Air Fryer Spam is the absolute EASIEST way to cook crispy Spam. It caramelizes the salty ham and sauce on the outside but leaves it nice and juicy on the inside. I use this recipe to cook spam for making Spam Musubi (a Hawaiian snack), but it can also be served in a sandwich or served with rice. At the end of the “process” section, see how I assemble Spam Musubi!
If you like this, try my Air Fryer Salmon Bites!
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The Process
Ingredients:
- Spam
- Soy Sauce
- Brown Sugar
- Sesame Oil
- Mirin
1. Cut Spam
Start by cutting your spam into 8 equal slices. I like to cut it in half, then half again, and half again so that they’re all uniform. See pics!
2. Air Fry Spam and Make Sauce
Add your cut spam to the air fryer and set it to 370 for 10 minutes. I don’t preheat the air fryer with this recipe, it takes 2-3 minutes to “preheat” with the spam already inside.
While I’m waiting to flip the spam, I make the sauce! Add the brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and mirin then set aside for now.
When the timer counts down to 7 minutes flip the spam over, then close the air fryer and continue cooking. At this point, the spam has been cooking for about 5 minutes.
3. Brush on the Sauce
When the timer has 2 minutes left, brush the sauce onto both sides of your spam. Resume cooking for the remaining two minutes. You can enjoy it like this, or scroll down to see how I assemble my Spam Musubi!
4. Assemble Air Fryer Spam Musubi (Optional)
Using the cleaned spam can, or a musubi mold, start by adding roughly 4 tablespoons of short-grain rice into the mold. Top with furikake and then the spam. Cut your nori seaweed sheets into 4 pieces and fold around the spam and rice. See the pictures below!
FAQ
What can I eat with this?
This is great served as Spam Musubi, but you could also make it into a sandwich, or serve it over rice! If I were eating it with rice I’d add vegetables such as cucumber, avocado, green onion, nori, furikake, and maybe even an egg!
What kind of air fryer did you use?
I used the Instant Vortex Plus 6-Quart Air Fryer which is a basket air fryer. If I were to make it in my Instant Omni Plus Air Fryer I’d put it on a small sheet pan to avoid drippings.
If I want to preheat, how long should I set the time to?
If you’d rather preheat the air fryer first, you should set it to 370 for 12 minutes, flip them after it’s been 5 minutes, then add the sauce when there are 2 minutes left!
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The Recipe
Lay the spam on its side and cut it in half, and half again until you have 8 slices.
Place the spam flat in the air fryer and set it to 380 for 10 minutes. Start the air fryer and allow it to preheat with the spam inside. (See FAQ for preheated option instructions!)
While it's cooking, start making the sauce by mixing together the brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and mirin.
When the air fryer timer counts down to 7 minutes, flip the spam.
When there are 2 minutes left, add the sauce to both sides of the spam and let it finish cooking. Enjoy!
Ingredients
Directions
Lay the spam on its side and cut it in half, and half again until you have 8 slices.
Place the spam flat in the air fryer and set it to 380 for 10 minutes. Start the air fryer and allow it to preheat with the spam inside. (See FAQ for preheated option instructions!)
While it's cooking, start making the sauce by mixing together the brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and mirin.
When the air fryer timer counts down to 7 minutes, flip the spam.
When there are 2 minutes left, add the sauce to both sides of the spam and let it finish cooking. Enjoy!