Spam Musubi (VIDEO)

Spam Musubi on a plate with rice and seaweed.

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These authentic Spam Musubi are just like how they make them in Hawaii! They're perfect snacks to pack ahead of time or enjoy fresh with the sweet and savory glaze on the pan fried spam.

Prep Time15

Cook Time10

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Hawaiian

Servings: Musubi

Author: Chris Joe

Equipment

Musubi Press

Ingredients

Spam and Marinade

1/3 cup light soy sauce
1/3 cup Brown Sugar
2 tablespoons Mirin
1 12-ounce can SPAM, cut into ½ inch thick slabs about 6 slices

Rice and Seaweed

2 cups uncooked sushi rice
Nori Sheets nori sheets cut into strips 1 inch wide by ~9 inches long
furikake

Instructions

Rinse the rice until the water runs clear then cook the rice in a rice cooker.
To a dry pan add the spam slices and brown for 2 minutes per side over medium high heat until golden brown.
Mix the soy sauce, brown sugar, and mirin in a bowl. To a pan with the spam, add the sauce. Heat over high heat until the sugar is dissolved and the soy sauce has reduced by half and the sauce has turned into a sticky glaze. Turn off the heat.
Take a 1/2 cup of cooked rice and use a musubi mold or your hands to form it into a rectangle. Sprinkle the top side with furikake, followed by the spam, then wrap it with the strip of nori.

Notes

Ingredient Tips:

I recommend using short grain Japanese rice, also labeled as sushi rice, for best results. However, if you don't have it on hand or prefer to use a different rice, that is OK!
You can substitute white sugar for brown sugar.
If you don't have mirin, you can use rice vinegar and add a little bit of simple syrup (according to Food Network, about 1/2 teaspoon sugar per tablespoon of vinegar)
Furikake is a popular Japanese seasoning that is usually made of dried seaweed, salt, sugar, sesame seeds and other flavors. I've seen it for sale at my local Ralph's/Pavilions, Trader Joe's, Amazon, as well as all of the Asian grcoery stores. If you can't find it, you can skip it.
I recommend buying full sheets of Nori (Seaweed) so that you'll be able to cut the strips evenly fully wrap the Spam Musubis.

No Musubi Mold? No Problem! If you don't have a musubi mold, you can also use the Spam container as a mold - just make sure to clean it first! I recommend watching some tutorials online to get an idea of how before doing so.

Storage, Reheating, and Make Ahead Tips - If you want to make these ahead of time or have any leftover Spam Musubis, you can store them in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. I recommend wrapping each one individually in saran wrap (make sure they're cooled before doing so) but you can also store them in an airtight container. I personally do not prefer Spam Musubis that have been refrigerated - I think they taste best fresh. However, you can reheat any in the microwave for 60-90 seconds or until warmed through.

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