If you mention Spam to your friends the immediate reaction you can expect them to either love it or hate it, more hate than anything else. While I myself love the stuff with a spam sandwich up there in my list of much loved sandwiches.
Its 80 years today since the legendary SPAM® Chopped Pork and Ham was launched. It first hit the shelves in 1937 and became popular during World War II with some saying it helped win the war.
My first and one of my most lasting memories of Spam are from my early years. Going around Saddlers shop for a quarter of a pound of slice spam. He would (Mr Saddler) would drop the slab of spam onto a meat slicer and slice away... I would be transfixed watching the meat slider back and fore so much, I never forgot and a few years ago bought a smaller version of a meat slicer.
In school when I took sandwiches I was not popular when it came to a sandwich swap with my spam and tomato sarnies, which I was happy about anyway. It was not just in school anywhere my trusted spam sandwiches and I ventured we were treated with distain.
Even on Boxing Day on an away trip to watch Cardiff City play in some far flung city in England with a coach full of other people tucking into leftover Turkey sandwiches from Christmas Day. I was safe in the knowledge no one would be chasing me around the coach for my sandwiches. They were safe.
Who can forget the famous Monty Python sketch with Spam? Two customers are lowered into a greasy spoon café via wires and try to order a breakfast. The menu includes Spam in almost every dish, much to the consternation of one of the customers.(see video below)
Over here if Spam does not come in a tin then it is Chopped pork due to the American Spam company copyrighting the name SPAM. Seems a bit unfair but I like both. In fact, I celebrated with some spam sandwiches for lunch.
Spam is hugely popular in Southeast Asia. In the Philippines, there is a restaurant based entirely around Spam. The Spam Jam Restaurant features the Spam burger, Spam spaghetti, Spam, and egg, and a variety of other Spam-inspired dishes it could be right out of a Monty Python sketch.
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