Spam

Ingredients

The dish

• 1 tinSpam, about 340 g, chilled
• 1 tbspneutral oil
• 1onion, sliced
• 2 clovesgarlic, sliced
• 1 tbspsoy sauce
• 1 tspsugar
• black pepper

To serve

• hot white rice
• a fried egg
• sliced chilli and lime

Directions

1. Chill the tin thoroughly before opening. Cold Spam turns out in one clean block and slices neatly; at room temperature it smears and tears.
2. Cut it into slices about 8 mm thick — thin enough to crisp through, thick enough to hold together when turned.
3. Heat a dry or barely oiled pan over medium-high heat. Spam is around a third fat and it renders plenty of its own, so a well-oiled pan just makes it greasy.
4. Lay the slices in and leave them alone for three to four minutes, until the underside is deep brown and crusted at the edges. Moving them early is what stops them browning.
5. Turn once and crisp the other side, then lift them out.
6. Fry the onion and garlic in the rendered fat left in the pan for five minutes until soft and golden, then stir in the soy sauce and sugar and let it bubble to a glaze.
7. Return the slices, turn them in the glaze for a minute, and grind over black pepper. Do not add salt — the tin brings more than enough.
8. Serve over hot rice with a fried egg, chilli and lime.

Technique

• Chill it, slice it thick, and leave it alone in the pan. Those three things are the whole technique.
• No added salt and very little oil. Spam supplies both.
• It arrived with wartime shipping and displaced fish and local food across the Pacific — the recipe is cooked with that history rather than around it.

Substitutions

• Tinned corned beef or luncheon meat, both cooked the same way.
• Pineapple in the glaze, which is common across the Pacific.

Variations

• Spam musubi presses a glazed slice onto rice and wraps it in nori.
• Diced into fried rice or a noodle soup.

History

Arrived with American forces and shipping in the Pacific war era, becoming a Nauruan staple as imports replaced local food.

Frequently asked questions

What is Spam?

Spam is a charcuterie & cured from Nauru: tinned spiced pork fried in slices and eaten with rice. Arrived with American forces and shipping in the Pacific war era, becoming a Nauruan staple as imports replaced local food.

How long does Spam take to make?

Spam takes 5 min of preparation and 15 min of cooking. The recipe makes serves 4. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Spam?

Yes, within limits. Tinned corned beef or luncheon meat, both cooked the same way. Pineapple in the glaze, which is common across the Pacific.

What is the most important thing to get right in Spam?

Return the slices, turn them in the glaze for a minute, and grind over black pepper. Do not add salt — the tin brings more than enough.