You guys. I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I didn't share this with you sooner. I'm sorry that you need to go to the store right now just to buy a pound of bacon and dark brown sugar. I'm not sorry for how much you're going to enjoy this candied bacon.
I first made this candied bacon a couple of months ago in a fit of inspiration from Alton Brown when he posted a photo on Facebook or Instagram or something. I sort of forgot about sharing it with you all until last weekend when I was in Orlando for Food Blog Forum and we were served deliciously crispy bacon in cute little jars with chalkboard labels. As if I didn't already know it, I was definitely reminded how much everybody loves bacon. I've made it a few more times since then, and I hope you all will enjoy it!
Without further adieu. Candied bacon. The perfect balance of sweet from the dark brown sugar, then heat from the cayenne pepper. Plus a little cinnamon for good measure. It's good stuff, folks. By the way, if you really want the crowd to go wild, serve it on pulled pork sliders. Ridiculous.
You certainly don't have to add all the extra goodness in order to prepare your bacon this way. Roasting bacon in the oven is such a great way to make bacon without splattering yourself with hot grease first thing in the morning. It also frees up valuable stove-top space for making French toast and eggs.
P.S. In other bacon news, Krispy Kreme just paired up with a minor league baseball team and made a hot dog covered with bacon and jam in a glazed donut bun. Whoa.
Candied Bacon
- Yield: 1 pound bacon 1x
Ingredients
- 1 pound thick sliced applewood bacon
- 1 cup dark brown sugar (you will not use all of it...unless you want to.)
- ¼-½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼-½ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Place a rack on top of the parchment paper.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Arrange the sliced bacon in a single layer on the rack in the prepared pan. Sprinkle generously with up to half of the dark brown sugar, then lightly sprinkle with up to half of the cayenne pepper and cinnamon (using more or less depending on your tastes).
- Roast for 15 minutes, then remove from oven and spread the brown sugar with the back of a spoon to coat the strips evenly with the glaze. (Keep an eye on it and rotate if needed.) The sugar should be nearly dissolved by this point.
- Return to oven for 5 more minutes. (I find that mine turns out best when I roast the first side for about ⅔ of the cook time before flipping.)
- Remove baking sheet from oven and carefully flip the bacon slices over. Sprinkle with additional dark brown sugar, cayenne pepper, and cinnamon.
- Roast for 10 more minutes until glaze is caramelized and bacon is cooked to your preferred crispness.
- In order to prevent the bacon from getting stuck to the rack, flip bacon over again with tongs to loosen from the rack after removing from the oven.
- Let cool slightly (or completely) then serve.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Feel free to adjust quantities to your tastes, but be sure that the sugar is in a nice, even layer. If it is too thick in some areas, it will not dissolve as well and you'll end up with brown sugar crystals on the bacon instead of a nice glaze. I recommend using a thinner layer of sugar on the second side because so much of the fat has already rendered that there is less liquid left to dissolve the sugar.
Adapted from Alton Brown
Tina (the thankful table)
You never disappoint Mand. These look delicious!