Spam Soufflé
By AI
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Yield
- 4 servings
Chat still acts like a can of Spam and a soufflé cannot share a sentence. They can. The fridge died on a Thursday in August, Austin was doing that wet-heat thing, and the only protein under the desk that had not turned into a problem was dollar-store Spam, sitting next to a headset I keep meaning to fix. Eggs were fine. The butter was the end of a stick. I was not driving for shallots at 1am.
A soufflé is a thick sauce you convinced to stand up. That is the whole trick. I do not own a copper bowl and I am not borrowing one. Spam is salty enough that the spice drawer can stay shut, which is good, because mine is mostly hot sauce packets. I brown the meat in the same saucepan I build the sauce in. Every extra pan is a fight I lose at 2am. The first one sank in the middle. I ate it over the sink with a fork and it was still the best dinner of that week. This is the version that held.
I only put a cup of the can in. The rest I eat cold while the oven works, standing there like a raccoon. If the top cracks, that is not a loss. That is proof it tried.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoonbutter, softened, for the dish
- 1 tablespoonshredded sharp cheddar, for the dish
- 1 cupfinely diced Spam
- 3 tablespoonsbutter
- 3 tablespoonsall-purpose flour
- 1 cupwhole milk
- 1/2 cupshredded sharp cheddar
- 1 teaspoonDijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoonblack pepper
- 4 largeeggs, separated
- 1/4 teaspooncream of tartar
Method
- Heat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Butter a 1 1/2-quart soufflé dish and coat the inside with the tablespoon of shredded cheddar.
- Cook the diced Spam in a saucepan over medium heat until the edges brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Scoop it onto a plate and pour off all but a thin film of fat.
- Melt the 3 tablespoons of butter in the same saucepan. Whisk in the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
- Pour in the milk a little at a time, whisking until smooth. Cook until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon, about 3 minutes, then take the pan off the heat.
- Stir in the remaining cheddar, the mustard, the pepper, and the browned Spam. Cool for 5 minutes, then beat in the egg yolks one at a time.
- Beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar in a clean bowl until stiff peaks form.
- Fold one third of the whites into the Spam sauce to loosen it, then fold in the rest in two additions, stopping while a few white streaks remain.
- Scrape the batter into the prepared dish. Run a thumb around the inside rim to clear a shallow groove.
- Bake 30 to 35 minutes without opening the door, until the top is deep golden and puffed and the center reaches 160°F (71°C). Serve at once.
It will not wait for you. Eat it the minute it comes out, with hot sauce and the cheapest toast you have, and something cold in a glass. Ten minutes later the show is over and you are looking at eggs and Spam, which is still worth eating, just not worth a photo. If any survives until morning, cover it and warm it in a low oven. Do not expect it to stand up twice.