On Monday, January 3rd, residents of Mayflower’s Beebe Assisted Living had the opportunity to sample a popular Hawaiian treat. Musubi is a simple, hand-held snack food. It has its origins in World War II with spam musubi, a take-off of Japanese onigiri, a pickled or salty protein with rice wrapped in a black seaweed paper.
The spam musubi includes the same ingredients but uses spam for the protein. Often times, a layer of scrambled egg or with teriyaki sauce is added. The rice is often seasoned with furikake seasoning.
On the Hawaiian Islands, musubi are available almost everywhere in convenience stores, grocery stores, and local restaurants. On Guam, the snack is referred to as “spam sushi.”
The musubi come individually wrapped in plastic wrap and are often chosen as on-the-go snacks. Our Community Life and Wellness Coordinator, Jessica Hasenyager, whose husband is a native of Hawaii, observes that they pack out musubi for hikes and for family visits.
In coordinating the musubi event, Jessica not only prepared the snacks but entertained with Hawaiian music and a National Geographic documentary, “Wild Hawaii.” Included in the day’s event were pictures and stories from Jessica’s Hawaiian visits.
Pictured are prints from etchings made by Jessica’s grandmother-in-law. Once a prominent member of the Hawaiian art community, she made these prints for the Kilauea Volcano Wilderness run, a marathon that the Hasenyagers helped produce for the last 25 years.
— Bob Mann, Mayflower Sales & Marketing Director