Mac and Cheese Spam Musubi – AKA “MACsubi”
I love musubi! Have you had it before? It’s a Hawaiian dish with rice on the bottom and spam on top! I love spam! This dish is simple and delicious as-is, but I had the funny idea to make mac and cheese spam musubi! Mac and cheese goes so well with spam so I figured it would be a perfect fit. If you are looking for a classic musubi recipe, check out this one from ‘Ono Hawaiian Recipes
How I came up with this idea
I was resharing my classic mac and cheese “sushi roll” the other day, and thought to myself, what else could I do with this idea of mac and cheese in place of a sticky rice. I came up with this play on spam musubi because spam is one of my favorite foods and I am always trying to think of something new and fun to do with it. I think this recipe achieved everything I was looking for!
The mac and cheese stuck together so well, and provided a great bed for the glazed spam to lay on top of. I added lots of chili paste and togarachi, cause I wanted it to be nice and spicy too! Furikake would be more traditional in this recipe, but I didn’t have any on hand, also this recipe is anything but traditional so I figured I would embrace the chaos.
How to make the mac and cheese sticky like rice
I have made mac and cheese into a solid form many times. The way to do it is make it nice and thick and let it sit overnight. You can then use this for a bunch of different things! My favorite thing to do with it is put it into burgers.
You could also use a musubi press for this and it would be even easier!
I used Goodles Cheddy Mac for this cause I love it and have a lot of it in my cabinet! Pour the mac into a 5×7 baking dish and allow to cool fully in the fridge. (full disclosure – I have a professional relationship with Goodles, but this post is not sponsored)
After the mac and cheese cools overnight, you can cut it into the right shape. You need to be careful at this part so it doen’t fall apart! I also use a guide – measure the outline of the spam with parchment paper and then cut it out and use it to guide the cuttings.
Prepare the spam for on top of the mac and cheese musubi
It’s more than just slicing the spam and putting it on the mac and cheese! First slice it, then season and cook it.
Slice that spam up nice! I like a medium thickness but you could do as thin or thick as you like. Just remember the spam with shrink a little in the frying pan. Make sure you keep it thick enough so the ratio of the mac and cheese spam musubi is a perfect ratio!
Spam has browned on both sides, then gets tossed in with a spicy sweet sauce. In the sauce I put-
- soy sauce
- sesame oil
- white vinegar
- chili paste
- honey
Building the Mac and Cheese Spam Musubi
Place the spam on top of the mac and cheese, then wrap it up with a piece of toasted nori. Perfect!
When I make a “weird” recipe like this, this is the part where I get really excited cause it stars looking great and I know it’s gonna work!
Everything I could ever want in each bite! Mac and cheese and hot dogs were always a favorite of mine growing up(and also as an adult lets be real) so these hit the right notes for me.
The sauce is so good on the spam and it drips down nicely into the mac and cheese and forms a great flavor combo!
And they held together really well too! By the end of course they were crumbling a bit but messy is delicious.
Spam “Macsubi” – Mac and Cheese Musubi
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 box mac and cheese prepared according to package
- 1/2 can spam
- 1 sheet nori
- togarashi
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon chili paste
- 2 tablespoons honey
Instructions
- Make the mac and cheese and then pour it into a parchment lined 5×7 baking dish. Cover with more parchment, pressing down to compact the mac. Cool in the fridge for 3 hours. Flip the mac and cheese out so it is upside down on a piece of parchment that used to be on top. Remove the parchment form the top and return to the fridge for 1 more hour.
- Slice the spam 1/2 inch thick and add it to a frying pan. Sear on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. There is extra spam but it's really good so that's fine.
- Meanwhile, make the sauce by mixing together the sauce ingredients. Pour this sauce over the spam and stir to coat. Allow to simmer with the spam, flipping occasionally, until the sauce it thick and starting to caramelize. Remove from heat.
- Use parchment paper to trace the shape of the spam, then cut out 3 pieces of mac and cheese the same size. Be careful as you cut to get clean lines and not have the mac and cheese falling apart. Sprinkle some togarashi over the mac and cheese.
- Toast the nori over a burner that is turned on high (electric will work too!) just for a second or two.
- Slice the nori into 3 strips. Place a slice of spam on each mac and cheese piece. Wrap the nori around the "macsubi" and seal at the bottom with a dab of water. Serve
This is sacrilegious