Spam Musubi

Spam Musubi is a Hawaiian dish that is an adaptation of Japanese Onigiri style rice balls. It’s very popular in Okinawa where it can be found at most convenience stores. Spam Musubi is fun to make and a must try recipe for children of all ages!

Entrees International Rice

Spam Musubi is a type of sushi that is made with rice, Japanese tamagoyaki (omelette), white rice, spam, and pressed seaweed (nori). This tasty dish comes from Hawaii, where it was derived from Japanese-style rice balls, known as musubi. I have eaten it quite often in Hawaii but I never realized how popular it is in Japan until I moved here. In Japan you can find canned spam at most grocery stores, and Musubi makers can be found at 100 yen shops and in cooking stores.

Don’t let the fact that this treat is made with canned meat scare you away – marinaded spam cooks up crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and is loaded with flavor.

Tomagoyaki is a rolled up Japanese omelette. It is easy to make yourself, but you can also buy Tomagoyaki already cooked and sold in the refrigerated section in Asian markets. Tomagoyaki can be sliced up easily and I like to trim down the omelette so that when I slice it, each piece fits perfectly into my Musubi maker. Single-piece Musubi makers usually are the same size as a slice of spam.

Spam is popular in Japan on the tropical island of Okinawa where Spam Musubi is a local favorite.

Spam Musubi on a plate surrounded by orange slices and red pepper slices. It’s on a plate on top of a cloth with a Hawaiian Islands map with another plate behind it that has several more Musubi wrapped in plastic wrap. — Spam Musubi unwrapped and ready to enjoy

I wrap up all of my Musubi in plastic to shape it and to make sure the nori adheres to the Musubi all the way around. You can eat it right away or save it for later. Its fun to make your own Musubi and it’s an activity you can do with your friends or family. And you can vary the ingredients and create your own unique Musubi.

So try it out and let me know what you think by entering a comment into the section at the bottom of the page.

Spam Musubi

Spam Musubi is a type of onigiri prepared in layers and usually made with a Musubi maker – a plastic mould that is filled with rice and other ingredients and then pressed to create a block of sushi. If you don’t have a Musubi maker you can put a piece of plastic wrap inside an empty spam can, fill it with rice and other ingredients, and then pull the plastic out of the can with the Musubi inside.

Although you can make this dish without marinating the spam, I recommend you use the marinate. It adds a lot to the flavor and it also makes your Musubi moist when you bite into it.

PREP	COOKING	YIELD
20 mins	5 mins	5 pieces

PREP	20 mins
COOKING	5 mins
YIELD	5 pieces

Ingredients:

1 small can Spam (6oz/170g)
1 8oz/225g Japanese Omelette (Tomagoyaki)
2 1/2 cups prepared white rice
5 sheets of nori (pressed, dry seaweed)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sweet chili sauce

Instructions:

Slice the spam into 5 slices of the same thickness.

5 slices of spam laid out on a cutting board

Mix the soy sauce and chili sauce together. Marinade the spam slices for 15 minutes in a bag or in a bowl covered with plastic wrap.

Spam in marinade

Fry the spam over medium heat in a nonstick skillet until crispy on each side. Be careful not to burn it.

5 slices of fried spam in a saucepan

Slice the omelette into 5 slices of the same thickness.

Sliced omelette on a cutting board

Lay down a strip of Nori on a cutting board. Set the Musubi maker on the Nori leaving about 1/2 inch of the Nori exposed on one side.
Fill the Musubi maker halfway up with white rice. Top with a slice of the egg and then a slice of the spam.

Musubi Maker half filled with white rice

Press the Musubi through the Musubi maker. Lift the mould and remove the press from the top. The Musubi should be formed in a perfect rectangular cube.

Pressed Musubi

Wrap the Nori around the Musubi.
Wrap the Musubi in plastic wrap tightly to hold its shape and allow it to cool.

Wrapped musubi

Serve and enjoy.

Spam Musubi ready to eat, being held up over a plate

Notes:

Although the name of the recipe is Spam Musubi, you can use other ingredients to make this delightful sushi. Try substituting some teriyaki chicken or some grilled Portuguese sausage in place of the spam.
The marinade should be sweet and salty. I use a 1:1 mix of soy sauce to sweet chili sauce, but you can also use other ingredients such as sugar, oyster sauce, tsuyu, or teriyaki sauce to flavor the meat.

5 wrapped Musubis

Musubi can sit out while wrapped in plastic for a couple of hours before eating. You can refrigerate it and keep it for a day or two, but the rice may harden. You can heat it back up in the microwave oven.

Jay H

Jay is a Project Manager for a U.S. Company that does business globally. He has worked and lived in many places and has spent time learning how to cook dishes from around the world. Currently based in Japan, he created the Mountain Plums website during the Covid pandemic as a way to express himself though cooking while staying active.

More Recipes by

Jay H

Jay is a Project Manager for a U.S. Company that does business globally. He has worked and lived in many places and has spent time learning how to cook dishes from around the world. Currently based in Japan, he created the Mountain Plums website during the Covid pandemic as a way to express himself though cooking while staying active.