As much as I like to consider myself a fairly sophisticated person, in some ways, I absolutely ADORE SPAM! We always have a coupla cans of the stuff around to use in breakfast meals and it's always a hit with guests. I know the stuff is dreadful for your cardio but it's so damned tasty.
Apphouse50
· 1 year ago
I was introduced to Spam in the summer of 1959, when my aunt down in San Antonio made Spamwiches, which were loaves of french bread split down the middle, then layered with thin slices of fried spam, tomatoes, melted cheese, and some concoction of (as I recall) ketchup, mustard and relish. I returned to New York City and horrified my mother with tales of wonderful spam, but I think she made spamwiches once or twice and didn't cringe noticeably as we ate them.
The Spam phenomenon happens every time there's a major economic downturn.
Years later, friends of mine who went to Marymount Manhattan College (a ritzy joint to say the least) lived in apartments on the upper East Side which served as dormitories. They had, on their fridge, a list of every day of the week and the bars up there that served free food at happy hour if you bought one drink. I suspect we're going to be seeing more such eating habit changes and not just among college kids.
ChePasa
· 1 year ago
Interesting mythology being built around Spam. Yes, of course, everyone of a *certain age* remembers it, and it is popular and maligned in turn. But it is **not** cheap, not by a long shot (well over $3.00 for a 12 oz. can in my neck of the woods; canned or bone in ham is a good deal less costly.) Nobody who has "gone back" to Spam is doing it to save money. But that's the myth. Maybe they're doing it for comfort...
Fireblazes(cheetohsandcatfood)
· 1 year ago
But a can will feed a large family, cause who wants to eat a lot of that stuff. It is used to make casseroles where it is mixed with lots of other stuff. A little will go a long way when you are broke, and it is canned so it is easily preserved,
Doesn't sound TOOO bad, (for occasional use only).
LiberalTexasDemocrat
· 1 year ago
I bought a can once,but never got up the nerve to open it. After moving it around on the soup shelf for a few months I brought it to the donation box at the Kroger.
TheOriginalLiz
· 1 year ago
Spam was wildly popular in Hawaii when I was stationed there. One Christmas I sent my mother a spam cookbook - she was horrified.
AdrianBrowne
· 1 year ago
Video compilation of how wrong FoxNews was about the economy:
On the Navajo reservation, Spam breakfast burritos are a choice treat. My guess is Spam was unloaded by the truckload during hard times giving Spam that special memory comfort food status. Navajo food is an interesting thing. Many of what are now called traditional foods arose from their survival during the "Long Walk". Fry bread with a generous sprinkling of salt. They were given flour, lard and salt, so they made bread. Mutton was introduced to them by the Spanish, leading to a sausage called chee'. This is a sheep intestine stuffed with salted sheep fat that is then deep fried. I do not have the courage for that one. Field corn that is buried in a pit with hot rocks and some manure and then buried tlill it is steamed. A little too earthy for me. Kneel down bread ...
Ntsidigo'7 (Kneeldown Bread)
Also known as Navajo tamales, Kneeldown Bread is baked in a corn husk. It used to be made in bulk after the corn harvest and stored over the winter like a hard cracker. One old recipe reads as follows: “Scrape the kernels from fresh corn cobs and grind on a metate until mushy. Wrap in several layers of corn husks. Place in the ashes of a wood fire and cover with fresh corn husks or leaves to seal in the heat and steam. Cover with a layer of moist dirt, then a layer of hot coals. Stoke a small fire over all the layers and bake the breads about 1 hour. Remove the packets from the ash pit, peel off the husks, and eat hot.” Modern recipes utilize a hand grinder or food processor and an indoor oven as well as an underground outdoor fire. Ground green corn is dit[0g7. Kneeldown Bread is sometimes sold by vendors at flea markets. Cold bread is commonly eaten dunked in hot coffee.
burro
· 1 year ago
Thanks Fireblazes. That's interesting info. And a Spam breakfast burrito sounds excellent. Matter of fact, I'll be keeping that in mind as we head into hard times. I grew up on the Tex/Mex border and every holiday season we would get very tasty tamales that were ridiculously cheap, and you didn't really want to know what was inside but they were some of the best tamales I've ever had. Many people are spoiled as hell in this country. Many others know how to make do and make the best of it.
Brother can you spare some Spam?
Indigo
· 1 year ago
The humble ways of yesteryear return as curiosities and ornamental follies: Marie Antoinette had a silver bucket to carry when she strolled with her ladies-in-waiting to the dairy barn to pretend to be miking the cows.
Spam and Velveeta, two of the most enduring relics of the original Great Depression are, like Depression glass and tablewear, more likely to grace a beautifully themed table in a prosperous Republican household than the kitchen tables of the already unemployed and nearly impoverished.
Older_Wiser
· 1 year ago
Oh please. That's because most people know nothing about nutrition, and think a meat based diet is best.
I'd rather eat tofu anyday, or at least beans and rice...
Apphouse50
· 1 year ago
Actually, I can imagine putting Spam through a food processor and using it to flavor, say, lentil soup. I'm betting that no one would be the wiser (well, maybe Rachel Ray) if it was so ground up as to be indistinguishable from ham in a thick, dark soup like I make with French lentils.
That said, I can still afford real ham, and there I'll remain until I can't anymore. I've seen Spam. I've sliced Spam. That's all I need to know.
wildkatkem
· 1 year ago
At least Hormel hasn't started retooling their plant to make Soylent green, that other infamous mystery meat. Or have they? Could SPAM be Shredded People As Meat!!!!!!
SCLiberal
· 1 year ago
Q: What's the grossest thing ever found inside a can of Spam?
A: Spam
My dad used to slice Spam and fry it. I'm guessing it was a staple in his household growing up in the 1940s. It's a bit too salty for me and I'm still wondering what is in hot dogs.
meemers
· 1 year ago
I LOVE SPAM...I make a kick ass spam hash toped with two fried eggs! Wow, The thought if it makes me want to run out and buy a few cans and serve this at our post thanksgiving morning brunch!
fl79tr
· 1 year ago
wow, thanks for the very interesting post, but I got to say it's stuff like this that makes me realize how wealthy we Americans really are. Spam is no chateau breau or filet mignon but it's still an expensive and special treat for the vast majority of the middle class here in Japan. The second fucking richest country on the planet.
LeeFromHamburgNY
· 1 year ago
At least its made in the U.S. Another similar product is "Treat". Its about the same, mabe a little less salty. Wouldn't want to make a steady diet of it, but it can be used to help maintain a budget...
mellowjohn
· 1 year ago
"i don't want ANY spam!" --monty python
renegademom
· 1 year ago
Why do I get the feeling that 99.44% of the commenters here are childless gay men with lots of cultuh. Although I was raised in an upper middle class family (5 kids, Irish Catholic), i am now a solidly working class single bisexual mother of three kids.........and I am staying here to inject some Erma Bombeck into this damn site.
deal with it, bitches
and, I'd rather DIE than give my kids spam. pride, don'tcha know....beans and rice, YES. No downwardly mobile kitsch for me..........i'm already there.....lol....
Indigo
· 1 year ago
You can't fool me, you're really Paris Hilton. Admit it!
renegademom
· 1 year ago
damn, BUSTED.
gotta run, time to clean the toilets.
UncleGlenny
· 1 year ago
I beg yoor pardon? I think I agree with Indigo.
Thinly sliced, with cantaloupe - instead of prosciutto.
The sandwich described above, on French bread, sounds good - in that case, again, the slices are thin, and the intense saltiness and fattiness would be especially offset by the tomatoes. Spam and velveeta (which I've just started seeing ads for - as half the price of cheddar) instead of black forest ham and goat cheese on baguette with dijon, arugula, and sliiced plum tomatoes.
Spam "steaks" with sauted mushrooms, deglazed with a riesling - you just want a glaze, not a fat-based sauce, because of the spam's fat, again. Riesling goes well, IIRC...
And because it comes in a can in reasonably small portions, it could be used in small portions as flavoring (bean or lentil soup), to add more substance to omelettes, or, yes, to make a hash - I'd extend it with minced potatoes (pre-cooked firm ones), onions, or other leftover vegettables. Beets make an interesting velvet hash.. (Jasper White has a hash recipe that's made from leftover New England boiled dinner, so that includes cabbage.)
And contrary to what someone says below about price per unit protein, according to Michael Pollan's foodie book (he traces our "food chain" - the name escapes me), when people eat on a serious budget, nutrition and health go out the window, and consumption of processed and corn-originated products goes up.
Anecdote: a nearby hospital has a nutritionist who instructs certain patients (e.g. psych ward, certain other programs). ONe lesson has a major emphasis on whole grains. Attitude "yes, should always try to eat whole grains."
They have a quite good restaurant.
Outside of maybe oatmeal and some pre-packaged cereals, the only whole-grain starch they serve is Wonder brand ersatz-whole-wheat bread. (I've never taken the time to read the label, but I think it's only partly whole wheat.). Price.
Freday63
· 1 year ago
Only 99.44%? I would be surprised if the number were that low. Yes I am gay, and yes I have a can of Spam in the cupboard!
Judas Peckerwood
· 1 year ago
If Americans had any less taste they'd have no taste at all.
elowe
· 1 year ago
I commented on this phenomenon back in May (see: http://blog.ultimatefatburner.com/2008/05/29/ho... ). Point is, SPAM isn't the bargain that many people think it is, when you look at the amount of protein it provides vs. the price it sells for. It's really more about convenience vs. getting the best food value for your money.
UncleGlenny
· 1 year ago
I'll keep this quick, as your blg looks interesting and I may go there and leave a more detailed reply there later. (I also have a much more extensive reply, although only barely commenting on nutrition, earlier in this comments section.)
According ot the USDA database, spam, a "generic" pork frankfurter, and an Oscar Meyer weiner of pork and turkey all come out to have pretty much the same calories from fat, about 80%, based on 9 calories per gram lipid.
Interestingly, the calories per serving are (from memory) respectively about 174, 200, 150. Just establishing that they're fairly comparable.
The storage issue matters not just in home storage, but in transport and storage at a distribution center. When people go on a budget, and I mean tight, they go more for calories than protein.
There may also be a relataive price difference between fresh meat and spam that has changed over time - youd need historical price information going back 50-60 years to see how they changed with respect to each other, which could be affected by such things as distribution costs (fuel cost is also affected by need for refrigeration), factory farming, and perhaps even government subsidies. In other words, maybe in the 1950s, it was relatively cheaper per calorie.
You might check out my other comment(s?) on this here, and PadreMickey, below you, says "SPAM is THE canned meat of the Developing World, "
And some may just like it, nostalgically or not.
I'll check out your blog in a day or so.
elowe
· 1 year ago
LOL - yes, SPAM, hot dogs and other "comminuted meat products" (as they're known in the food industry) are roughly comparable w/respect to their nutritional content...which, in general, is pretty crappy: they're all fairly high in fat/saturated fat, sodium, and additives.
I wouldn't be surprised to find out that - like SPAM - consumption of these products is also on the rise.
It's entirely possible that there was a relative price difference between fresh meat and SPAM 50-60 years ago. But I'm puzzled as to how that's relevant to the "here and now." IMHO, the rationale for SPAM's introduction and early popularity would make for an interesting bit of history, but people trying to stretch their 2008 food dollars have to do it with the choices that are currently in front of them.
Which was the point of the post: assuming you're not living in a food desert - other, more nutritious choices than SPAM are possible within the same budgetary constraints. But you do have to think about it...as the original article points out, people are buying it because they want to put "...something that resembles meat on the table." Nutritionally, meat is a source of high-quality protein. Are the folks buying SPAM actually thinking about what they're getting for their money? Perhaps they are, although I tend to doubt it. Based on my experience in working with people on their diets/food choices, relatively few of them really read the damn labels.
If people want to eat SPAM because they like it -- well, more power to 'em...that's entirely their choice. But if they're buying it because they believe it's a bargain relative to other sources, that's another matter.
UncleGlenny
· 1 year ago
Sorry, I was changing my mind as I wrote things, and having made the hotdog comparison, and trying to finish in a hurry, I basicallydo agree with you. Most people don't make these decisions rationally and having it change (and become more complicated) .
Trans fats are a good example. The first hints that they might not be good for one were around for years, only slowly percolated into the general public consciousness, and took stilll longer for "official" recommendations to be made, and only then did labeling requirements appear.. II don't know how long I've been avoiding them, but it's been a pretty long tim; I got most that information from reading fitness magazines, which would have little entries like "A study at University of Fubar suggests that rats fed on a diet high in crisco are more likely to have their brains fall out their noses than rats fed with equivalent amounts of butter."
The business of comparative costs was that perhaps once spam really was relatively cheaper than it is now, leading to the myth.
But many decisions aren't made rationally, and I've found more especially about things that are engrained from growing up (e.g. dishwashing, kitchen hygiene).. Sweeping generalizations help, and the food pyramid is a fair solution to dealing with the quantification.
btw, I was by trade a software designer, who had spent 2 1/2 years as a chemistry undergrad. A few years ago I found the USDA food information online, and started to write software to use that. The idea was that a user would be able to enter recipes, and get per-serving nutritional information. I also had printouts of the revised nutritional recommendations that were published in about 2001, so it would have been able to tell how a recipe, or a diet, stacked up nutritionally. Sort of a dietitian's tool. Got bored and didn't come close to finishing.
I assume I can catch you at the blog in a day or two, rather than extend conversation here,? (It is the spam thread, though, but the indentation gets pretty silly soon..)
elowe
· 1 year ago
Yes, I did notice the indentation...probably a smart idea to keep commenters on topic and flame wars to a minimum.
But sure - feel free to wander over and comment...it's mostly fitness/health related material.
FWIW, www.nutritiondata.com has a recipe analysis function that seems similar to what you're describing...I'm about to put it to the test, and see if it's worth recommending.
PadreMickey
· 1 year ago
SPAM is THE canned meat of the Developing World, and I've eaten it many times living here in Panamá. There is even a "bajo en grasa" version of SPAM now, and a Turkey SPAM and SPAM con ajo, and other styles.
Since Republican Free-market policies have made it possible for everyone to be poor, many readers here may find themselves enjoying a fine "spam sammich" in the very near future!
MNUSA
· 1 year ago
Saddam Hussein's bunker contained cans of Spam. I was always sure that Spam had pork in it. My mother used to chop it into little, tiny cubes and make a pasta salad with it.
akryan
· 1 year ago
Don't knock spam. Fry it up with some top ramen and you have what I lived on in college.
Ingmar53
· 1 year ago
If you ever travel to the Pacific islands--including Hawaii--you'll see how common SPAM remains as a remnant from WWII. On many islands SPAM remains the "meat of choice" where choices other than fish are few and far between. Apparently Hawaii is still the #1 SPAM-eating state, and I'm always surprised to see it included on restaurant menus--and not just at dives and greasy-spoons. But apparently the high fat and salt content is part of the reason native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders are facing an epidemic of obesity and diabetes.
All Comments
The Spam phenomenon happens every time there's a major economic downturn.
Years later, friends of mine who went to Marymount Manhattan College (a ritzy joint to say the least) lived in apartments on the upper East Side which served as dormitories. They had, on their fridge, a list of every day of the week and the bars up there that served free food at happy hour if you bought one drink. I suspect we're going to be seeing more such eating habit changes and not just among college kids.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimlavin/sets/7205...
Doesn't sound TOOO bad, (for occasional use only).
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/14/this-g...
Ntsidigo'7 (Kneeldown Bread)
Also known as Navajo tamales, Kneeldown Bread is baked in a corn husk. It used to be made in bulk after the corn harvest and stored over the winter like a hard cracker. One old recipe reads as follows: “Scrape the kernels from fresh corn cobs and grind on a metate until mushy. Wrap in several layers of corn husks. Place in the ashes of a wood fire and cover with fresh corn husks or leaves to seal in the heat and steam. Cover with a layer of moist dirt, then a layer of hot coals. Stoke a small fire over all the layers and bake the breads about 1 hour. Remove the packets from the ash pit, peel off the husks, and eat hot.” Modern recipes utilize a hand grinder or food processor and an indoor oven as well as an underground outdoor fire. Ground green corn is dit[0g7. Kneeldown Bread is sometimes sold by vendors at flea markets. Cold bread is commonly eaten dunked in hot coffee.
Brother can you spare some Spam?
Spam and Velveeta, two of the most enduring relics of the original Great Depression are, like Depression glass and tablewear, more likely to grace a beautifully themed table in a prosperous Republican household than the kitchen tables of the already unemployed and nearly impoverished.
I'd rather eat tofu anyday, or at least beans and rice...
That said, I can still afford real ham, and there I'll remain until I can't anymore. I've seen Spam. I've sliced Spam. That's all I need to know.
A: Spam
My dad used to slice Spam and fry it. I'm guessing it was a staple in his household growing up in the 1940s. It's a bit too salty for me and I'm still wondering what is in hot dogs.
deal with it, bitches
and, I'd rather DIE than give my kids spam. pride, don'tcha know....beans and rice, YES. No downwardly mobile kitsch for me..........i'm already there.....lol....
gotta run, time to clean the toilets.
Thinly sliced, with cantaloupe - instead of prosciutto.
The sandwich described above, on French bread, sounds good - in that case, again, the slices are thin, and the intense saltiness and fattiness would be especially offset by the tomatoes. Spam and velveeta (which I've just started seeing ads for - as half the price of cheddar) instead of black forest ham and goat cheese on baguette with dijon, arugula, and sliiced plum tomatoes.
Spam "steaks" with sauted mushrooms, deglazed with a riesling - you just want a glaze, not a fat-based sauce, because of the spam's fat, again. Riesling goes well, IIRC...
And because it comes in a can in reasonably small portions, it could be used in small portions as flavoring (bean or lentil soup), to add more substance to omelettes, or, yes, to make a hash - I'd extend it with minced potatoes (pre-cooked firm ones), onions, or other leftover vegettables. Beets make an interesting velvet hash.. (Jasper White has a hash recipe that's made from leftover New England boiled dinner, so that includes cabbage.)
And contrary to what someone says below about price per unit protein, according to Michael Pollan's foodie book (he traces our "food chain" - the name escapes me), when people eat on a serious budget, nutrition and health go out the window, and consumption of processed and corn-originated products goes up.
Anecdote: a nearby hospital has a nutritionist who instructs certain patients (e.g. psych ward, certain other programs). ONe lesson has a major emphasis on whole grains. Attitude "yes, should always try to eat whole grains."
They have a quite good restaurant.
Outside of maybe oatmeal and some pre-packaged cereals, the only whole-grain starch they serve is Wonder brand ersatz-whole-wheat bread. (I've never taken the time to read the label, but I think it's only partly whole wheat.). Price.
According ot the USDA database, spam, a "generic" pork frankfurter, and an Oscar Meyer weiner of pork and turkey all come out to have pretty much the same calories from fat, about 80%, based on 9 calories per gram lipid.
Interestingly, the calories per serving are (from memory) respectively about 174, 200, 150. Just establishing that they're fairly comparable.
The storage issue matters not just in home storage, but in transport and storage at a distribution center. When people go on a budget, and I mean tight, they go more for calories than protein.
There may also be a relataive price difference between fresh meat and spam that has changed over time - youd need historical price information going back 50-60 years to see how they changed with respect to each other, which could be affected by such things as distribution costs (fuel cost is also affected by need for refrigeration), factory farming, and perhaps even government subsidies. In other words, maybe in the 1950s, it was relatively cheaper per calorie.
You might check out my other comment(s?) on this here, and PadreMickey, below you, says "SPAM is THE canned meat of the Developing World, "
And some may just like it, nostalgically or not.
I'll check out your blog in a day or so.
I wouldn't be surprised to find out that - like SPAM - consumption of these products is also on the rise.
It's entirely possible that there was a relative price difference between fresh meat and SPAM 50-60 years ago. But I'm puzzled as to how that's relevant to the "here and now." IMHO, the rationale for SPAM's introduction and early popularity would make for an interesting bit of history, but people trying to stretch their 2008 food dollars have to do it with the choices that are currently in front of them.
Which was the point of the post: assuming you're not living in a food desert - other, more nutritious choices than SPAM are possible within the same budgetary constraints. But you do have to think about it...as the original article points out, people are buying it because they want to put "...something that resembles meat on the table." Nutritionally, meat is a source of high-quality protein. Are the folks buying SPAM actually thinking about what they're getting for their money? Perhaps they are, although I tend to doubt it. Based on my experience in working with people on their diets/food choices, relatively few of them really read the damn labels.
If people want to eat SPAM because they like it -- well, more power to 'em...that's entirely their choice. But if they're buying it because they believe it's a bargain relative to other sources, that's another matter.
Trans fats are a good example. The first hints that they might not be good for one were around for years, only slowly percolated into the general public consciousness, and took stilll longer for "official" recommendations to be made, and only then did labeling requirements appear.. II don't know how long I've been avoiding them, but it's been a pretty long tim; I got most that information from reading fitness magazines, which would have little entries like "A study at University of Fubar suggests that rats fed on a diet high in crisco are more likely to have their brains fall out their noses than rats fed with equivalent amounts of butter."
The business of comparative costs was that perhaps once spam really was relatively cheaper than it is now, leading to the myth.
But many decisions aren't made rationally, and I've found more especially about things that are engrained from growing up (e.g. dishwashing, kitchen hygiene).. Sweeping generalizations help, and the food pyramid is a fair solution to dealing with the quantification.
btw, I was by trade a software designer, who had spent 2 1/2 years as a chemistry undergrad. A few years ago I found the USDA food information online, and started to write software to use that. The idea was that a user would be able to enter recipes, and get per-serving nutritional information. I also had printouts of the revised nutritional recommendations that were published in about 2001, so it would have been able to tell how a recipe, or a diet, stacked up nutritionally. Sort of a dietitian's tool. Got bored and didn't come close to finishing.
I assume I can catch you at the blog in a day or two, rather than extend conversation here,? (It is the spam thread, though, but the indentation gets pretty silly soon..)
But sure - feel free to wander over and comment...it's mostly fitness/health related material.
FWIW, www.nutritiondata.com has a recipe analysis function that seems similar to what you're describing...I'm about to put it to the test, and see if it's worth recommending.
Since Republican Free-market policies have made it possible for everyone to be poor, many readers here may find themselves enjoying a fine "spam sammich" in the very near future!