I was at the supermarket the other day, in front of the Spam section and I noticed two new versions of Spam. Of course, it's my duty to you, the loyal Cruft reader, to test them out.

Without hesitation, I picked up the cans and I now bring you, a Tale of Two Spams.

Yes, it's the new Hot & Spicy Spam and the new Spam with Cheese.

To read the full story, click More...

For those that are unfamiliar with Spam, it is a ham-like pork product that gained fame in World War II as a staple in the war ravaged and meat rationed part of the world as America tried to feed the hungry.

Since that time, Spam has developed a faithful following of people that enjoy it. I grew up with my father feeding me fried Spam and count myself as one of the faithful.

Enough history, onto the Spam!

I removed both from their cans, with the familiar 'slurp' sound. the Hot & Spicy is co-branded with Tabasco and had the familiar solidified orange oil look to it. This is a good sign, many of my favorite foods have this same orange oily look.

The Spam with Cheese looked like a normal chunk of Spam with no cheese evident on the outside.

I sliced the Hot & Spicy and found the same even orangeish color throughout the loaf.

The Spam with Cheese loaf had visible chunks of yellow cheese in it. There was quite a bit of cheese mixed in with the spam and it was not clumped at all. Props to the food scientists/engineers that pulled off non-clumpy cheese in Spam.

I began frying both Spams on the griddle. The Hot & Spicy is on the left and the Spam with Cheese is on the right. The Spam didn't release much oil on the giddle and quietly fired with out any grease spurting up off the stove at me.

Brown and crispy is how I like my Spam, so I was sure to cook the slices thoroughly for a good texture. Some like it more rare, but those people are strange. As it cooked, the cheese held up and didn't run off and disappear. You can still see chunks of cheese on the cooked side.

In the tradition of the Spamburger, I placed a couple slices of each on hamburger buns. The photo looks a little dark, but the slices were cooked perfectly.

And so now for the tasting!

The Spam with Cheese tasted pretty much like regular Spam with a little more oily mouth feel. I never tasted much cheesey flavor. I'm not one for subtle flavors, so I view Spam with Cheese pretty much the same as regular Spam.

The Hot & Spicy Spam on the other hand was tasty. The heat of the Tabasco came through well with good flavor and the mix of the meat pushed the taste closer to buffalo wings than toward pure Tabasco.

I really enjoyed the Hot & Spicy Spam and was pleasently surprised with how good it was. I'll probably stock a tin of it in the cupboards in case I get a hankering in the future. It would make a good camping meal. Give it a try. If you like spicy food, you'll probably dig it.

That's a thumbs up on Hot & Spicy Spam and a thumbs down on Spam with Cheese.

Who knows what's next? BBQ Spam? Vegan Soy Spam?

Posted by michael at June 30, 2005 10:19 PM