Everything you (and I) love about spam musubi, wrapped up in a crispy egg roll wrapper! These Spam musubi egg rolls taste just like spam musubi, with the salty spam and sticky white rice, but they have a nice touch of crispiness from the egg roll wrapper! Dunk it in that classic musubi sauce for a sweet and savory taste everyone will love!
You all have been loving my spam musubi recipes so I thought I'd keep it going! This is my Vietnamese spin on a classic spam musubi! It combines the concept of a Vietnamese egg roll and merges it with the ingredients and flavor of spam musubi. The best part is that you can dip it in the musubi sauce, just like you would dip an egg roll in Vietnamese nuoc cham!
What is a spam musubi egg roll?
Spam musubi is a classic Hawaiian snack, made with Spam cooked in musubi sauce, placed on top of sticky white rice and wrapped in nori! Variations of Spam musubi include Spam musubi with egg, cucumber, or even avocado. This recipe takes the classic Spam musubi and combines it with my Vietnamese influence to turn it into a crispy egg roll! It's air fried to golden crispiness, so there's no deep frying involved and this version is made even easier using store bought sticky white rice (but homemade sticky rice works too)!
Why you'll love these spam musubi egg rolls
- Great for large parties and gatherings!
- Nostalgic Spam musubi flavors wrapped up in an egg roll wrapper.
- Comes together easily!
- Ready in 30 minutes!
Jump to:
Ingredients
- Spam: Use low sodium Spam so it's not too salty!
- Sticky rice: Use homemade sticky white rice or store bought. I like using this sticky white rice for a quick 5 minute rice.
- Furikake: To season the rice and give it that seaweed flavor!
- Egg: Adds soft fluffy texture and protein and is used to seal the egg roll closed.
- Water: For the egg wash and musubi sauce.
- Salt: To lightly season the egg.
- Egg roll wrapper: For the crispy egg roll texture! My favorite is the Wei Chuan spring roll shells.
- Soy sauce: Use low sodium soy sauce for umami flavor that isn't too salty.
- Mirin: Adds a little more depth and sweetness to the musubi sauce.
- Brown sugar: Balances out the salty soy sauce.
- Cornstarch or arrowroot starch: To thicken the sauce.
- Nori sheets: Optional, but gives the egg roll that classic musubi look!
See recipe card for quantities.
How to make spam musubi egg rolls
- Step 1: Prepare your rice according to package directions.
- Step 2: To a bowl, add cooked rice and furikake. Mix until evenly combined and set aside.
- Step 3: In a large bowl, whisk 4 eggs and pour them into a large, lightly oiled skillet. Tilt the pan to spread the eggs into an even, thin sheet. Season with salt, cover, and cook until the eggs are fully set. Slide onto a cutting board and slice into thin strips. Set aside.
- Step 4: Cut the Spam into 4 equal slices, then cut each slice into 4 strips. Pan-fry until golden brown on all sides and drain on a paper towel.
- Step 5: In a pan, mix together water, brown sugar, soy sauce, cornstarch and mirin. Stir to dissolve cornstarch before turning on the heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer until the sauce thickens into a glaze. Remove from heat and pour into a ramekin.
- Step 6: Whisk together 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of water.
- Step 7: Lay an egg roll wrapper on a cutting board like a diamond, with one corner pointing toward you. Fold the bottom corner up about ¼ of the way. Add 2 heaping tablespoons of the rice mixture onto the folded corner, then top with 2 pieces of Spam and egg.
- Step 8: Fold the left corner in toward the center, then the right.
- Step 9: Starting from the bottom, roll tightly upward, tucking as you go to keep everything secure.
- Step 10: Brush the top corner with egg wash and roll over it to seal. Repeat with the remaining wrappers.
- Step 11: Preheat an air fryer at 350F. Spray the assembled egg rolls with oil and air fry at 350°F for 7–9 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
- Step 12: Optional, tightly roll a nori strip around the egg roll to give it that musubi look. Seal by lightly brushing one end with water. Serve immediately with the musubi sauce for dipping!
Top Tips for the Best Spam Musubi Egg Rolls
Let your rice cool slightly before assembling. Hot rice on the egg roll wrapper will create steam and moisture, causing the egg roll wrapper to become soggy.
The egg roll wrapper is key! Use a thin egg roll wrapper for maximum crispiness. I'm using Wei Chuan's spring roll wrapper here, since I've found it to get the crispiest in the air fryer!
Substitutions and Variations
- Spam - Swap out Spam with strips of chicken, try a different flavor of Spam for more variation or use pan fried tofu for a vegetarian option!
- Rice - Sticky white rice is the most traditional, but this would work with white jasmine rice or brown rice too!
- Egg - Substitute eggs for egg whites for less calories and scramble the eggs for a lighter egg texture.
- Wrapper - Use rice paper for a chewier, lighter and gluten-free option!
- Add ins - Add cream cheese, slices of jalapeno or avocado for creaminess or a kick of heat.
How to store spam musubi egg rolls
Spam musubi egg rolls are best made fresh. If trying to prep them ahead of time, the best thing to do would be to cook the spam, egg, and rice and store them in separate air tight containers for up to 3 days. The musubi sauce can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge for up to 5 days. When it's time to assemble, warm everything up, roll the egg rolls and air fry until crispy.
FAQ
These egg rolls are best made fresh but ingredients can be prepped ahead of time and assembled and air fried the day of! When it's time to assemble, warm everything up to room temperature, roll the egg rolls and air fry until crispy.
If you don't have an air fryer, you can deep fry them! Heat a couple inches of oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Allow the oil to reach 350F and fry the egg rolls in batches so you don't overcrowd the pan. Fry until golden brown and drain onto a wired cooling rack.
Hot ingredients create steam and will cause the egg roll wrapper to become soggy. Allow all the ingredients to cool slightly before rolling and air frying. After air frying, transfer the egg rolls to a wire rack. This keeps air circulating underneath and prevents the bottoms from getting soggy.
Other recipes to try:
- My viral spam musubi crispy rice salad
- Copycat avocado egg rolls in the air fryer
- High protein cream cheese rangoons
Spam Musubi Egg Rolls (in the Air Fryer)
Equipment
Ingredients
Musubi filling
- 2 cups sticky white rice
- 2-3 tablespoons furikake
- ½ can Spam low sodium
- 4 large eggs
- ½ teaspoon salt
For assembling
- 8 egg roll wrappers
- 2 nori sheets optional, cut into strips
Egg wash
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water
Musubi sauce
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup mirin
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch or arrowroot starch
Instructions
Mix the rice
- Prepare your rice according to package directions.2 cups sticky white rice
- To a bowl, add cooked rice and furikake. Mix until evenly combined and set aside.2 cups sticky white rice, 2-3 tablespoons furikake
Cook the eggs
- In a large bowl, whisk 4 eggs and pour them into a large, lightly oiled skillet. Tilt the pan to spread the eggs into an even, thin sheet. Season with salt, cover, and cook until the eggs are fully set. Slide onto a cutting board and slice into thin strips. Set aside.4 large eggs, ½ teaspoon salt
Cook the spam
- Cut the Spam into 4 equal slices, then cut each slice into 4 strips. Pan-fry until golden brown on all sides and drain on a paper towel.½ can Spam
Musubi sauce
- In a pan, mix together water, brown sugar, soy sauce, cornstarch and mirin. Stir to dissolve cornstarch before turning on the heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer until the sauce thickens into a glaze. Remove from heat and pour into a ramekin.½ cup water, ½ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce, 1 teaspoon cornstarch or arrowroot starch, ¼ cup mirin
Make the egg wash
- Whisk together 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of water.1 egg, 1 tablespoon water
Assemble the egg rolls
- Lay an egg roll wrapper on a cutting board like a diamond, with one corner pointing toward you. Fold the bottom corner up about ¼ of the way. Add 2 heaping tablespoons of the rice mixture onto the folded corner, then top with 2 pieces of Spam and egg.8 egg roll wrappers
- Fold the left corner in toward the center, then the right.
- Starting from the bottom, roll tightly upward, tucking as you go to keep everything secure.
- Brush the top corner with egg wash and roll over it to seal. Repeat with the remaining wrappers.
Air fry the egg rolls
- Preheat an air fryer at 350F. Spray the assembled egg rolls with oil and air fry at 350°F for 7–9 minutes until golden brown and crispy.2 nori sheets
- Optional, tightly roll a nori strip around the egg roll to give it that musubi look. Seal by lightly brushing one end with water. Serve immediately with the musubi sauce for dipping!
Notes
- Let your rice cool slightly before assembling. Hot rice on the egg roll wrapper will create steam and moisture, causing the egg roll wrapper to become soggy.
- Spam musubi egg rolls are best made fresh. If trying to prep them ahead of time, the best thing to do would be to cook the spam, egg, and rice and store them in separate air tight containers for up to 3 days. The musubi sauce can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge for up to 5 days. When it's time to assemble, warm everything up, roll the egg rolls and air fry until crispy.
- The egg roll wrapper is key! Use a thin egg roll wrapper for maximum crispiness.
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