Breaking News: Spam now made in teriyaki flavor. LOL.
You might have done one of several things after reading that sentence. Squealed with excitement while licking your lips; plotted where to get your next musubi; cringed in disgust or scratched your head at all the fuss.
My reaction had been a mixture of hunger and childhood cravings after first hearing about the new flavor. The Minnesota-based company that makes spam chose Hawaii as the first place to stock supermarket shelves. After all, teriyaki spam made its debut at April’s Spam Jam in Waikiki and was an instant hit.
Teriyaki-flavored spam is, by no means, a new idea, however. It’s actually a longtime local “secret” that has been practiced in island kitchens for decades. My dad used to douse a shoyu-sugar concoction over each slice of spam before wrapping it with a blanket of nori. Local eateries do it too, so if you taste a faint touch of something extra delicious, it’s most likely the special sauce.
Hormel Foods has really been mixing it up over there in Minnesota. For the 75th anniversary in 2012, Hormel debuted black pepper-flavored and jalapeno-flavored spam. I have tried the black pepper one and remember liking it, but really, I can’t wait to try the teriyaki-flavored spam in my next musubi.
