Spam musubi is very popular in Hawaii. You can even find it at convenience and grocery stores already made for you. You'll find them at potluck parties, picnics, everywhere.
Musubi usually means a rice ball with nori (seaweed) around it. I don't even know if you need that slice of nori. The nori is wrapped around the spam and rice ball. (This photo is from Wikipedia.)
I always thought spam musubi was invented in Hawaii, but according to Honolulu Magazine it may have been invented in the internment camps.
According to Honolulu Magazine:
Just to be sure, the next time we get ourselves to California I'm going to look for spam musubi and see if they sell it there too. I'll bet you can find it in Las Vegas because people from Hawaii LOVE to go there.
I wonder if we could improve the spam musubi with some slices of cucumber or other kind of vegetable in between the spam and rice. Just thinking...
I always thought spam musubi was invented in Hawaii, but according to Honolulu Magazine it may have been invented in the internment camps.
According to Honolulu Magazine:
"Following the December 1941 Japanese attack on Oahu’s Pearl Harbor, more than 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry living on the U.S. mainland West Coast were imprisoned in remote internment camps in multiple states for the duration of World War II. With the pink canned meat prevalent, they crafted a sort-of Spam sushi, placing seasoned slices of it on white rice in a baking pan. Says Hiura, “They’d cut it, serve it and that was the forerunner to what we know as the Spam musubi.”Wikipedia does not mention this history. They say it originated in Hawaii. I'm thinking the mainland Japanese Americans must have invented the baking pan spam musubi, but Hawaii can still lay claim to the spam musubi as we know it now.
Just to be sure, the next time we get ourselves to California I'm going to look for spam musubi and see if they sell it there too. I'll bet you can find it in Las Vegas because people from Hawaii LOVE to go there.
I wonder if we could improve the spam musubi with some slices of cucumber or other kind of vegetable in between the spam and rice. Just thinking...
We lived in California during the war. The third generation Japanese family that owned our supermarket, were incarcerated like that for the duration of the war and they never received their market back after the Japanese surrendered. They were treated about as bad as our government treated the Native Americans, whose country we stole. We broke every treaty we made with the Native Americans. That is much like our ongoing interference in other country's governments. I often wonder how our government would like it if another country decided to choose our leaders for us and interfere in our government's decisions .
ReplyDeleteSometimes the USA went overboard, and the internment of Japanese during WWII and the disruption of lives was one of those times. However, it cannot be undone and broken lives moved on. I am so glad to live in these times and this country, on this island.
DeletePineapple? LOL
ReplyDeleteI love spam but spam doesn't love me.
There are some Hawaiian fast food places here in Fresno that have this on their menu. I don't like nori and I don't like Spam so it's not a dish for me. Our granddaughter loves cold sticky rice wrapped up in nori, though, so I keep sheets of the stuff on hand here for her.
ReplyDeleteInventions often have more than one place of origin. Would make sense that it's predecessor originated in those awful camps
ReplyDeleteit looks like its grilled,, we have something called Klik here in Canada, its the same as Spam, very high in fat but Garry likes it grilled then on a toasted sandwich with mustard,,
ReplyDeleteWell, since I don't eat pork, I guess I'll have to take your word on whether it really tastes good or not. I can remember the taste of spam from my childhood, though, and I sure don't remember thinking it was good. But the history lesson of how the musubi came to be is very interesting indeed :-)
ReplyDeleteThere are some shops here that make musubi (the real musubi shape) filled with goteborg or chorizo and wrapped in nori. Those are great, too. But my favorite is with an ume in the center, and wrapped in nori. Great beach and picnic food!
ReplyDeleteSpam is not something I find very appetizing. My daughter says that it is big in China though.
ReplyDeleteI kind of like spam musubi. I think spam is too salty but it's good having after long walk, swim, drive...so satisfying. Nice post!
ReplyDeleteInteresting but sad story of the origin. I've never had it that way but I do enjoy Spam. My dad, during the war worked, in Alaska building air strips. He said Spam was almost the only the meat available.
ReplyDeleteThis looks good if not healthy.
ReplyDeleteI've never seen it here but then I've never heard of it before. We eat a small amount of rice but mostly potatoes.
ReplyDeleteAdding almost anything would improve anything with Spam for me. I am a little prejudiced about that canned meat product.
ReplyDeleteI never liked spam but remember it being around when I was a little girl...
ReplyDeleteWe never ate Spam when I was growing up, and I always thought of it as something to avoid. I was very surprised to discover how popular it is in Hawaii.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds great!
ReplyDeleteALOHA
ComfortSpiral
(\__/)
(='.'=)
(")_(")
I really think that it was invented recently here in Hawaii rather than the internment camps. Growing up, we just had musubis (triangles of rice with nori wrap) and in the early 80's, I saw my very first Spam musubi at a picnic and thought that it was just the bomb! After that, it became the rage and the norm - a meal wrapped in Saran wrap that could go anywhere.
ReplyDeleteI like it with carrot or celery sticks - separately.
Hawaii is like the Spam capitol of the world. I even cook it with kimchee as a meal with hot rice, yum!
I think your idea of adding a slice of cucumber is inspired....
ReplyDeleteMy son likes spam, but no one else in our family does.
Umm...no, thank-you.
ReplyDeleteMy father claimed to have been fed so much spam in the army mess during WWII that it was not allowed in our house. I have inherited his severe prejudice.
I'm with Olga!
ReplyDeleteSuch a terrible history of the treatment of people by people. It makes me so sad. We're still arguing over niqabs suring our election stuff. Horrible prejudice. I loved my Muslim students, who mostly wore hijabs, none in the full-body niqabs.
Spam was what we ate at the end of the month when the money ran out in my family! I think I will pass, but I did enjoy the history.
ReplyDelete