"A symbol of American culture, a powerful icon in both the USA and many other parts of the world…So great is its hold on the American people that it even features in the Smithsonian National Museum." Is it "Old Glory," the American flag? The Statue of Liberty? No, it's SPAM, everyone's favorite canned meat.
At first glance, Marguerite Patten's little Spam:The Cookbook (which opens with the above words) appears to be a novelty, a gift shop keepsake. Upon closer inspection, however, this 64-page book with dozens of SPAM recipes, a history of that blue-canned culinary treat, and bunches of vintage pictures and advertisements, is...well,perhaps still a novelty, but a really fun and useful one!
SPAM's Sales Continue to Increase Into the 21st Century
SPAM, of course, is the oft-maligned (and always capitalized) but still popular "inexpensive" canned meat that Americans have loved to hate for more than 70 years now. Actually, although we love to make fun of SPAM (Shoulder of chopped Pork and hAM), its popularity has not only never waned, it continues grow into the 21st century.
SPAM was released onto the market in 1937 by the Geo. A. Hormel Company (Austin, Minnesota). Its steady and inexpensive price tag was welcome at the height of the Great Depression, but it was World War II that really launched it into the public psyche.
SPAM Fed Soldiers and Citizens Alike, Worldwide, During WWII
Not only did it feed American G.I.'s (often at every meal for months on end), it was sent to Britain to feed both civilians and British servicemen and women. After the German invasion of Russia, it also fed the starving Russian people, to the extent that Nikita Kruschev said: "Without SPAM, we wouldn't have been able to feed our army."
Patten explains that, "despite all the jokes and fun surrounding it, SPAM has a very real place in the hearts of Americans...the nostalgia, the comforting thought that SPAM has been around since their childhood...in this ever-changing world it is pretty much the same now as when they first tasted it."
From SPAM: The Cookbook, Some SPAM facts:
- 90 Millions cans of SPAM sell every year in the United States alone
- If all the cans of SPAM sold were placed end to end, they would circle the Earth five times
- Hawaiians eat more SPAM than anybody, averaging 4 cans per person a year
- In South Korea, SPAM is a gourmet luxury, often presented as a gift (like chocolates).
Beyond all of the above information (and much more), SPAM: The Cookbook contains about 60 recipes that feature SPAM as a main ingredient. While several of the recipes are fairly basic (SPAMwich sandwiches, SPAM & Pepper Quiche), most of them fall into the gourmet and/or exotic category, including SPAM Pate, SPAM Paella, SPAM Cheesecake, SPAM-stuffed Eggplant. Here's one of the more interesting recipes.
RECIPE: SPAM Steaks in Port Wine
Ingredients:
- 1 bunch scallions
- 1/4 cup butter
- 2 tsp. olive oil
- 2 cups chestnut mushrooms (or mushroom mixture)
- 12 oz. SPAM, cut into thick slices
- 1/4 cup port wine
- 2 tsp. Dijon mustard
- carrot & zucchini ribbons, to serve
Trim away and discard the green stalks from the scallions, roughly chop the white part. Heat the butter and oil in large skillet, add scallions, cook until just golden.
Add mushrooms, cook 3 minutes, then remove with slotted spoon onto warm plate. Put SPAM steaks into pan and heat until slightly brown on both sides (SPAM is pre-cooked). Pour the Port over the SPAM, add the mustard, return scallions and mushrooms to pan and heat well.
Arrange the scallions and mushrooms on a warmed plate. Top with SPAM steaks. Serve with carrot/zucchini ribbons. Your dinnermate(s) will not forget this meal!
SPAM: The Cookbook is available at octopus books usa.
Patten, Marguerite, SPAM: The Cookbook, Hamlyn/Octopus Publishing Group Ltd, London, 2000/2009. 64 pages (ISBN:978-0-600-62047-1)
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