Spam musubis really took off after that and the rest is culinary history. HuffPost is part of Verizon Media.
Because Hawaii had a large military presence, there was lots of Spam in Hawaii. However, I eventually realized that there are certain things that make Spam Spam. There’s a subtle, but important distinction between a musubi (or rice ball) versus a sushi. Like I said: Just be true to yourself and your food. For Hawaiians, for better or for worse, this means loving Spam. And if you're a chef in Hawaii who strives to showcase the island's true edible bounty, you will undoubtedly have a strange relationship with Spam. Find out more about how we use your information in our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy. Local residents regularly consume them in significant amounts. And you know that’s not the case in a Spam musubi. Facade of new Spam Museum Spam is celebrated in Austin, Minnesota, home to the Spam Museum. Otherwise, it just logically wouldn’t be a Spam musubi. Since fresh meat was difficult to get to the soldiers on the front, World War II saw the largest use of Spam. During the following years, the local populace invented numerous culinary creations utilizing this canned wonder, however musubi will always be first in their hearts. First, one prepares sushi rice differently from the rice in musubis. Through him, I've really understood the complicated relationship that Hawaii's people—including myself—have with Spam.
I know for a fucking fact that you ate Spam—it's part of our culture! Ask your nearest Hawaiian friend to see what I am talking about.
Second, chefs usually use raw seafood in sushi. Austin is also the location of final judging in the national Spam recipe competition. The museum tells the history of the Hormel company, the origin of Spam, and its place in world culture, including Hawaii where Spam is eaten daily by locals. There are ways to blend old with new when it comes to Hawaii's food traditions. According to reports, the inventor of the spam musubi was a Mrs. Mitsuko Kaneshiro. We cut it up, we sauteed it, we simmered with shoyu and sugar; we turned into something else that was beautiful. During that time, Hawaii was a territory of the United States (that’s a long story in itself). My grandmother hoarded up to five cases of Spam at a time. Trust us, there is a difference. Yes, it is a canned meat product that can last forever and it has a bad reputation everywhere else in the world, but to the people of Hawaii, Spam meant precious nourishment in a time of uncertainty and chaos. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Your Privacy Controls. Note that it definitely has to be a Spam brand of luncheon meat. Spam musubis really took off after that and the rest is culinary history. No one is going to claim that Spam scooped right out of the can and eaten as-is is delicious—it's fucking disgusting. Thus, they prepared it with an immense amount of love. And we’ll show you some of the best places in town where you can try them out.
While others add furikake (a Japanese condiment) to the rice.
Some like to jazz up their Spam musubis by marinating their Spam in teriyaki sauce before frying it. The military consumed a ton of Spam during the war years. The History Behind Why Hawaiians Are Obsessed With Spam Hawaii consumes 7 million cans of Spam a year and there are only 1.42 million of us currently living in … She first made it for her children. It doesn't have to be black or white.
There’s nothing as uniquely Hawaiian as the Spam musubi. GIs started eating Spam for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
I remember when Hormel tried to introduce this food service-friendly, ten-pound-package of Spam, but it didn't work out. I have nothing but respect for all of you DIY-Spammers, but it is just not what we do at my two restaurants and catering company. This means that damn can and that damn flavor. But it’s not.
I've made a Spam stir-fry with local, organic veggies. People loved the taste, and Hawaii eventually "adopted" Spam. When Hawaii food historian Arnold Hiura traveled to California to talk about …
A favorite Hawaiian way to eat Spam is in the form of a musubi (pronounced moo-soo-bee, with no accent).
They capitalize on the fact that Hawaii has the highest per capita consumption of Spam in the world. Interested in trying some Spam musubis in Hawaii? Some of my earliest memories are hearing about my grandmother pounding tannic-ass bamboo shoots that she cut herself from the riverbed to eat with Spam. We cut it up, we sauteed it, we simmered with shoyu and sugar; we turned into something else that was beautiful. Spam musubi was actually created in the Japanese internment camps on the mainland of the United States during the war although it is often credited to Hawaii because of its prevalence. She first made it for her children. But then she started selling them out of a local drug store in Honolulu during the 1980s to make some money. Hawaii consumes 7 million cans of Spam a year and there are only 1.42 million of us currently living in the islands—let that sink in a little bit. We had government-mandated blackouts, we had food rationing, and food restrictions, which we felt the pressure of even more because we were away from the mainland.