Let them eat SPAM!

[grubworm]

I am seriously having to fight the urge to start quoting the spam sketch here... spam spam spam.... no must resist!!!

Seriously as a kid in the 70s-80s, I think pasta salad with spam chunks was a staple of every household in the midwest (and likely elsewhere) in the summer. I can not say I am overly fond of spam as a food like substance, but I do not mind SOME in reasonable quantities in a dish that balances the flavor I HAVE been known to take a can and make up a pasta salad 2 days into the woods on canoe camping trips since no refrigeration of ingredients is required.

(I can't say I actually have a "recipe" for it. I take ingredients along since they are mostly staples of my camp pantry and put them together til "they are about right" for this one)

Camp Pasta Salad
<Note: make substitutions according to your taste>
Boil Pasta in (kosher or sea) salt water (I am partial to using macaroni as it packs compact but I prefer riggatoni or bow ties for my pasta salads) until pasta is al-dente or cooked to preference
Strain pasta (preferably over a grass/leaf/moss grease pit and burn the starch covered grasses) and add your choice of the following or your own preferred options
1 can mushrooms
1 small can black olives
1 shredded or better yet match stick juliened fresh carrot
slice and add some grape tomato wedges or halves
cube and add some spam (for a couple people a half can is probably plenty, for a full family, 1 can should be more than enough)
add italian seasoning, or a mix of fresh savory herbs
cube a small block (8oz) of cheese (I prefer a mild cheese in this such as colby (yes when air tight cheese can store without refrigeration. the harder the cheese type the better it will hold)
optionally some capers are a good touch
(you can add other ingredients such as sliced or diced peppers, but I personally can not eat them, so I tend to leave them out of my recipes) according to your own taste. I used to have a friend who liked chick peas in her pasta salad, so that is also among the many options you may try.)
toss with olive oil til coated, but not dripping.

serve with artisan bread or crackers and drink of choice.

i like it! easy to make and pretty light...i find it hard to eat heavy meals when its so hot out and that pasta salad gives you everything you need. keep it chilled and when returning from a hike that will be a nice refreshing treat!

 

[MattLew]

i like it! easy to make and pretty light...i find it hard to eat heavy meals when its so hot out and that pasta salad gives you everything you need. keep it chilled and when returning from a hike that will be a nice refreshing treat!

grubworm, absolutely... and I know the feeling about not wanting anything heavy when it is hot out. I mostly grew up in the midwest til my dad got a job in Alabama when i was in highschool... I have never moved back further north than Tennessee, but I never did acclimate to the heat and humidity...

but one of the nice things about this particular pasta salad is that "refrigeration is optional" I do have a ton of other recipes for foods that do require refrigeration, but my outdoor activities include boondocking (overlanding), backpacking, canoeing and trail riding (I do not go for serious rock crawling as I have never been able to afford a second or third vehicle to allow me to not worry about silly things like parking a jeep soft side down). coolers are not always an option. (regardless of howmuch I covet an Engal, ARB, or Dometic refrigerated cooler. (I will include one in the budget when I start working on my trailer))

and in keeping with the no refrigeration theme, there are, as I mentioned in the post, other options cording to your taste... if ye are not fond of spam, summer sausage is a good choice of meats as it does not need refrigeration.

Being something of a camp cook, I do expect I will be posting to the recipe and cooking section frequently. But as I am still new here, I want to read through a year or two worth of threads before I start "spamming" (sorry I couldn't resist the punnage given which thread we are in) the section with tons of recipes, but I do not really want to go duplicating staple recipes that have been posted by 2-3 other people over the last year or two. I am even thinking I may make one thread that I keep posting recipes to so as to not keep creating new threads with each new recipe I post. Where I am going to have a hard time is remembering to include the peppers. I am either SEVERELY intolerant or mildly allergic to most members of the pepper family depending on which doctor you ask. so I usualy make some pepper free for me, then add some peppers (perhaps on the side) for my pepper lovin friends.

 

[grubworm]

While I still have a few cans of Spam stashed away, I’ve been experimenting with an alternate. These guys go on sale periodically at CVS for $2.50. The texture is not the same one for one, but In a recipe as a replacement they do pretty good.

View attachment 146737

i remembered your post from a while back and happened to see a can, so i'm getting ready to do a taste test....hopefully Dak won't make me yak

 

[SummitJunkie]

My wife and I visited the Spam Museum late last year, it was AWESOME!!!

 

[Sparksalot]

i remembered your post from a while back and happened to see a can, so i'm getting ready to do a taste test....hopefully Dak won't make me yak

View attachment 157836

Cool, I’m curious how the two compare in your recipes.

 

[HIALT2D]

I finally got around to testing a couple of recipes I'm gonna make on our next trip. First I made Hawaiian SPAM sliders with teriyaki SPAM, lettuce, tomato, pineapple & a spread made with 2 parts mayo + 1 part Gojuchang sauce on Hawaiian sweet rolls:


Next was the "EggSlut" breakfast sandwich recipe that came from the video in an earlier post on this thread:



We were pretty happy with both, as they were quite tasty, didn't require a lot of ingredients or prep & took just a few minutes to cook up.

 

[grubworm]

Cool, I’m curious how the two compare in your recipes.

well, i fried up the Dak canned ham and the Spam and they are pretty close. The Spam does fry up better (of course ) and allows a better sear which i prefer for sandwiches, etc, but in using it like regular ham, the Dak is great. I would certainly pick up a few cans for our next trip. the Dak is less salty, but since i don't add salt when using Spam in something, that issue is pretty much a wash.
that was a good post, @TahoePPV ....i've seen Dak around forever, mainly big lots and places like that and never gave it a thought...but i will definitely keep some as a staple now for camping.

 

[Sparksalot]

well, i fried up the Dak canned ham and the Spam and they are pretty close. The Spam does fry up better (of course ) and allows a better sear which i prefer for sandwiches, etc, but in using it like regular ham, the Dak is great. I would certainly pick up a few cans for our next trip. the Dak is less salty, but since i don't add salt when using Spam in something, that issue is pretty much a wash.
that was a good post, @TahoePPV ....i've seen Dak around forever, mainly big lots and places like that and never gave it a thought...but i will definitely keep some as a staple now for camping.

Cool. I definitely prefer Spam for sandwiches. Mmmm, I love a Spam sammich! I’ve had good luck using the Dak hams when you want diced bits, like for breakfast meals or home brewed pasta dishes.

 

[grubworm]

gordon ramsey saw this thread and now he's riding the SPAM train....

 

[Mike G]

Small can of Spam on my last trip.

 

[grubworm]

Small can of Spam on my last trip.

nice! you have SPAM and tortillas...add an egg and you have breakfast, add beans and you have lunch, add beans again and you have supper!

 

[Mike G]

Small can of Spam on my last trip.

nice! you have SPAM and tortillas...add an egg and you have breakfast, add beans and you have lunch, add beans again and you have supper!

Thats exactly what I did . The smaller can is great for one person. I wanted to get the single serving Spam pouch, but I don’t see them in the stores anymore! I guess they stopped producing them?

 

[Snerk]

I've never been a huge fan of Spam but I was given a tin of it before my first camping outing (going to go break in / test out the gear) and I'll tell you what, spam and eggs made a damn fine breakfast at camp. I'll probably keep a few cans floating around the car.

 

[Motoboss]

I've never been a huge fan of Spam but I was given a tin of it before my first camping outing (going to go break in / test out the gear) and I'll tell you what, spam and eggs made a damn fine breakfast at camp. I'll probably keep a few cans floating around the car.

Besides my favorite, the Spruben, eggs and Spam are a go to breakfast meal.

 

[fmtx]

Thats exactly what I did . The smaller can is great for one person. I wanted to get the single serving Spam pouch, but I don’t see them in the stores anymore! I guess they stopped producing them?

I buy the single serve pouches of Spam at the military commissary or Kroger. They’re great to have in the Jeep for breakfast meat, lunch sandwich, or fried rice dinner (rice comes precooked in non-perishable pouches).

 

[B-R]

No Need to say anything else !!

 

[J.W.]

Freshly fried Spam corndogs!

 

[Lanlubber In Remembrance]

Freshly fried Spam corndogs!
View attachment 166557View attachment 166558

Want the batter recipe yummm !

 

[64Trvlr]

My wife and I visited the Spam Museum late last year, it was AWESOME!!!

So where is the museum located?

 

[HIALT2D]

So where is the museum located?

It's in Austin, MN & It's on my bucket list...

SPAM® Museum in Minnesota | SPAM® Brand

Tour delicious curated meat exhibits at the SPAM® Museum in downtown Austin, Minn. It puts a whole new spin on cubism.

www.spam.com