Candied Bacon

[one eyed jack]

Got Jeff's email recipe for candied bacon this past week and decided that it was time to give it a try.

3 Lb's Wrights thick cut Hickory smoked bacon, walmarts pure Maple syrup, Big Rons "in da house" rub, Char Griller Akorn, and Dark brown sugar.

I think that completes the elements list.

Wet the bacon with syrup and sprinkled with rub, let it marinate overnight in the fridge.

Preheated the Akorn to 225* and started the bacon,

Smoked for an hour, (Hickory chunks. Love Hickory and rarely deviate from it's use).

After an hour I flipped the bacon, basted the second side with syrup, added a bit of rub and sprinkled with brown sugar then back into the smoke for another hour.

Boxed it up, resisted the temptation to sample, and put it in the refer for an overnight.

Next morning I fried up some eggs, buttered a few slices of toast with smoked butter, and had a couple slices of candied bacon with my eggs. This was a nice exercise with a real nice outcome. Plenty of work but a real treat. Thanks Jeff.

A good pic showing the diff between regular and smoked butter. I keep both on the counter top.

And, finally, my breakfast,

If you've been thinking about trying candied Bacon, Give it a shot. It's a treat.

Thanks for looking,

John

 

[mike5051]

Bacon looks delicious John!

Mike

 

[chilerelleno]

Your Pig Candy looks mighty tasty.
That combined with your breakfast makes me wanna check the fridge, nice.
Smoked butter, that's something I haven't tried yet.

Don't forget try some with chocolate, salted chocolate and chocolate with nuts.
Then there are the spicy versions.

Plenty of work and time consuming when you make it several pounds at a time.
Which is why I only make it for special occasions.

 

[one eyed jack]

Bacon looks delicious John!

Mike

Your Pig Candy looks mighty tasty.
That combined with your breakfast makes me wanna check the fridge, nice.
Smoked butter, that's something I haven't tried yet.

Don't forget try some with chocolate, salted chocolate and chocolate with nuts.
Then there are the spicy versions.

Plenty of work and time consuming when you make it several pounds at a time.
Which is why I only make it for special occasions.

Thank's Mike, it's pretty tasty.

Thanks John, I'd have never thought about trying it with chocolate but will give it a try.

The bacon is a good bit of work for three pounds. I'll probably use the WSM next time.

I cut the butter sticks in half, length wise, to expose more to smoke. It's not all that much more sensitive to temperature than cheese but will melt around 80* to 90*, (If my memory is accurate). I aim to keep some around if at all possible.

 

[gmc2003]

Looks really good, I shouldn't have read this after I just ate.

point for sure.

Chris

 

[SmokinAl]

Good looking bacon!
And good looking breakfast John!
I almost made the same breakfast myself, but ended up cooking the bacon in a CI pan on the firebox of my Lang.
Then frying up some eggs in the bacon grease.
Then topped it off with ribs in the afternoon!
I should have done what you did, I probably thickened my artery walls.
BTW, congrats on making the carousel!
Al

 

[one eyed jack]

Looks really good, I shouldn't have read this after I just ate.

point for sure.

Chris

Good looking bacon!
And good looking breakfast John!
I almost made the same breakfast myself, but ended up cooking the bacon in a CI pan on the firebox of my Lang.
Then frying up some eggs in the bacon grease.
Then topped it off with ribs in the afternoon!
I should have done what you did, I probably thickened my artery walls.
BTW, congrats on making the carousel!
Al

Thanks for the point Chris. I have the same reaction to many posts I read on the pages. They often make me hungry, even if I've recently eaten.

Hey Al,

Thanks a bunch for your kind words. CI pans were made for bacon, In my opinion. That's a great vision of you frying on the Lang fire box.

I've gotten old enough that I'm only good for one big meal a day, but I will confess to thinking about ribs in the afternoon.

I am surprised to learn that I've made the carousel with this thread. I'll have to go check it out.

 

[buckshot billy]

Man, I’ve never thought of smoking butter, that is cool. I could see that flavour working on tons of things.

The candied bacon looks unreal too, I'd love to try making it. Does it end up crisp as a potato chip or more jerky-like?

 

[chilerelleno]

one eyed jack

Here is a pic of some my Salted Chocolate with Crushed Nuts.
If you like chocolate, you'll love this.

 

[chilerelleno]

The candied bacon looks unreal too, I'd love to try making it. Does it end up crisp as a potato chip or more jerky-like?

It is kind'a jerky like, more like like a nice bite through consistency.
The bacon itself is not usually crispy crunchy, too much moisture from all the syrup and melted sugar, but the candied glaze can have some crunch to it when hot and fresh.
After refrigeration it really responds well to a quick reheat under a broiler or a 500° oven.

 

[one eyed jack]

one eyed jack

Here is a pic of some my Salted Chocolate with Crushed Nuts.
If you like chocolate, you'll love this.

Wow Chili, You supercharged it. I'll have to add your idea into the mix next time.

 

[one eyed jack]

Man, I’ve never thought of smoking butter, that is cool. I could see that flavour working on tons of things.

The candied bacon looks unreal too, I'd love to try making it. Does it end up crisp as a potato chip or more jerky-like?

Hey Buckshot. The smoked butter is a big winner for many uses, as far as I am concerned. It is a cold weather project for me. I wait for outside temps in the 40's or lower.

I use my 18 inch WSM and two 6 inch smoking tubes, (Amazin). I use Hickory pellets in the tubes, light them with a hand held torch, and use Frog mats to give the butter extra support.

Here are some pics to help explain.

This heavy smoke is just on start up. It settles down after a little while.

 

[chilerelleno]

I gotta try the butter!
I'm drooling thinking about sourdough garlic bread made with hickory smoked butter.
And that's just my imagination thinking about the taste, I've never tried it.

 

[one eyed jack]

I gotta try the butter!
I'm drooling thinking about sourdough garlic bread made with hickory smoked butter.
And that's just my imagination thinking about the taste, I've never tried it.

You should do it at your first opportunity, John. I suspect that you will love it.

It really surprised me how noticeable the smoke flavor was on the toast under the eggs. I didn't use a huge amount of butter on that piece of toast but the smoke shines through.

Smoked butter on popcorn, pancakes, even vegetables. The list of potential uses could go on like the "Shrimp list" in Forest Gump.

 

[ab canuck]

Great looking stuff, Definite like and want to try that now. Congrats on the carousel ride.

 

[one eyed jack]

Great looking stuff, Definite like and want to try that now. Congrats on the carousel ride.

Thanks Charlie. It's pretty darn good. I'll try it again. It is a bit labor intensive but I imagine you could refine the process with repetition.

 

[dcecil]

Awesome thread, gotta try the butter. Probably will have to wait a bit for the winter temps

 

[TomKnollRFV]

Never done Pig Candy on a smoker; always just put in the oven after tossing bacon with brown sugar, black pepper, garlic. It also never lasts more then a few hours. I bet it's alot easier to clean the smoker then the cookie pan I used for that. Gonna have to try this.

 

[one eyed jack]

Never done Pig Candy on a smoker; always just put in the oven after tossing bacon with brown sugar, black pepper, garlic. It also never lasts more then a few hours. I bet it's alot easier to clean the smoker then the cookie pan I used for that. Gonna have to try this.

Smoker clean up wasn't too bad. I can imagine all that caramelization on Mama's favorite cookie sheet.

Great puppy picture Tom.

 

[one eyed jack]

Awesome thread, gotta try the butter. Probably will have to wait a bit for the winter temps

Thanks Doug. I'm hoping that the cool weather gets here before my supply of butter runs out.

I need to up my quantity, next winter.