As a child, I enjoyed the taste and texture of Spam, much like many other kids.
However, my mom never included Spam in our grocery shopping because she believed that factories might use lower-quality pork, possibly neck meat, in canned meat products like Spam. Perhaps due to this belief, even now, I often detect a subtle bad odor from canned Spam.
Fortunately, when my craving for Spam strikes, my dad steps in and prepares it at home using the finest quality ground pork he can find. After experimenting with and adjusting the ingredients over the years, my dad successfully replicated the distinctive savory, salty, and slightly smoky flavor of canned Spam using simple ingredients in our own kitchen.
My dad’s homemade Spam has a tender, bouncy, and slightly chewy texture. Each mouthful delivers a meaty, umami-rich flavor complemented by a touch of sweetness. Without exaggeration, the taste of homemade Spam surpasses that of any canned Spam available in the market.
You will never buy canned Spam again after trying my dad’s homemade Spam recipe!
Tips for How to Make Spam at Home:
1. High Quality Ground Pork: Choose fresh and organic ground pork for a better flavor profile. (I bought this high quality Berkshire Ground Pork from FreshGoGo.)
2. Use Ice Water: Adding ice water to ground pork can help improve its stickiness, making it easier to form a cohesive mixture. This is because ice water, during the mixing process, contributes to the formation of a meat gel, a gelatinous substance created by the combination of proteins and water. This meat gel helps retain moisture, preventing the minced meat from becoming too dry and enhancing its texture.
3. Red Yeast Rice Powder: The main purpose of red yeast rice powder is for aesthetic reasons and to maintain the color of Spam, with relatively minimal impact on the taste. When making Spam at home, the decision to use red yeast rice powder can be based on personal preference.
4. Stir the Pork Until Sticky: Stirring the pork help release proteins, allowing them to bind better together. This increases the stickiness of the meat, resulting in a smoother, chewier, and more resilient texture instead of a loose one after steaming.
What’s more, during stirring, the proteins in the meat can undergo denaturation and cross-linking, forming a gel-like structure. This structure helps retain moisture in the meat during cooking, preventing excessive drying.
you can use the flat beater attachment of a stand mixer to stir it at medium-low speed for 10 minutes. Alternatively, manual stirring with a spatula in one direction until the meat becomes sticky is an option, but utilizing a stand mixer not only saves time but also produces better results.
5. Steam the Meat: Steaming ensures that the meat is thoroughly cooked, eliminating any bacteria, parasites, or harmful microorganisms. During steaming, proteins in the meat undergo denaturation and cross-linking, forming a meat gel. This meat gel helps maintain the shape of the Spam, creating a denser texture and aiding in moisture retention during storage. Cover the container with Aluminum foil to prevent water from dripping into the meat.
6. Make Spam Musubi: After steaming and fully cooking the Spam, you can enjoy it in various ways. A favored method is making Spam musubi, a popular Hawaiian snack. To prepare, pan-fry Spam slices until they turn crispy on both sides. Next, lay a sheet of plastic wrap on a clean surface and position a piece of nori on it. Place a mold on top of the nori, fill it with a layer of rice, sprinkle rice seasoning, add a pan-fried Spam slice on top, and finally, wrap the nori around the rice and Spam.
EQUIPMENT
- Measuring spoons (Or kitchen scale)
- Stand mixer (Alternatively, you can manually stir the meat with a spatula for 10 minutes, but using a stand mixer can yield better results.)
- Food container (Mine is a 28oz rectangle ceramic container, you can also use a glass one of similar size.)
- Aluminum foil
- Food steamer (Or a large pot with lid and a steaming rack.)
INGREDIENTS
- 1 pound ground pork (450g – 500g)
- 5½ tbsp cornstarch (55g)
- 2 tbsp sugar (25g)
- ¾ tsp salt (4.5g)
- ½ tbsp oyster sauce (10g)
- 1 tsp soy sauce (5g)
- 1 tsp chicken bouillon powder (4g)
- 1 tsp white pepper powder (2g)
- ⅓ cup ice water (80g)
- 1 tsp red yeast rice powder (2g; For the red color; It’s optional)
INSTRUCTIONS
1. In a small bowl/cup combine all the listed ingredients, excluding the ground pork. Stir the mixture thoroughly with a spoon until well blended.
2. Transfer the mixture and ground pork into the bowl of a stand mixer. Use the flat beater to mix the pork at a medium-low speed for 10 minutes until the pork achieves a sticky consistency. (Alternatively, you can manually stir the pork with a spatula for 10 minutes, but using a stand mixer can yield better results. Once blended, the pork should cling to the sides of the bowl; when you flip the container over, the pork should not fall off.)
3. Coat the inner walls of a food container with a thin layer of vegetable oil. Transfer the pork into the oiled container. Wet your hands with water to prevent the meat from sticking. Use your hands to press down on the meat firmly, smoothing the surface and eliminating any air holes in the meatloaf.
4. Wrap the food container with aluminum foil. Put the container in a steamer and steam for 45 minutes. (In the image, you’ll notice two food containers as I doubled the recipe, using 2 pounds of pork.)
5. Allow the homemade Spam to cool before slicing. This homemade Spam is fully cooked, making it ready to enjoy as is. Alternatively, for enhanced flavor, you can pan-fry the Spam slices until they become crispy on both sides.
6. To store homemade Spam: Place the sliced Spam in an airtight container or a ziploc bag. Keep it in the refrigerator and consume within 3-5 days.
How to Make Spam at Home
Equipment
- Measuring spoons (Or kitchen scale)
- Stand mixer (Alternatively, you can manually stir the meat with a spatula for 10 minutes, but using a stand mixer can yield better results.)
- Food container (Mine is a 28oz rectangle ceramic container, you can also use a glass one of similar size.)
- aluminum foil
- Food steamer (Or a large pot with lid and a steaming rack.)
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground pork (450g – 500g)
- 5½ tbsp cornstarch (55g)
- 2 tbsp sugar (25g)
- ¾ tsp salt (4.5g)
- ½ tbsp oyster sauce (10g)
- 1 tsp soy sauce (5g)
- 1 tsp chicken bouillon powder (4g)
- 1 tsp white pepper powder (2g)
- ⅓ cup iced water (80g)
- 1 tsp red yeast rice powder (2g; For the red color; It's optional)
Instructions
- In a small bowl/cup combine all the listed ingredients, excluding the ground pork. Stir the mixture thoroughly with a spoon until well blended.
- Transfer the mixture and ground pork into the bowl of a stand mixer. Use the flat beater to mix the pork at a medium-low speed for 10 minutes until the pork achieves a sticky consistency. (Alternatively, you can manually stir the pork with a spatula for 10 minutes, but using a stand mixer can yield better results. Once blended, the pork should cling to the sides of the bowl; when you flip the container over, the pork should not fall off.)
- Coat the inner walls of a food container with a thin layer of vegetable oil. Transfer the pork into the oiled container. Wet your hands with water to prevent the meat from sticking. Use your hands to press down on the meat firmly, smoothing the surface and eliminating any air holes in the meatloaf.
- Wrap the food container with aluminum foil. Put the container in a steamer and steam for 45 minutes. (In the image, you'll notice two food containers as I doubled the recipe, using 2 pounds of pork.)
- Allow the homemade Spam to cool before slicing. This homemade Spam is fully cooked, making it ready to enjoy as is. Alternatively, for enhanced flavor, you can pan-fry the Spam slices until they become crispy on both sides.
- To store homemade Spam: Place the sliced Spam in an airtight container or a ziploc bag. Keep it in the refrigerator and consume within 3-5 days.
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