Wow, summer is just flying by. I thought this would be my slow season, but I'm busier then ever. I thought I should take a moment to share a quick recipe though. I noticed that I have bacon jam in at least two of my blog post recipes, but I never tell you how to make the actual bacon jam. The good thing is, it's very easy to make. Probably even easier then a fruit jam and you are less likely to mess this one up. You don't have to deal with any pectin here. Just bacon and sugary goodness.
There are a lot of different versions of bacon jam. I have added different herbs and spices, you can put bourbon in here if you want and you can add other fruits and veggies. I've made roasted tomato bacon jam before and it was delicious. We will just keep this recipe basic for now.
When you make it, try doubling the batch and freezing half of it. Then you can pull it out for unexpected guests and add it to a cheese plate, put it on some corn bread or make an apple and cheese crostini topped with the bacon jam. It is such a versatile topping, that everyone will enjoy. How can you say no to bacon and sugar!
Makes just under 3 cups
Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs of Bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 cups Shallot, finely chopped
4 cloves of Garlic, minced
1 tsp Chili powder
1/2 tsp ground Ginger
1/2 tsp yellow Mustard
1/4 cup Maple Syrup
1/3 cup Apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
Instructions
Put half the bacon in a large cold skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently. You want all the bacon to brown up so if you put it all in the pan at once you could end up with half burnt bacon and half under-cooked bacon. Once the first batch of bacon is cooked, drain it into a bowl lined with paper towel and add the other half of the bacon. Once all of the bacon is browned remove all of the fat and bacon from the pan except 1 Tbsp of fat.
Now add the shallots to the pan and let them cook down for about 5 mins. Next add the garlic to the pan and just cook until fragrant.
Put the chili powder and ginger into the pan next. Stir for 1 minute. Add in the mustard and stir again.
Increase the heat to high and add in your maple syrup. This is where you would add bourbon if you wanted to use it. Scrape all of the brown bits from the pan.
Add the vinegar, brown sugar and bacon to the pan. Turn heat down to a simmer and let the jam thicken for about 10 minutes. You should stir occasionally so the mixture doesn't stick to the pan.
Now transfer the mixture to a food processor and pulse until it has the consistency of jam.
Let the jam cool in the fridge for about an hour or more before using. You can store if for about a month.