This recipe for Hawaiian Fried Rice uses Hawaii’s favorite potted meat – SPAM. It has peas, carrots, cashews, and onions and is loaded with the goodness of curry.
My version of Hawaiian Fried Rice is inspired by a dish that I had in Chattanooga at one of my favorite restaurants, Thai Smiles. The dish there is called Hawaii Fried Rice. (Yes, that is how it is spelled on the online menu.)
The original dish uses chicken for the main protein source. Being that Hawaii is in the name, I thought it would be fun to use SPAM instead. Some will say that this is not true Hawaiian rice and that is probably true. Nonetheless, this is a pretty tasty fried rice dish and I hope you enjoy it.
How To Make Hawaiian Fried Rice
For this easy SPAM fried rice recipe, you need the following ingredients:
- 1 large Boil-In-Bag of rice or 1 cup of dry Jasmine rice
- Water
- ⅓ cup pineapple juice
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon curry powder
- 3 eggs
- 2 tablespoon milk
- 2 Tablespoons Sesame Oil
- 1 medium-sized onion, chopped
- 1 3- ounce package SPAM Single, cubed
- ½ cup frozen peas and carrots
- ½ cup chopped cashews
To make it, prepare the rice according to the manufacturer’s directions.
While the rice is cooking, whisk together the pineapple juice, soy sauce, and curry powder in a medium-size bowl and set it aside. In another bowl, whisk together 3 eggs and 2 tablespoons of milk and set aside.
Next, heat 2 tablespoons of toasted sesame seed oil over medium heat in a large, non-stick skillet or wok.
Once the onions start to become translucent, spoon them to the side and cook the eggs. Once the eggs are cooked, it’s time to add the other ingredients.
Start by adding SPAM and frozen vegetables.
Increase the burner to medium-high heat and stir the ingredients together and cook until the vegetables are no longer frozen. Add the cooked rice and curry sauce and stir until the sauce has coated all of the rice.
Stir the chopped cashews into the rice mixture.
Recipe Notes
Feel free to make this recipe your own.
- Add fresh pineapple pieces to the fried rice for a burst of fresh flavor.
- Garnish with chopped green onions.
Frequently Asked Question
Can you use leftover rice in this dish?
Absolutely. Cold rice works well. Just be sure to cook it long enough to heat throughout.
Hawaiian Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 large Boil-In-Bag of rice
- Water
- ⅓ cup pineapple juice
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon curry powder
- 3 eggs
- 2 tablespoon milk
- 2 Tablespoons Sesame Oil
- 1 medium-sized onion chopped
- 1 3- ounce package SPAM Single cubed
- ½ cup frozen peas and carrots
- ½ cup chopped cashews
Instructions
- Cook rice according to directions on box.
- Mix pineapple juice, soy sauce, and curry in a bowl and set aside.
- Beat eggs with milk and set aside
- Meanwhile, sauté onion in small amount of toasted sesame oil.
- Move onions over to one side of pan. Add egg mixture and cook until eggs are done.
- Add Spam and peas and carrots. Increase the burner to medium-high heat and stir-fry until the vegetables are no longer frozen.
- Add the cooked rice and curry sauce and stir until the sauce has coated all of the rice.
- Add cashews and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
This is what the finished product looks like.
Did you know that rice is the second most widely consumed staple in the world? Not surprising when you consider that there are over 40,000 varieties growing on every continent, with the exception of Antarctica.
Asians have enjoyed fried rice for centuries. It may have been invented during the Sui dynasty in China. Most countries in Southeast Asia have their own varieties.
Rice makes a great side dish, but when you combine it with eggs and meat and throw in a few vegetables it becomes a meal in itself.
Why SPAM?
SPAM has been around since 1937 when Hormel introduced this new lunch meat. Between 1941-1945, SPAM was shipped to our troops. It didn’t require refrigeration and it had a long shelf life. According to SPAM’s website:
Higasan says
I’m from Hawaii and we use Japanese rice, left over rice and it started because if you were broke, you threw whatever was in the refrigerator. Anything. Spam Portuguese sausage none then eggs etc.
Zaku says
Pretty tasty. Was expecting a bit more sweetness from the pineapple juice. I’ll increase it next time. Less curry powder for us also. Otherwise tasty filling dish. Spam is good when fried hard.
Connie says
Aloha!
Im sorry, but I’m Hawaiian and this is NOT our local way of making fried rice. First off, the rice has to be the calrose type. It should be cooked, refrigerated or even frozen prior to making fried rice.
We do not use curry! Peas and carrots are more of an Asian thing, not Hawaiian style…
Anyway, nice try…
Bridget Leverett says
@Connie, I totally agree with you. I grew up in Hawaii and this is NOT Hawaiian.
Jenn says
I usually leave meat out of my fried rice for convenience and budget reasons. This takes care of both! Yay SPAM.
Linda says
Really people, if you don’t like Spam don’t eat it. It’s no worse than hot dogs or hamburger. It probably doesn’t even have hormones in it. I make fried rice all the time, because I lived there most of my life. I have never put pineapple or curry in it. I’ll have to try this.
Jennifer @ My Sweet Sanity says
Everything about this sounds great to me but the SPAM. SPAM just scares me.
Lynda says
It’s not that bad. 🙂 It’s like a delicacy in Hawaii.
Elaina says
This sounds like something my hubby would love!
patti says
Love the SPAM history lesson. I have made a similar dish using cooked ham.
Crystal says
Interesting. I really liked Spam growing up, though, and I love fried rice.
Chelle @ oh just stop already says
I still after all these years can’t put spam in my mouth. I can eat tofu like crazy in my rice but not spam. Go figure but this looks absolutely delish!
Katy says
I actually like SPAM although I haven’t eaten it in quite a while. I probably would have fried the SPAM with the onion because I like my browned. Looks good!