5 Speedy Meals Our Editors Make With Spam

Each month in Well Stocked, our staff shares unfussy recipe ideas that you can call upon any day of the week. Because yes, our editors love to cook, but sometimes we need to get dinner on the table 12 minutes ago. That’s when we look to pantry and fridge staples that can quickly morph into delicious meals. This month, it’s all about Spam.

On this day, 89 years ago, Spam was born. A block of seasoned, ground pork with ham, packed into a 12-ounce can. The product became a global phenomenon, shipped overseas to feed Allied troops during World War II. But even after the war, its popularity kept growing. In 2001, a Spam museum opened its doors in Minnesota, the home of its manufacturing company, Hormel. (The gift shop even started selling official canjos, one-string instruments made from empty Spam cans.) In 2005, Monty Python’s Spamalot musical debuted. In 2012, a mustachioed mascot was created.

Designed to last years in the pantry, it’s earned a permanent place in kitchens across the world. Cooks have found endless ways to use it. Bundled with fluffy white rice and a delicate nori ribbon to make musubi. Turned into an elegant hors d’oeuvre with a wedge of Brie and a stubby cornichon. Even transformed into an unexpected salty-sweet dessert (see chef Harold Villarosa’s Spam doughnuts). And that’s barely scratching the surface. Read on to see all the ways our editors are cooking with Spam.

SPAM Classic, 7 oz Cans, (Pack of 12) – Fully Cooked Pork with Ham, Gluten-Free, Shelf-Stable

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Spam is not unlike tofu. Yes (I know) it’s meat, but it soaks up a remarkable amount of flavor just like the soy-based product. Because of this, it’s a wonderful canvas for saucy stir-frys. Lately, I’ve been making this broccoli and Spam one. I’ll cut my spam into thin strips, crisp it in a skillet, and remove it from the pan. I’ll then add in broccoli trees (I purposefully include a good amount of stem) and cook them over high heat until they deepen in color. Mix in rice, the browned Spam, and a tamari-ginger sauce bolstered with a touch of cinnamon. If I’ve got a few minutes to spare, I’ll fry up shallots for a toasty finish. If not, it still hits. —Nina Moskowitz, associate editor, cooking

Every so often, on a weekend morning, I like to indulge in a Hawaiian breakfast. I usually have a can of low-sodium Spam hanging out in my pantry that I’ll crack open and slice into thin planks. From there, I add a dot of neutral oil to a pan (you don’t need much) and fry up the Spam until crisp and golden brown on both sides. In the same pan, I’ll crack an egg and watch it bubble and spat in the pork fat before sliding it onto a plate alongside a heap of white rice. For me, this breakfast isn’t complete without a healthy squirt of sriracha squiggled across the entire plate. —June Kim, executive editor

When I have a can of Spam and a free morning, I make a riff on a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich. I sear a thick slice of Spam in a cast-iron skillet until crisped, then place it on a toasted English muffin, upon which I’ve laid out a slice of sharp white cheddar or American cheese. The warm ham melts the cheese while I quickly “framble” an egg in the pan. Then, a drizzle of maple syrup. (Sometimes I skip the syrup and add salt, pepper, and a squirt of ketchup like a proper BEC.) It’s comforting, warm, and salty-sweet—an ideal weekend breakfast. —Rebecca Firkser, Test Kitchen editor

For those evenings when you open the fridge to find yourself clean out of pancetta or guanciale—though you’d spent the day dreaming of carbonara—there is Spam. When cut into small pieces, it renders and crisps not dissimilarly from its Italian cured pork counterparts. My method is mostly by the book: I salt my pot of water to boil spaghetti, and beat an egg with grated Pecorino and a few cracks of black pepper. I also add a blob of soy paste to my sauce, and top the dish off with kizami nori and fine-sliced scallions, or slide an extra raw egg yolk in the center. The comfort the first bite brings is undeniable, and I’ve never been much of a purist anyhow. —Ingu Chen, art director

Fried rice is a near-weekly staple in my household—usually deployed towards the end of the week when the produce drawer starts to look sparse. I invariably have a jar of kimchi living in the fridge and cans of Spam are always in this Korean American’s pantry. So I turn to kimchi fried rice, and make it differently each time, depending on what I have (or don’t have). Crisp up a half can of diced Spam in a touch of sesame oil (just to get it going), then drop in super ripe kimchi with some of its juices, a dab of gochujang, and cold rice. It’s totally satisfying, especially with a runny egg on top. —Hana Asbrink, deputy food editor