I have been wanting to try making candied bacon ever since I first came across the idea a long while ago. Candied bacon is essentially bacon that is coated in brown sugar and then baked until the brown sugar has melted, wrapping the salty bacon in its sweet embrace. Of course I immediatly thought of trying a maple version and I knew that both versions would be great. When I was in scouts when I was a kid, we always used to make pancakes with bacon at least once every time we went camping. When you’ve got a plate full of pancakes all covered in maple syrup it’s kind of hard to keep the bacon from getting syrup on it and the combo is really good! That got us to thinking and the next time we made pancakes with bacon we sped things up a bit by adding the maple syrup to the pan while the bacon was frying and the results were so good! It’s hard to go wrong with salty bacon covered in sweet, slightly caramelized maple syrup!
When the bacon is the star of the show like in this candied bacon, it’s time to get the good stuff, a nice thick cut of bacon fresh from the butcher rather than the shrink wrapped grocery store variety. Since I could not decide whether to go with the brown sugar version or the maple syrup version I just decided to go with both and I made half with each. The candied bacon was super easy to make and the results were nothing short of amazing! The crispy and salty bacon went so well all covered in the caramelized sweetness! I am looking forward to making this again and again! I was thinking that you could also experiment with adding other flavours such mixing some mustard in with the maple syrup.
Candied Bacon
ingredients
- 1 pound thick bacon
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (or maple syrup)
directions
- Line a baking sheet with foil and set a cooling rack in it.
- Spread the bacon out over the cooling rack.
- Rub the brown sugar onto the bacon.
- Bake in a preheated 350F/180C oven until the bacon reaches the desired crispiness, about 15-20 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes and then enjoy.
All the smokers just call it PIG CANDY!
Nice job, Kevin. Throw that on a side of french toast, pancakes, or waffles and you have the ultimate comfort food.
Love the idea of Candied Bacon Kevin. I would eat it in my BLT.
mmm I bet this would be good crumbled up in some chocolate chip cookies!
Ah I LOVE candied bacon! Growing up my family went on a lot of camp-outs, and one lady would always bring along some candied bacon for everyone to munch on around the camp fire :] Yum, I need to make some for old time's sake- Thanks for bringing back the memories!
Have you ever tried bacon with chocolate? It's on my list to try, and just wondering if you've given it a go yet! (PS have you seen my new site? finally ditched blogger for wordpress…)
You have no idea how much I want this! Yumm-O
This looks great! I think I saw this on serious eats a lonnnng time ago.
you have a good idea! also i'm was scout from 1980 to 1990!!
I've been trying to explain to my Husband for ever why Bacon, Pancakes and maple syrup work but he is an English man set in his ways that savory and sweet don't go together. Maybe this will change it!
Wow. This sounds incredible. I've never heard of it before. But I think this is definitely something I need to try in my lifetime. I love sweet and salty and can you get any sweet/salty-er than candied bacon? Probably not.
Should this really be allowed? Just too decadent.
Love the idea of putting the maple syrup in the pan with the cooking bacon – always tastes better on a campfire. Ever tried it with chocolate pancakes? The ultimate.
@Cooking with Michele – with chocolate it's awesome!
Pig Candy is one of my favorites.
I started making this last year for special breakfasts and my sons love it. We were also at the award winning "Beast" last summer in Portland, Oregon and they served a strip of candied bacon dipped in chocolate, as a treat when they gave you your bill. It was incredible!
Jim-49 said
I said Kevins sorta like me,slow on somethings,but sooner or later,we'll rock the boat!!"LOL"!! Its sorta hard to find anything on a pig,thats not good.I've been waiting to make this,got a friend with a slaughter house,and he makes some of the best smoked meat(no liquid or fake adds),and its getting time to make the trip,about 150 miles round trip.Looks Great!!
My girls love this at Christmas.. yours looks great..ours has pecans and a touch of cayenne..good too:)
Just think of putting this bacon on one of your pizza crust….wholly yum and don't forget to invite me…lol!!
Bee Happy and Enjoy!
Kevin, thank you SO much for stopping by…really appreciate it!
I heart candied bacon! I especially love it chopped up in chocolate chip cookies…
Bacon! Now this is my kind of candy. There are so many ways to incorporate it into my favorite foods. Many thanks…
Next time, try mixing a pinch of cayenne into the brown sugar mix – it really helps give the whole shebang some great depth of flavor. Love your site!
let me try this!!
I LOVE this!!! Dad used to make it every family brunch!
OMG that looks so so delicious!!! Candied bacon egg and cheese anyone?!!!
that's a candy i could eat all day!
well the 'big thing' at this year's state fair was chocolate covered bacon and it was delicious and I am not a chocolate eater. The chocolate needs to be a thin coating though because what I had was almost more chocolate than bacon. I like to taste the salty bacon flavor equally with the chocolate. They served it frozen btw. I am going to try your recipe
I love the sweet/savory combination, but I have never tried candied bacon. I must confess that the idea intrigues me.
Candied Bacon…is there anything better?! Yummy!
would this preserve the bacon, as in, say, the case of candied ginger?
If so, in your experience, how long would this last?
Oh, Kevin. Dear Kevin. Why must you tempt me so with this. I'll take a bunch of these and nothing else. Bacon-y goodness.
iconoclast: I would finish the bacon shortly after candying it. it will probably last a few days in the fridge.
This makes a good snack! yum yum!
You really need to fix this post, Kevin. One pound of bacon really only makes one serving, sir. It's too good to share!
Ahh, so you just rub the the sugar into the bacon? I've always put the sugar in a bowl and added a bit of liquid to it before spreading it over the bacon.. The advantage of that is that you can create a nice wee flavour combination by using, for example, whisky – just a tbsp per 100g of sugar or so.
Your method certainly seems neater, though, just like your bacon cookie recipe I'll be giving this a go. Cheers for sharing!
Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention in my comment on your bacon cookie recipe that oatmeal cookies are fantastic for adding bacon to. Chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, that is!
I am making this today to go with the bacon cookies. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Try whiped cream on a strip of bacon. I do it every day at work. Its not as good as candied bacon but its simple an unbelievebly good!
We made this for burgers, it was delicious. Added a little bit of cayenne and cinnamon.
Lord Bacon: Great additions!
Not really as good as I had hoped. And my kids, for whom bacon is the best thing we can serve, really didn't like it either. I wanted it to be something it isn't, I guess