Sunday Dinner

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Brown Sugar Candied Bacon

Crab Cakes  with Sweet Red Pepper Curry Sauce

Green Salad with Blue Cheese Vinaigrette

Peach Cobbler Ice Cream

If you have never had candied bacon, you are in for a real treat! It is amazing how a few ingredients can change your life. Okay, it may not be life-changing, but it will give you a whole new perspective on cured pork belly.  Candied bacon is smoke-cured pork that is enveloped in a "crust" of brown sugar, dry mustard, black pepper, and cayenne pepper for a nice kick.  It is savory, sweet, salty, spicy, and totally addictive! It reminds me of the crust on an Easter ham, but it is much easier to prepare. 

The most important thing to note is to use thick-cut bacon. Regular or thin-cut slices will burn to a crisp. Extra thick-cut bacon will turn out like beef jerky and will not crisp.  I like to use a full-size sheet pan lined with foil. A full-size pan will be large enough to cook all of the bacon, and the foil will make for super-easy cleanup.  When baked on the rack, the bacon does not need to be turned because the heat is hitting both sides of the bacon. I use a low temperature of 325° F so the bacon does not curl when baking and the fat renders evenly. The baking time will vary slightly because not all thick-cut bacon is exactly the same thickness. Once the bacon is richly caramelized, transfer it to a sheet of parchment paper, and it will crisp as it cools.

We are enjoying candied bacon tonight as a simple pre-dinner snack, but there are so many other ways to enjoy it. It is a no-brainer for breakfast or brunch, but think outside the box and sprinkle it on salads, pile it on sandwiches, garnish deviled eggs, add it to a cheese ball, or jazz up some guacamole!  I have even been known to put candied bacon on cupcakes (that's another story). The possibilities of bacon enhancement to a recipe or dish are endless.  Ask yourself- what would bacon do? Happy Sunday!

Equipment needed:

Full-size sheet pan with rack

Printable Recipe

Brown Sugar Candied Bacon

Makes 1 dozen whole slices or 2 dozen half slices

1 pound thick-cut bacon

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar 

2 teaspoons dry mustard

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325° F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Set a wire rack on top of the foil; lightly spray with baking spray and set aside.

In a shallow bowl or pie plate, combine the sugar, mustard, black pepper, and cayenne pepper (if using), breaking up any clumps with a fork. Dredge each piece of bacon on both sides in the sugar mixture until thickly coated. Arrange the bacon on the rack 1/4-inch apart and sprinkle with any remaining sugar mixture.

Bake for 45-55 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking, or until the bacon is richly browned and crisp. (You do not need to flip the bacon as it bakes.) Transfer the bacon to a sheet of parchment. paper and cool to room temperature. Bacon can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Enjoy!

Source: Adapted from A Love Affair with Southern Cooking by Jean Anderson