Green Eggs and SPAM
I. If you ask my Lola about her childhood in 1940’s Pampanga — a province just north of Manila — she may tell you about the PX. The Post Exchange (PX) was an outlet grocery store established to supply American goods to US military personnel and expats on Filipino soil. Cornflakes, Baby Ruth, Butterfingers, and other packaged foreign goods end on end. My Great-Grandfather had a job as a teacher at a US Air Force base that allowed him to access the PX and purchase goods to the delight of my Lola. She recalls afternoons when her Dad would come home with chocolate treats and cans of Spam. To this day, my Lola will never turn down a Baby Ruth or a slice of Spam on rice.
Spam first appeared on Filipino soil during World War II, when it was imported as an inexpensive source of meat used to feed US soldiers. In the years that followed the conclusion of the war, Spam became a product exclusive to the PX and other special outlets where only wealthy Filipinos could afford to purchase it. The humble can was transformed into a measure of wealth and a marker of class through this exclusivity and marked-up, expensive price-tag. It was not uncommon for cans of Spam to be given as gifts from relatives or friends who had travelled abroad to the US, a sign of cosmopolitanism and worldliness.
The Philippines remained under US control until 1946. Megan Elias, in The Palate of Power (2014), mentions that Spam became a ‘prop’ in the bid for independence, ostensibly proof of ‘civilisation,’ and, by extension, readiness for sovereignty. Subversion of American power meant, in part, asserting a new Filipino cultural power to the renegotiation of power dynamics. Yet, this is not solely a Filipino story. Indeed, both the historical and continued presence of the US across the Pacific is evident by the enduring presence of Spam — in the Philippines, Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, South Korea, and Japan (to name a few). Spam is indeed a ubiquitous part of the Filipino diet; across the homeland and the diaspora — though it also remains a potent reminder of violent US power and colonialism. For many across the globe, Spam consumption has a dark history, though its reappropriation for new cultural markets has rendered the product into something unique and important.
II. Let us take a moment to dissect the can in front of you. Smooth, supple, and unassumingly wrapped in blue. ‘Spam’ scrawled in pale yellow letters across its label in a retro, classic style. The can is a shape of its own — a shape that has become synonymous with its pink, rectangular contents.
Perhaps you first became acquainted when you picked up the can at your local Ezymart. Perhaps it was a gimmick at first, or perhaps it piqued your curiosity after sitting dusty on your pantry shelf for time immemorial (it was first a wartime food designed to last, after all). Or perhaps, it has been a staple of your home and you were raised on neatly fried or seared slices of Spam on rice.
If you pry back the pull-tab, you will first be hit with an odour that is unique to Spam. Stewy, meaty, and a little metallic. First-time eaters may not be accustomed to the smell, though for those regular Spam fanatics the odour is familiar and warm. The moment I get a whiff, I am transported back to Grandpa and Lola’s house, after school circa 2009, where I am sitting around the table with all my cousins with a plate topped with fried Spam in front of us all.
The product itself is a mixture of pork with ham, sugar, salt, potato starch, sodium nitrate, and water. Though you may eat Spam straight from the can, it is best served hot and over a soft bed of rice. Frying the meat will give it a nice golden-brown sear, perhaps a more appealing aesthetic alongside its new rich, crisp, warmness. You may like to add a drizzle of tomato sauce along your slices. Filipinos very commonly eat Spam with garlic-rice and a fried egg at breakfast, sometimes with other meats such as bacon or tocino. I won’t tell you how to cook your spam — there’s no one correct way — but a quick glance at spam.com will provide you with more recipes than your heart can possibly desire.
III. From Hawaii to South Korea to the Philippines, variations of Spam and Spam-inclusive dishes can be found in multitudes. McDonald’s in Hawaii serves Spam, eggs, and rice for breakfast. According to Erin DeJesus (2014), American restrictions on Hawaiian deep-sea fishing industries eliminated an important source of protein while creating a new market for Spam. In South Korea, Spam is a popular ingredient in Budae Jjigae, which loosely translates to ‘Army Stew’, alongside a slew of more traditional hotpot ingredients. So too do Japanese-Americans have a history of Spam consumption after the product was sent to Japanese-American Internment camps during WWII.
Spam, for many, is a colonial symbol; a reminder of violence and pervasive American ideology. Though it too has morphed and transformed over time to reflect different cultures. Today, Spam is sold in plentiful quantities and numerous flavours: bacon, turkey, teriyaki, maple-flavoured, and hot and spicy; symbolising the multitude of cultural markets that consume spam daily. While this may be nothing more than a cultural cash-grab for the brand, the co-optation of Spam by communities across the Pacific has turned the product into something other — something unique and to be celebrated (there are some festivals and restaurants dedicated to Spam)! Spam-fervour is generational, transnational, and shared by many. A reappropriation of the original product for different cultures, tastes, and purposes. So, before you denounce Spam as nothing more than culinary-kitsch; sit down, boil some rice, and crack open a fresh can of Spam.
Recipe:
Spam and egg is a classic and easy-to-make Filipino dish made from slices of Spam and cooked egg traditionally enjoyed at breakfast. Crisp at first bite and soft at the next, Spam possesses a meaty and tender taste, and for those who grew up eating the dish, Spam and egg is a source of nostalgia. The dish is also accompanied with a serving of rice.
Ingredients
340g of SPAM classic (one can), cut into slices of your preferred size.
150g of leftover, short grain rice (around ½ a cup).
1 large egg
3 (or more) cloves of fresh garlic, minced
Oil or fat to fry (canola is ideal)
(optional) spring onion or chives, sliced thinly
Method
Heat a fry-pan to medium high, add a splash of fat or oil and place slices of SPAM gently into the pan.
Fry Spam on one side until golden crisp, repeat once for even cooked spam. Set aside
Using the same pan and the remaining fats, fry garlic until fragrant, then add rice.
Mix rice in a pan to reheat, evenly distribute garlic and coat rice in fats. Place rice in a bowl.
In the same pan, fry an egg to your preference, then place atop rice and spam.
(optional) garnish with sliced spring onion or chives
(Steps after 1 are optional with 6 being an optional optional)