Spam Champions

Agree to judge a Spam cooking contest and you never know what you're going to get. Once I had to eat chocolate-dipped Spam. (Don't ask me how to make it, I don't know and I don't want to know.)

But you can also come across some real innovation, as we did Saturday at Spam judging at Flavors of Honolulu.

The Star-Bulletin, Mutual Publishing and Spam-maker Hormel Foods sponsored the contest to raise funds for the Hawaii Foodbank and to mark publication of "Hawai'i Cooks with Spam" by Muriel Miura (Mutual, $14.95).

Miura went through about 100 entries, each submitted with a $5 donation to the food bank. If she got one for chocolate-dipped Spam, she didn't choose it as a finalist.

Instead we got Sam Kong Kee's meticulously plated Firecracker Spam Poke - cubes of fried Spam served restaurant-style in Chinese soup spoons over a black-bean sauce. And Ron's Chicken Au' Nimme by Ronald Nimcheski, who stuffed Spam and cream cheese into chicken breasts, something like Chicken Cordon Bleu, with a crisp panko crust. And Lisa Komatsu-Lui's conversion of Saltimbocca - usually veal topped with prosciutto and sage - into a Spam dish. Other finalists: Sachi Nakamura's Spam Avocado Don and Cathy Frommer's Spamtatoes.

The winner was Shayna Lum for a tasty dish of mochi rice, based on her mother's recipe. Lum says her mom, Norene Lum, uses pork, char siu, chicken and lup cheong, all of which she replaced with Spam.

Lum was pleasantly surprised that all the other flavors of the dish came through - her mother, not so much. "I think she was a little insulted that a $1.99 can of Spam could taste as good as $30 worth of ingredients."

Meet Miura and Lum at a book-signing, 11 a.m. tomorrow at Barnes and Noble Ala Moana.

Tasty Spam Mochi Rice

Shayna Lum

3 cups mochi rice
8 dried shiitake mushrooms
2 tablespoons very small dried shrimp, or finely chopped larger dried shrimp
2 cups water
1 can Spam, diced
1 tablespoon oil (optional)
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup chopped green onions
3 tablespoons oyster sauce, or to taste

Rinse rice in colander until water runs clear. Pour into bowl and cover with water. Soak overnight.

Combine mushrooms, shrimp and water. Soak 2 hours.

Heat nonstick pan and add oil, if using. Add Spam and stir-fry until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes.

Reserve water from the shiitake mushrooms and shrimp. Chop mushrooms.

Drain rice. Place in a large microwave-safe container. Add shrimp, mushrooms, Spam, cilantro, green onions and oyster sauce.

Add reserved mushroom and shrimp water until rice is level with water (about 1-1/2 cups). Cover. Microwave on high 7 minutes. Stir.

Microwave on high 5 more minutes. Stir.

Microwave on high until rice is fully cooked, 2 to 5 more minutes. Stir. Serves 6.