty, dump everything onto a plate). Set the Spam aside and start tearing 3 to 4 nori sheets so they’re about the width of the can (usually it works to just rip the sheets in half). If you’d like to be very precise, you can use kitchen shears to cut a stack of sheets in half.
Once the rice is cooked and slightly cooled (it should be just warm enough to handle) and the Spam container rinsed, it’s time to assemble. Have ready a small bowl of water to help with sealing. Take 1 torn strip of nori and place 2 to 3 Tbsp. of cooked rice in the center (you can adjust your Spam-to-rice ratio; I like mine even). Smash down on the rice with the bottom side of the can so the rice is flat and Spam-container-shaped. Sprinkle some furikake over the rice (I like this brand because it’s less fishy and adds another dimension of nori flavor; you could also use toasted sesame seeds) and place 1 slice of Spam on top. Add a little more furikake and 2 to 3 more tablespoons of rice, then gently smash the second layer of rice with the can so the surface is even. Fold one side of the nori over the final rice layer. Dip a finger in the water, and rub the edge of the nori, then pull the second side over the first and press down to seal. Congrats: You’ve made your first Spam musubi! Repeat this process with the remaining Spam slices—then eat like a sandwich or cut the musubi bricks into thirds and press a little more furikake onto the cut sides, for bite-size servings, as my mom does.
Wrap any leftover pieces in plastic wrap and refrigerate them for up to 3 days. If you have any leftovers, that is. My guess is that, before you’ve even finished your first bite of Spam musubi, you’ll be browsing the web for a musubi maker of your own that will serve you all through winter (and beyond).
