A while ago I cleaned out my pantry. I threw away the things that were expired, donated stuff that I thought the food pantry could use, and organized the unexpired cans and bottles I thought I would use. There were a couple of items that didn't fit into any of those categories.
These were just slightly expired and even though I have no idea where the Spam came from or what would have possessed me to buy it, I still couldn't bring myself to throw them away. They sat on the counter for several days while I thought about what to do with them when I had an idea. Once I saw that there were actual recipes for this, I decided to try it.
Behold, fried rice with spam and pineapple! I didn't follow the recipe but made it the way I have prepared fried rice before. I scrambled two eggs and removed them from the pan. Then I fried cut-up cubes of Spam and removed them from the pan. Next, I added a few teaspoons of sesame oil to the pan, dumped in some leftover rice, and added the scrambled eggs and Spam to the rice. After some stirring and frying, I mixed a few teaspoons of soy sauce with a couple teaspoons of pineapple juice, added that, and mixed it in.
I didn't have any green onions or I would have used them, but it made a surprisingly tasty dinner. It was quick and I didn't have to feel bad for throwing away food. I won't be buying Spam in the future to make this (or for any other recipe), but I might make something similar if I have leftover ham.
What did you have for dinner this weekend?
Good for you, Bonny! One of my "goals" for this year to "use things up" . . . and you certainly did that with your Spam and crushed pineapple! I am a fan of what we call "purge meals" -- just making things up so we can make use of the . . . whatevers . . . we find in the fridge/pantry. (And I made enchiladas for dinner on Sunday.) XO
ReplyDeleteI, too, hate throwing away food, so while I wouldn't eat this meal (mostly because I don't eat pork), I admire you for making do with what you had and creating a perfectly edible meal!
ReplyDeleteThere are occasions in my life that Steve Meals and Kat Meals occur... this would absolutely be a Steve Meal... but thankfully, I never ever buy spam or pineapple when I shop. So when his mom is making it, he plans on having supper at his parents... and I make a Kat Meal that Steve would never, ever eat! :)
ReplyDeleteBut bravo to you for getting that spam out of your cupboard! XO
Good for you using things up! I'm not a fan of Spam, but I do like crushed pineapple (I have a great recipe for pineapple stuffing...rich, sweet and yummy - it's a recipe from the 1950's of course). And, it turns out that Spam is very popular with Asians! Colin and Mailing bought it once for something (but I don't think they've bought it since - LOL).
ReplyDeletethere is nothing as freeing as emptying out the cupboards and using the mysterious items. I have things that I wonder why they are there!!! What did I buy them for??
ReplyDeleteGood for you! I'm not sure I've ever bought Spam, but I have a friend who loves it fried up with eggs. I made chili and cornbread last night and we'll be having the leftovers again tonight.
ReplyDeleteNot answering your question, but wanting to say that growing up, we ate Spam and loved it!! Spam and eggs for after church lunch on Sundays and a Spam casserole that included melted cheddar cheese (I'm sure it also included other things, but what I remember loving was the Spam and the cheese) ... and then I got to college and learned that Spam wasn't "cool" (I'm pretty sure Marc's never had it) ... and I haven't had it since. The dinner you made with those two cans looks like it would've been a winner at my childhood dinner table (even though it didn't have cheese ;-) ) and I'm sure it was delicious!
ReplyDeleteMy Grandmother cooked with canned ham and crushed pineapple all the time but I don't think we ever had Spam. Saturday evening I made a homemade veggie pizza including the crust, sauce, sauted veggies and a salad. We ate the leftovers on Sunday.
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