Spam Kimbap

Spam Kimbap. Delicious Korean style sushi rolls filled with warm rice, spam, lettuce, pickled radish, egg and carrots.

A fantastic Korean recipe that serves well for lunch, snack, or any meal of the day!

What is Spam Kimbap?

Spam Kimbap is the fun sister to the traditional kimbap that most Koreans enjoy. You've probably seen spam kimbap on social media or in some Korean shows.

A traditional kimbap roll contains fish cake, crab sticks, perilla leaves, pickled daikon, pickled burdock, seasoned spinach, and carrots wrapped in gim.

"Gim" is also known as roasted seaweed in Korean. Gim is very similar to a nori sheet in Japanese cuisine. Kimbap is of those easy meals that are fun to make and are so tasty thanks to the well seasoned components.

What's the difference between Kimbap and Sushi?

Kimbap originates from Korea and sushi comes from Japan. Although they look similar, kimbap is different from sushi as it's made with mostly cooked or pickled ingredients.

Kimbap is also brushed with sesame oil and garnished with sesame seeds, whereas sushi is not. In addition, Kimbap is served on its own and is not served with soy sauce, wasabi or pickled ginger, like sushi. Lastly, the sushi rice is also seasoned differently. Sushi rice is seasoned with rice vinegar, salt and sugar. Whereas kimbap rice is seasoned with sesame oil and salt.

Great for Lunch

In Korean culture, Kimbap is popularly prepared in a packed lunch or a lunch box. Since it doesn't require any reheating, it can be eaten the same day and lasts several hours making it the perfect lunch idea for students or office workers. Kimbap is also fantastic for picnics as well!

All Kinds of Kimbap

Thanks to social media and Korean dramas, like "Extraordinary Attorney Woo" on Netflix, other fun kimbap recipes came to popularity again. The most viral one was the "Folded Kimbap" (click here for the recipe).

Folded Kimbap was based off the viral tortilla hack of cutting a tortilla and folding it with fillings inside. The same method was applied to Kimbap, creating a square kimbap. There's also the classic triangle kimbap which comes in all sorts of flavors, like my Bulgogi version - click here.

If it's your first time making kimbap, not to worry, I share detailed instructions and step by step visuals along with a video on how to make it with best results. So that next time, you will become a pro!

Ingredients

The below kimbap ingredients are listed. Please scroll down to the recipe card below for full measurements.

Note: The Asian market, specifically Korean market, will carry these ingredients. You may find them at your select grocery store or online, like on Amazon.  

• gim aka roasted seaweed, sushi nori or seaweed sheets

For Kimbap Rice:

• short grain rice aka sushi rice or Calrose white rice
• sesame oil
• salt

Filling:

• spam or if you have kimbap ham, feel free to use that instead.
• eggs
• yellow radish pickle strips or substitute with radish slices if you can't find the strips.
• romaine or red leaf lettuce
• carrot
• avocado oil, or any neutral oil
• salt
• toasted sesame seeds
• sesame oil

How to Make Spam Kimbap

Preparation of components:

Rice:

In a large mixing bowl, season cooked warm rice with 2 teaspoon sesame oil and ½ teaspoon salt. Mix well. Keep covered, and warm at room temperature to avoid drying out.

Eggs:

In a small bowl, beat eggs with ¼ teaspoon salt. In an 8 inch wide non-stick pan on medium heat, add 1 teaspoon neutral oil, pour in half of the beaten eggs to create a thin pancake or egg crepes.

Allow eggs to set until 75 % cooked. Then fold from one side to the other to create a 1 inch wide egg roll.

Once cooked, remove off heat and slice egg roll into two equal strips. Repeat process for remaining egg mixture. You should have 4 long strips of cooked egg.

Carrots:

In the same heated pan on low-medium heat, add 1 teaspoon neutral oil along with carrots. Season with a ⅛ teaspoon salt. Cook until vibrant and softened. Set aside.

Spam:

Turn spam on its flatter side so it's no longer standing upright. From one end of the spam, cut spam by slicing off 4 x ¼ inch-thick rectangular shape pieces.

Then cut the thick slices into half so you have two equal long strips that are 1-inch wide.

In the same frying pan on medium heat without oil, pan fry spam until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes per side. Set aside.

Lettuce:

Wash and dry leaves lettuce. Cut off ends.

To Assemble:

Lay out gim or 1 sheet of seaweed vertically towards you with the shiny side down or rough side up on a sushi mat resting on a clean flat surface. If you don't own a sushi mat or bamboo mat, you can work without one or replace it with a sheet of plastic wrap.

Prepare a small bowl of water nearby. Place ¾ cup of seasoned rice on top of the seaweed. Using clean hands dip fingers in water bowl or a rubber spatula, spread the rice out into a thin layer. Leave 1 inch of empty space at the furthest end and ½-inch of empty space closest to you.

Place an equal portion of cooked carrots in the middle, a strip of pickled daikon just above the carrots, a strip of egg beneath the carrots, two strips of spam on top of the carrots and a folded piece of lettuce on top of everything.

From one end, roll kimbap away from you rolling tightly tucking in all of the ingredients until you reach the end. Firmly hold the roll until it’s set and doesn’t fall apart, about 10 seconds. Repeat this process 3 more times.

Place kimbap on a cutting board. Brush ¼ teaspoon sesame oil per roll and garnish with sesame seeds. Repeat for remaining rolls.

Afterward, using a wet sharp knife, slice kimbap into ¾-inch pieces. Enjoy!

Storage

Kimbap is best consumed within same day. You may store in the fridge in an airtight container and it will last up to 4 days with the below reheating technique. Please see below.

To Reheat Kimbap

If you have leftover kimbap that have been sitting in the fridge, you can enjoy them again by reheating them on the stove top:

1. Heat a non stick pan on medium heat lightly greased with neutral oil.
2. In a separate bowl, beat an egg and dip one piece of the kimbap into the egg so it's coated with egg on both sides.
3. Place coated kimbap into the heated pan and fry on both sides until golden brown and the egg is cooked through.
4. To speed up the reheating process, cover the kimbap with a lid so the steam can reheat and soften the rice again.

Other Kimbap Recipes you may like!

If you enjoyed this easy spam kimbap, you may like these other recipes:

• Egg Roll Kimbap
• Beef Bulgogi Kimbap
• Pork Belly Kimbap
• Cheese Kimchi Kimbap
• Fishcake Kimbap
• Spicy Tuna Kimbap