Musabi

Ingredients

1 can of luncheon meat 340g

2 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp brown sugar

1/2 tbsp mirin

2 cup sushi rice

3 cup water

4 tbsp rice vinegar

3 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp salt

2 tbsp mirin

4 sheets of nori

Directions 

Wash the rice once. You want to retain some of the starch so that the rice remains sticky so its okay if the water is not clear after rinsing. Most recipes say to use 1 to 1 ratio of water, but I find a 1 to 1.5 ratio works better and ensures the rice is properly cooked. While the rice is cooking you can mix the vinegar, sugar, salt and mirin together in a bowl. Once the rice has finished cooking, transfer into a metal bowl and sprinkle the vinegar mix over the rice while stirring with a spatula. Let sit.

Now remove the luncheon meat from the can. I used Spam, which is what the Hawaiians originally used. Slice the meat into 8 equal pieces and place into pan with a bit of oil. You want to grill the slices so they are lightly brown on both sides. While the meat is browning, mix the soy sauce, brown sugar and mirin in a small bowl making sure the brown sugar has dissolved. When the meat is brown on both sides, add the soy sauce mixture. Adjust the heat to low and let it caramelize. This should take a few minutes.

The nori (sea weed) should be cut into strips. I find one sheet of seaweed is enough to make two musabis. Taking the musabi mold and place on a strip of nori. Spoon in some rice followed by a slice of spam. Press firmly with the handle that came with the mold. Lift the mold off and fold the nori around the rice and spam using some water on the edges of the nori to ensure it does not unwrap.

I was a little concerned at first when the spam was frying on the pan. It did not smell appetizing at all. But my fears were unfounded once the soy sauce mixture was added and began to caramelize. Yeah I can see why this is so addictive. Some people suggest using a thicker slice cutting it down from 8 to 6 slices, but I found 8 slices was perfect in terms of saltiness. Please note the Spam is very salty so you might want to use a luncheon meat that has less salt if you have a lower tolerance. 340g tin of Spam contains 420mg of salt.

One other mention. The musabi mold I used is slightly tapered making it easier for the contents to slide out. It's great for making onigiri as well.