Easy Kimchi Fried Rice with SPAM!
Kimchi fried rice was a treat for me growing up, because it tastes best when made with “old” super fermented kimchi, and we rarely had any kimchi sitting around that long... and if we did, we usually used it for stew! But every so often, my mom would put aside a cup or 2 and make this for us with whatever meat was around. I LOVE SPAM, but it’s really good with bulgogi 불고기 too!
NOTE: This recipe is quick so it’s best to have all the ingredients prepped in advance!
INGREDIENTS:
4 oz SPAM, diced (or other cooked meat, fried tofu or omit altogether)
½ cup chopped onion, diced small
1-1¼ cup chopped well-fermented kimchi with 2 tsp of juice
2 cups cooked rice, preferably day old
1 tsp gochujang 고추장, if necessary
Sesame oil
1-2 eggs
1 scallion, chopped
1 sheet roasted seaweed, julienned into matchsticks
Toasted perilla seeds 들깨가루, crushed or toasted sesame seeds, crushed
Vegetable or canola oil
Heat 1 tsp oil in a wok or large saute pan over high heat. Add SPAM and caramelize evenly. Move SPAM to a bowl leaving residual oil in pan and set aside.
Return pan to heat and add diced onion. Let it soften slightly then add kimchi with its juice and saute until juice evaporates and kimchi caramelizes, stirring throughout.
Make a well in center of pan and add more oil. Add rice little by little and keep stirring rice with oil so that the rice is well coated.
Once oil is well-distributed on the rice, mix rice and the kimchi mixture together. Once the rice gets a little crispy, add SPAM and mix into the kimchi rice. At this point, taste the kimchi fried rice. If it needs a touch of sweetness for balance, add the gochujang. Note, it will add a little heat too. Mix well into the rice.
Divide fried rice into bowls. Drizzle each with sesame oil. For garnish, I like to do a thin egg “crepe”, julienned, + seaweed and scallions. If you prefer the runny yolk, you can top each bowl with a sunny side up egg.
