What is the name of the Hawaiian snack made with spam, rice, and nori?

The Hawaiian snack made with Spam, rice, and nori is Spam musubi.

A typical Spam musubi consists of a grilled or fried slice of Spam placed on or between a block of rice and wrapped with a strip of nori. Soy sauce, sugar, teriyaki-style glaze, salt, or furikake may be added, but the basic combination is Spam, rice, and seaweed. It is commonly eaten hot or cold and is valued as an inexpensive, portable snack.

Spam musubi developed in Hawaii within the broader tradition of musubi, a molded rice food influenced by Japanese onigiri. Spam became especially widespread in Hawaii during and after World War II, when canned meat was readily available through military supply networks and was incorporated into local cooking.

The snack is sold in convenience stores, small shops, Hawaiian barbecue restaurants, and home kitchens. It is sometimes mistaken for onigiri because both involve rice and nori, but Spam musubi is defined by its slice of Spam. It is also not a poke bowl, which is a dish of seasoned raw fish and other toppings served over rice.

The snack’s origin story is debated, with accounts connecting it to Japanese American communities and wartime Hawaii. Its popularity, however, is firmly rooted in Hawaiian food culture.