Warning: Don’t make this if you’re worried about eating it all yourself.
Maple Candied Bacon
Serving Size: Approximately 15 whole pieces, or about 35, 3” size pieces, but you may want to double it will disappear quickly
This is my first time exploring candied bacon, and I couldn’t wait to share it! A thick slice of bacon with sweet, salty, and smoky flavors in every bite—what’s not to love? Add it to your buffet table, charcuterie board, or replace the peanuts with bite-size pieces. It’s a decadent, crave-worthy treat that’s hard to resist.
Ingredients
1 lb. thick cut bacon
1/2 c. maple syrup, plus a little extra
1/2 c. brown sugar, plus a little extra
Seasoning – recipe below
Seasoning Mix
This seasoning is perfect for enhancing the sweetness of sugars and the savory saltiness of bacon. The truth is, you can use whatever seasoning you have on hand and what suits your taste. Sometimes, I use just a touch of cayenne pepper and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, while other times, I sprinkle a little creole seasoning like Tony Chachere's Bold for a robust flavor.
1/2 t. red pepper flakes, or more to taste
1 t. paprika
1 t. chili powder
1 t. cayenne
1/4 t. garlic powder
1/4 t. onion powder
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking pan with parchment paper. Make sure it has at least 1/2” sides to hold the bacon grease. In a small bowl, combine the seasoning mix.
Place bacon strips on parchment paper. They’ll shrink up so it’s ok for them to be touching. Bake for 12-15 minutes until bacon firms up. Remove the sheet pan and reduce heat to 300°F. (Note: When caramelizing bacon, a lower temperature produces more consistent results.) Remove bacon from the sheet and replace with a clean piece of parchment paper. Place strips back on the pan.
Brush a generous amount of maple syrup on one side, followed by a dusting of the seasoning, and crumble half of the brown sugar evenly over the slices. Turn bacon over and repeat steps, brush, dust, and crumble.
Return the bacon to the oven and cook for a total of 25-35 minutes, depending on your oven. About 15 minutes through the cooking process, remove bacon from oven and carefully flip the bacon over. (Note: In my enthusiasm, I often forget the sugars are blistering hot so be sure to keep your fingers out of the way.) The next 15-20 minutes is when everything happens. The sugars can go from perfectly caramelized to burnt, right before your eyes. (Ask me how I know!). Every oven temp varies, but 35 minutes seems to be the perfect cook time.*
Remove bacon from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet. If your family is like mine, everyone will stop by and start picking at the sheet. Serve bacon in whole pieces, or, for a party, cut bacon in half or bite-sized pieces.
* During the last 5 minutes of cook time, set a timer. If you need to add more time—even just 4 minutes—set the timer again and keep checking until you achieve the perfect caramelization. I learned this the hard way when I recently ruined an entire sheet of bacon by getting distracted at the end—poof, overcooked! The images below offer a helpful reference for how your bacon should look.
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