"It Tastes Like Heaven": A Historic SPAM Recipe

Well, here we are, about 1 month in to our rationing year and we're finally getting around to our first SPAM recipe.

SPAM was around before WWII, but didn't become really popular until the War - and subsequent rationing - began. At 5 red points a can SPAM is definitely a "bargain" meat. Plus, it's precooked and quite versatile - contributing it's salty meatiness well to many recipes.

Now, I have only had SPAM on a few occassions, and all before I turned 6 years old. As a child I liked the idea of tinned meat. There was a sort of beautiful precision in the geometric shapes that appealed to me. As far as taste, I vaguely remember a certain squishy, salty flavor similar to lower quality ham products. The Man of the House remembers eatings SPAM a few times as a child as well.

But our girls had never had anything of the sort.

It seemed a good idea to initiate them with the most simplist of SPAM recipes: Fried SPAM Burgers. It doesn't get any easier than this, folks.

Ingredients

1 can SPAM (I used the "lower sodium" variety)
4 hamburger buns
Assorted hamburger toppings (cheese, mayo, pickless, ketchup, etc.)

• Slice SPAM loaf into 4 slices.
• Fry SPAM slices in a non-stick skillet on medium/medium-high until lightly browned and crispy, approximately 5 minutes per side.
• Place in buns and garnish as desired.
  

And the girls? Prior to the cooking they marveled at the way it schlopped out of the can and landed on the plate with a splat. They spent a good two minutes poking and prodding the meat cube before I sliced it. And for a while Sissy did a song and dance around the kitchen implying that SPAM was, in fact, octopus meat.

But after the cooking? They finished their SPAM burgers in record time! Really - it was gone in a flash! When I asked them to give a review of their SPAM burgers they both agreed on the same four words, "It tasted like Heaven."

So, it seems likely that SPAM will be a regular visitor in the Rational Living household.

On note: we served our SPAM burgers with the oven-crisped cabbage recommended by Rational Living reader Carla. It's very simple: thinly-sliced cabbage tossed with olive oil and salt/seasonings, roasted on a baking sheet at 400 degrees until slightly crisped (about 20 minutes or so). My review? "It tasted like Heaven." The roasting imparted a lovely, sweet taste to the cabbage, reminiscent of roasted Brussels sprouts. It also will most definitely be repeated during the year.

All in all, a successful rationing dinner this evening!

--Rational Mama