spam musubi recipe

Teriyaki Spam Musubi. Pan-fried spam with a homemade teriyaki glaze packed with sushi rice and wrapped in roasted seaweed. A delicious Hawaiian Japanese fusion dish that is easy to make at home. If you love teriyaki spam and rice with nori, then this is the dish for you!

Teriyaki Spam Musubi

sushi rice (uncooked)

spam (low sodium kind)

nori

vegetable oil (for frying spam)

soy sauce ((not light or dark!))

mirin

tbsp sake (cooking kind)

tsp white granulated sugar

tsp salt

tsp rice vinegar

Rinse your uncooked rice in water a few times. Then boil it until cooked. Season hot rice with sugar, salt and rice vinegar. Cover and let it cool down as you prepare other ingredients.

Lay spam flat on the cutting board. Slice spam into 5 equal pieces. Clean and reserve the spam can for later.

In a bowl, combine regular soy sauce, mirin, and sake.

In a pan over medium heat, add vegetable oil and fry spam for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side, until pinkish golden.

Pour sauce over spam and let it fry in sauce for 1 minute on each side. Remove spam from hot pan and transfer to an oiled plate to prevent the spam from sticking to plate. Do not leave spam in pan as the teriyaki glaze will start to burn it with the residual heat.

Line the spam can with a large piece of plastic wrap.

Divide seasoned rice into 5 equal portions using a wet rice paddle. Scoop 1 portion into base of lined spam can. Cover the rice with the plastic wrap. Then using your fingers, pack the rice into base of can until top is flat. Be careful not to cut yourself along the edges of the can, feel free to use a utensil to help you with this step.

Remove the rice from can by pulling the cling film out and unwrap it.

Cut your nori sheet horizontally into 5 equal sized strips.

Wet your hands and place a piece of glazed spam on top.

Wrap a strip of nori around it. Repeat process for remaining ingredients. Enjoy!

https://embed.mediavine.com/videos/wjpvxwpxsubaus1e3ahk

Spam musubi is one of my all-time favorite comfort foods. Growing up on the mainland meant that my family was far away from our extended family in Hawaii. Whenever my mom pulled out her spam musubi mold, we knew we were in for a comforting treat that would transport us back to Hawaii after the first bite. Mom seriously makes the Best-Ever Spam Musubi – this is her recipe.
In my experience, there are 3 secrets to making the best spam musubi:

Nail the ratio of spam &amp; rice: These 2 components need the perfect balance, so you'll notice that we slice each can of spam into 7 pieces – not 8, not 6…7!!! – &amp; this is exactly why. 
Make a killer spam musubi sauce: Mom's is a simple teriyaki-style sauce made with a couple of pantry ingredients. When you pan-fry it with spam, it turns into a gloriously glossy &amp; thick glaze that clings to the spam beautifully &amp; its sweetness provides the perfect balance for the rich, savory flavor of spam. 
Cook the rice well &amp; handle it with care: Musubi rice needs to have the perfect light-yet-sticky texture. We love medium-grain Calrose rice, but sushi rice works just fine if that's what is most readily available to you. 

(Note! ⇢ If spam &amp;/or musubi are new-to-you, be sure to read through the blog post to learn more about their delicious history in Hawaii!) 
While nothing beats a warm spam musubi on a beach in Hawaii, I think my family's spam musubi is the next best thing. If you've never made homemade spam musubi before, this is a great recipe to start with! We wanted it to be as approachable as possible, so the directions are very detailed &amp; we've provided step-by-step photos to help you along the way.
We hope you love it as much as we do! ♡


Best-Ever Spam Musubi (Step-by-Step Photos)

Calrose rice,

nonstick cooking spray

sushi nori

furikake

dark brown sugar, can sub light brown sugar

soy sauce

sesame oil

plastic wrap or wax paper

rice cooker

double musubi mold

Cook the rice: Place the rice in a fine mesh colander &amp; rinse it well with hot water until the water runs clear. This will take a good minute or two – feel free to jostle the rice with your hands as you rinse it to help speed this process along. Once the water runs clear, drain any excess water from the rice, then transfer it to a rice pot. Following the ratios provided on the rice package directions, add water to the rice pot. Cover &amp; cook. Once the rice is done, let it steam &amp; rest for 5-10 minutes before assembling Spam musubi.

Prepare the teriyaki sauce: 

Combine all listed ingredients in a small bowl, whisking to combine. Microwave for 30 seconds &#8211; 1 minute to dissolve the sugar. Stir to combine then set aside to cool slightly. (Alternatively, you can combine all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium-low heat &amp; cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved, 4-5 minutes.)

Pan-fry the Spam &amp; glaze with the teriyaki sauce: Place a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Very lightly spritz with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange the sliced Spam in a single layer in the skillet. Cook 4-5 minutes, until lightly browned. Flip the Spam. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the prepared teriyaki sauce over each slice of Spam. Cook 2-3 minutes longer. Repeat flipping &amp; spooning sauce on the Spam 1-2 more times, until the Spam is as browned &amp; saucy as you like &amp; the teriyaki sauce is reduced to a thick glaze. Remove from the heat &amp; set aside for Spam musubi assembly.

Prep the nori &amp; musubi mold

Place a large piece of plastic wrap or wax paper on your work surface. Grab a piece of sushi nori. Sushi nori has 2 distinct sides – one is rough &amp; textured while the other is shiny &amp; smoother – &amp; is ever-so-slightly rectangular. Place a piece of sushi nori on top of the plastic wrap/wax paper such that its shiny &amp; smooth side is facing down &amp; one of its slightly longer sides is closest to you. Place the outer box of the musubi mold on the center of the nori such that its long edge runs parallel with the longer sides of the nori.

Build the Spam musubi: Use a rice paddle to scrape a small amount of rice off the top of the rice pot. Be sure to scrape off the top rather than digging, which compacts the rice – we want our musubi rice nice &amp; light! Gently add the rice to the musubi mold, filling it almost entirely full. As you fill the mold, use the edge of the rice paddle to gently pat the rice down into a uniform level but, again, avoid pressing down on the rice too much. Once the mold is filled with rice, sprinkle a generous amount of furikake seasoning over top, about 1-2 tablespoons. Arrange two slices of the teriyaki Spam side by side in the musubi mold.

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Assemble &amp; wrap the Spam musubi: Place the musubi mold lid on top of the Spam. Press down on the lid firmly, starting at the center &amp; working your way to the outer edge. Once you reach the outer edge, press down on the lid firmly with your thumbs &amp; pointer fingers while using your pinky fingers to simultaneously pull the musubi mold box up. Set the box to the side, then remove the musubi mold top off of the Spam &amp; set aside. Gently-yet-firmly pull the side of the nori sheet facing you up &amp; tautly fold it over the Spam – the nori should stick to the Spam. Brush a little water over the opposite edge of nori, then tautly roll the musubi away from you, sealing the musubi shut. The musubi should be seam side down at this point. Set aside – it will continue to tighten up as it sits. 

Repeat Steps 4-6

with the remaining rice &amp; teriyaki Spam. Your last musubi will only have one piece of Spam, so simply slice the sushi nori in half crosswise &amp; assemble the musubi using only one half of the mold.

 Slice &amp; serve

Run a sharp knife under warm water, then slice the double musubis in half crosswise (between the two pieces of Spam), creating 2 individual Spam musubi. Be sure to rinse the knife with warm water before slicing the next musubi – this helps create a clean cut. Enjoy immediately!

Made them twice. These are amazingly, amazingly delicious!!

Hawaiian spam musubi is the ideal savory treat when you are on the go or packing for a picnic. This recipe features sweet and savory caramelized spam which lays on a fluffy bed of seasoned sushi rice wrapped with crispy roasted seaweed.

Hawaiian Spam Musubi

dry short grain sushi rice

water

rice vinegar

sugar

salt

can 12 oz Spam

seaweed

Prepare the rice. Wash the rice until the water runs clear. Add the washed rice and water in your rice cooker and cook. In a small mixing bowl, mix together the rice vinegar, sugar and salt until the sugar dissolves. Then drizzle the mixture over the cooked rice and carefully mix it with a rice paddle until combined.

Cook the spam. Slice the spam into 1/4 inch thick slices. Using a medium sized skillet on medium-high heat, cook the spam until browned and crispy on the edges for about 4 minutes, flip after 2 minutes for even cooking.

Caramelize the spam. In a small bowl, mix the soy sauce and water until combined. Turn the heat to medium low heat and sprinkle the sugar evenly over the spam and flip the spam to evenly coat, about 30 seconds. Next, pour in the soy sauce mixture. Swirl the sauce and flip the spam to evenly distribute. Then let the spam gently simmer until the sauce dissolves around 4 minutes. Flip the spam slices every 2 minutes.

Assemble. Line the inside of your Spam can with plastic wrap. Add about 1/2 cup of rice into the lined spam container and gently press down to fill the mold. Pull the rice out of the mold. Place a slice of caramelized spam on top of the nori strip at the bottom, then place the rice on top of the spam, then roll up the spam and rice wrapping the nori around it. Secure the end by wetting with water and place the musubi with the seam side down. Continue with remaining pieces. For a breakfast musubi option, add a rolled egg omelette.

Can’t get to Hawaii? Fill the void with this Spam and egg musubi. Crispy air-fried Spam, fluffy eggs, sushi rice, and a sweet soy glaze that ties it all together. Fast, easy, and delicious.

Hawaiian Spam and Egg Musubi

Sushi rice

Spam (12 oz)

eggs

black pepper

green onions (optional)

nori sheets

Furikake (optional)

Slice the Spam

into 8 equal pieces. The best way to ensure even slices is to cut it in half (2 pieces), then cut each half in half again (now you have 4 pieces), and finally cut each of those in half one more time to make 8 even slices. They are now the perfect thickness for musubi.

Air fry

No need to spray oil into the air fryer. Air fry at 400°F for 15 minutes, until golden and crispy. I didn&#8217;t need to flip in my air fryer and I still got a great crust on both sides. However, give it a check at the half way mark and flip if you think it&#8217;s needed.

Make the sweet soy glaze

In a small bowl, combine light soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil. Brush sauce onto cooked Spam slices and set aside.

Cook the Eggs

Crack eggs into a bowl, add chopped green onions (if using), and season with salt and pepper. Whisk well. Heat a bit of oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat, then pour in the eggs. Gently stir and push the eggs around so the uncooked parts flow into the empty spots in the pan. Cook until the eggs are just set. Divide into 8 equal portions. Set aside.

Cut the Nori

Stack the sheets together and fold it into thirds along the long side, then either tear gently along the fold or use scissors for a more precise cut. You will have 9 pieces, but we only need 8. Save the last sheet in case of tearing. If not needed at the end, enjoy it as a well deserved snack.

Assemble

Divide rice into 8 equal portions. Prepare a small bowl of water to dip your fingers in. This helps keep the rice from sticking to your hands. When assembling the musubi, I like to build it top-down with nori first, then spam, egg, furikake (if using), rice, and more furikake. Remove mold, fold nori over and wet edge with water to seal. Repeat until you have all 8 done. Picture tutorial below:

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