Bacon Jam - Yet Another Form of Pig Candy
Posted by Greg Bulmash in Cooking & Recipes, tags: bacon, bacon jam, recipeWhat is bacon jam, you ask? It sounds sort of gross on the surface, but deep inside it's a combination of savory and sweet that tastes like nothing you've ever had. Smokey, succulent, sweet, meaty, and spreadable on your favorite things to spread stuff on. On Christmas day, we spread it on fresh eggless hushpuppies and it was magnificent. We went through an entire jar in nothing flat.
But how do you make bacon jam? Apparently Martha Stewart had some thoughts on it recently, which brought some attention to some recipes around the web. As is my way, I went through a few, isolated what I felt was the core of the recipe, then added my own touches. Here is my recipe for bacon jam.
Greg's Bacon Jam
INGREDIENTS
Stage 1: Rendering
2 pounds bacon (I used one pack of the Fletcher's Dry Cure bacon they carry at my local Costco)
Stage 2: Cooking
2 large Mayan Sweet onions
2/3 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
4 cloves chopped garlic
Stage 3: Reducing
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
14 ounces black coffee
1 cup maple syrup
1 cup plain apple sauce
2 teaspoons liquid smoke (3 if you really like it smokey)
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
2 tablespoons molasses
INSTRUCTIONS:
Stage 1: Rendering
The first and most tiring step is to cut all the bacon into approximately 1 inch pieces, then render off all those pieces in a large, cast iron, dutch oven over medium high heat until they're brown around the edges, but still soft in the middle. You'll have to do it in batches, flipping pieces of bacon about every 60-90 seconds. Even with thick cut bacon, it takes a while. Once the bacon is rendered, set aside on a paper towel to drain.
Stage 2: Cooking
Pour off all the fat then spoon a tablespoon or two back in. Chop the 2 onions and begin sauteeing them in the fat over medium heat. Add the brown sugar. The sugar will help the onions sweat like salt does and you'll find yourself simmering down a juicy pot of onions. Let it simmer until pretty much all the liquid has disappeared, the bacon fond has been absorbed by the onion/sugar/fat mixture, and the mixture is beginning to caramelize. Takes 30-45 minutes, depending on your stove's version of medium.
Stage 3: Reducing
Everyone in the pool! Put in all the remaining ingredients (liquids and bacon) and bring to a boil, then simmer over medium low heat for 2 hours until it's basically bacon in thick syrup. Other recipes will tell you to add water if it's getting too dry. Me, I believe that if it gets too dry, you're cooking it at too high a heat. If it's getting too dry, add a little water and turn the dang heat down a smidge.
After two or more hours, when it's thick and syrupy, remove it from the heat and let it cool 30 minutes.
Stage 4: Processing
In about 2-3 batches, run your mixture through 10-15 pulses in a food processor. The texture should be about the same as a tapenade. If you pulse it too smooth, it turns into sausage filling. You want it to remain chunky so it keeps the meaty, chewy texture of the bacon, but can be spread.
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