NO ONE SPAMS LIKE HAWAII!!

If you’re in Hawaii – specifically Honolulu – at the end of April, you might want to attend a festival like no other in the islands. This one has nothing to do with hula, King Kamehameha, leis, fire dancing or surfing.

Nope…this one celebrates….SPAM! And it’s the Ninth Annual Waikiki Spam Jam on April 30!  http://www.spamjamhawaii.com

 

Now….this may LOOK like sushi….but look closer.   Yep. Grilled Spam on a rice patty wrapped with seaweed! In local parlance, that’s called a Spam musubi…and even our President enjoys them.

The festival has drawn as many as 24,000 attendees as Kalakaua Ave. (Waikiki’s main drag) fills up with food booths and hungry folks eager to try Spam in all manner of glorified forms.

Some of those offerings have included Spam fried noodles, Spam lettuce wraps, barbecue Spam sliders, Spam dim sum or Spam and crab dip.

Why this great love affair with the lowly canned meat product, you ask?  Well, it all started back in 1937 when Hormel started packaging their concoction of pork, ham, sugar, salt and water into small cans. According to  WiseGeek    http://www.wisegeek.com

“

The principle explanation for why SPAM® is popular in Hawaii is that is portable, durable meat that does not require any type of refrigeration. It was first introduced during WWII by American soldiers to Hawaiian natives, who quickly adopted it as an important part of their diet. In the Hawaiian islands where the weather quickly changes, and especially during wartime, the ability to have portable meat products that can be used in case of emergency was especially desirable.”

Join the party…try some Spam stir-fry, get a Spam-labeled t-shirt or hat, enjoy some island entertainment…and benefit the Hawaii Food bank, which last year donated 6,000 canned goods to that worthy cause.

NOW you can say you know SPAM!!

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