Sunday, February 10, 2013

Breakfast

During World War Two, Hawai'i discovered one of the most vilified meat products in history...and, having no culinary prejudices on the subject, developed a great taste for it.



Yes, fried Spam long ago became a staple of Hawai'ian cuisine, particularly in regard to breakfast.  The usual accompaniment would be straight scrambled eggs, along with a papya or grapefruit half, or a serving of pineapple.  I spent the first decade of my life on O'ahu, so, when I make a Hawai'ian breakfast, I call it a "Local Boy."


This time, however, I'm replacing the scrambled eggs with my Dirty White Eggs, so I guess this is a "Dirty Local Boy."  You'll need Spam, pineapple rings, eggs, an egg separator(or not, if you can actually do it by pouring it back and forth between the shells--I'm not that coordinated), sage, white pepper, oregano, curry powder and red pepper flakes.


I came up with Dirty White Eggs in an attempt to make things a little healthier at the breakfast table.  The ingredients vary a bit each time, as I'm always experimenting with new combinations, but this is the standard starting point.  I prefer a 4:1 ratio, so for every four eggs' worth of whites, I use the yolk of one.  After this picture, I cracked a whole egg into the bowl.


So, we have the Dirty Local Boy: 

the whites of four eggs
the yolk of one egg
1/2 tsp rubbed sage
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
dusting of white pepper(be careful--it's very fine and you can end up overdoing it)

Mix thoroughly and set aside.  Heat up a nonstick or oiled skillet on high heat.  Start cutting your Spam in 1/4" slices...

 
 
...and fry them about 2-3 minutes on each side.  They'll turn a deep crimson color and get crispy pretty quick.  Remove from pan and fry your pineapple rings...
 

 
...for about a minute each side.  Then scramble the egg mixture to desired consistency and serve.
 
 
So, if you can't be in Hawai'i, you can at least pick yourself up in these cold and dismal months with a bit of island flavor.  Shaka, brah!

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