Retro to present day.

I was going to sub out the main product of this nibble until I saw my most recent issue of Food and Wine where they showcased, wait for it, SPAM. Yup. Sizzle, Pork and MMMM. So I figured if it is good enough for Food and Wine, it is good enough for Nibbles and Bits. If SPAM isn’t your thing, I will have a few subs at the end of the post.

As funny aside, we had a LUAU party at my condo here in Florida and we purchased a case of SPAM to use as centerpieces along with pineapples and palm fronds. We told the guests that the pineapples and SPAM were party favors to anyone who wanted to take them. Guests were fighting over the SPAM. Pineapples went unloved. Go figure.

In Hawaii, where for some reason post WW11 the product became a staple of the diet, SPAM is treated with far more respect than it is here on the mainland. In fact, there is a dish, Musubi, where SPAM is the principal ingredient. And that is what I have for you here today. Here are your basic ingredients. Count ’em, 2.

That’s it. And that 90 second rice can be replaced by more traditional 20 minute rice, but it works really well in this little nibble. Cook the rice according to package directions. Decan SPAM and slice. Brown, or as the commercial says, sizzle until your desired crispness.

Mold the rice using whatever you have as a mold. I actually have a musubi mold because I am a kitchen toy junkie, one can be purchased on Amazon or at an Asian market for very little and can be used for dishes other than musubi when you want to mold something. Your finished dish will look like this.

I served it for breakfast with some fresh mango. In Hawaii, they wrap it with nori but I plated it just like this. If you like SPAM, it was delicious, but if you don’t, here are some options. Thick mortadella sliced across the diameter and browned and placed atop rice. If meat is not in your diet, you can use a thickly sliced king oyster mushroom or portabella mushroom browned the same way and placed on the rice. If you use the mushrooms or the mortadella, you can top that with a bit of balsamic vinegar that has been boiled down to a syrup. Don’t like mango? Use pineapple. Or thinly sliced apple. Think of what goes with pork and use that with the SPAM or any of the other subs. And there you have. Like the song says, everything old is new again. Enjoy!