Crispy thick-cut bacon!! The kind, while cooking, fills your home with an enticing aroma that can only be satisfied by a piece of that salty goodness landing on your tongue. What could possibly be better? Maybe ... a strip smothered with brown sugar, honey, and bourbon. Candied to a perfect gooeyness yet still keeping the crunchy crackle of the bacon itself. This, my friends, is the ultimate mid-afternoon hunger buster. Be prepared though, you'll never be able to eat just one of these Bourbon Candied Bacon appetizers.
Bacon ...a universal food language that everyone speaks and everyone loves. It's been said on a few occasions that bacon is just another word for "meat candy." So let's take it an actual step forward and make it so. Candied, that is. Who could possibly resist, sweet, salty and a little taste of bourbon kissing a crispy strip of bacon?
Why I love this Bourbon Candied Bacon recipe:
This Candied Bacon is super easy to make and the clean-up is a breeze. From start to finish this recipe is made in the oven. Cooking the bacon and glazing it with the sugary goo, it's all confined in one place. And you'll love the cleanup because lining the sheet pans with foil allows you to fold in the mess when you're finished and simply throw it away.
Bourbon Candied Bacon is an irresistible appetizer for any party. Everyone loves the combination of sweet and salty together. Then throw in bacon with a little bourbon, well at that point, it's all over. You'll definitely want to make at least a double batch. These little gooey, crispy jewels go like hotcakes. Your guests will be begging for more, I guarantee it.
This is a great make-ahead recipe. I love recipes that can be made in advance and are ready to be pulled out when it's time to serve. There's nothing like the chaos of trying to pull together a recipe at the last minute while preparing for a get-together. "Simplify" is the name of the game for parties.
There are only four ingredients found in this recipe. Thick center-cut bacon, brown sugar, honey, and bourbon. How simple is that grocery list?
Use Thick Cut Bacon for Bourbon Candied Bacon
Make sure and grab a package of thick center-cut bacon for this recipe. No WIMPY strips of bacon here! Also, you don't want the bacon to be overwhelmed by the candied glaze. A nice balance of both the salty bacon with the sticky sweetness is what you're looking for.
Cooking Bacon in the Oven is the BEST kept secret!
If you're tired of the splatter of grease everywhere in your kitchen from the sizzling of bacon in the skillet, done with nursing whelps on your skin from the sputtering of hot oil or the hassle of constantly turning bacon slices, then I have a better option for you. You won't believe how easy it is. Crispy delicious bacon cooked in the OVEN.
I know what you're thinking. No way can it be as good as regular bacon on the stove. Once you try it, you will never go back to the old messy way.
For this recipe, use 2 cookie sheet pans lined with foil or parchment paper with a wire rack on top. (Don't make the mistake I did by not putting foil down. What a greasy clean-up for me.) Individually arrange each slice of bacon on the wire racks and place them in a 425° F oven for 25-30 minutes or until somewhat crispy but not overdone.
The wire rack lifts the bacon off the pan and helps to get each piece crispier. The heat surrounds both the top and bottom at the same time. And the beauty here is no need to flip the strips. When it's fully cooked, remove from the oven and place each slice on a plate lined with paper towels for the bacon grease to drain.
The Ooey Gooey Good Stuff
Once the bacon is cooked and cooled, line the same cookie sheets with foil or parchment paper again. Lay the bacon strips in a single layer on the wire racks. This is where simple magic begins. Sprinkle the bacon evenly with brown sugar. It's okay if some of the sugar falls on the parchment paper because the syrup will eventually soak the entire pieces of bacon.
Next, whisk the honey and bourbon together and drizzle it over the sugar-coated bacon strips.
It'll seem like you don't have enough bourbon to do the trick but as you drizzle it, the sugar will begin to soak it up. Once the bacon is coated, put the pans back in the oven at 425°F for another 10 minutes. When it cooks, the syrup will bubble up and create a syrup on and around the bacon.
Cool the Candied Bacon on a Wire Rack
Be careful at this stage because when the candied bacon comes out of the oven it is extremely hot. I've burned my fingers a few times, learned my lesson and decided to use tongs instead.
A wire rack works great to cool the bacon when you remove it from the oven. Lay down a piece of parchment paper under the rack for the syrup drippings that occur. Candied bacon can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three weeks.
I made these Bourbon Candied Bacon Appetizers for parties on several occasions and they were gone in a flash. I've had people comment about how amazing they were months later. If you make these, say for a party or get together, you might consider making a huge batch. You will be bringing the "party" with these gooey delights and people will consider you the "hero" of the evening. Which is never a bad thing.
If you're wanting to find more great appetizers, check these out:
Cheese Stuffed Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
Cheesy Bacon Wrapped Breadsticks
Spinach Puff Pastry Appetizers.
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PrintBourbon Candied Bacon
Bacon strips smothered with brown sugar, honey, and bourbon. These delectable appetizers are candied to a perfect gooeyness yet still keeps the crunchy crackle of the bacon itself.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 24 strips of bacon 1x
- Category: Bacon
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 lb Thick Center-Cut Bacon
- 1 cup Brown Sugar
- 4 tbs Raw Honey
- β cup Bourbon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with foil or parchment paper. Place a wire rack on the cookie sheets.
- Individually arrange the slices of bacon on the wire wracks. Place in the preheated oven and cook for 25-30 minutes depending on how thick the slices are. The bacon should be crispy but not overdone.
- Using tongs, transfer the cooked bacon strips to plates lined with paper towels for draining the grease.
- With the same cookie sheets, add new foil or parchment paper and arrange the bacon strips in a single layer.
- Sprinkle the brown sugar over the bacon. Whisk together the honey and bourbon. Drizzle the bourbon mixture from a spoon over the bacon covered with brown sugar.
- Bake in the 425°F oven for 10 minutes. Crack the oven door slightly while cooking these bacon strips.
- Carefully remove the pans from the oven and transfer each strip of bacon onto a wire rack that has parchment paper under it. Let cool.
Notes
- Make sure and grab a package of thick center-cut bacon for this recipe. You don't want the bacon to be overwhelmed by the candied glaze. A nice balance of both the salty bacon with the sticky sweetness is what you're looking for.
- Line the cookie sheets with foil or parchment paper. It makes for a much easier clean-up experience. When done cooking, simply fold up the foil and throw it away. So simple.
- Use a wire rack to lift the bacon off the pan. This helps to get each piece crispier. The heat permeates both the top and bottom at the same time. No flipping required!
- It's okay if some of the brown sugar falls on the parchment paper because the syrup will eventually soak the entire pieces of bacon.
- It'll seem like you don't have enough bourbon to do the trick but as you drizzle it, the sugar will begin to soak it up. When it cooks, the syrup will bubble up and create a syrup on and around the bacon.
- A wire rack works great to cool the bacon when you remove it from the oven. Lay down a piece of parchment paper under the rack for the syrup drippings that occur.
- Be careful when removing the candied bacon from the oven and onto a wire rack because the syrup is extremely hot.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 strips of candied bacon
- Calories: 265
- Sugar: 15 g
- Sodium: 759 mg
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 15 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 17 g
- Cholesterol: 29 mg
Terri Whyte says
These were great! But be very careful with the alcohol in the oven- The alcohol caught fire, exploded the oven door open! The alcohol burned off (along with the edges of parchment paper.) Still was able to use the bacon- The second pan I cracked the oven door, and it was fine. I had leftover bourbon and honey mixture, so I think you could decrease the alcohol.
Kristy Murray says
Oh my goodness, Terri!! I'm so sorry to hear that the alcohol caught fire. I really appreciate your input on this!! It is a very good suggestion to crack the oven door or decrease the alcohol. That's so crazy! I've made these several times and never had that happen. I'm so glad everything turned out okay though. I'm gonna change the amount of bourbon in the recipe and suggest to open the oven door since that happened to you.
Cathy says
I plan to try this recipe,but just read a tip from Bobby Flay. Put bourbon and honey in a sauce pan and cook down a bit. It will thicken slightly AND cook the alcohol off. I should think that would eliminate the fear of a fire.
Kristy Murray says
What a GREAT idea Cathy. Thanks so much for the insight! I will definitely try this and see how it works.
Shannon Oswald says
HI, I made the recipe today and my experience indicated the quantities seemed a little unbalanced. I used about 3/4 cup of brown sugar to 1 pound of Butcher cut bacon (12 slices cut in half). I had left over sugar. Then I ran out of the bourbon honey mixture about half way through. I ended up making the full batch of bourbon honey mixture for half the quantity of bacon and it worked terrific. I did not experience any fire either. +++
My wife hates alcoholic beverages but she loves your bourbon candied bacon. Thank you.
Shannon Oswald says
By the way, I had no bourbon on hand so I used Brandy... but I ran out of Brandy so I substituted a bit of Old Krupnik Polish Liquor with great success!
Kristy Murray says
What a GREAT way to improvise. I don't think I've ever had Old Krupnik Polish Liquor. I'll have to try it sometime. Thanks again for your input.
Kristy Murray says
Hi Shannon. Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving such a detailed comment. It's interesting the results that you got from the different measurements you used. I'm so glad that your candied bacon turned out so well and I am extremely happy that you did not have a fire (lol). Honestly, I think brandy alone could be a great substitute for the bourbon. I'll have to check all this out. Again thanks for the kind response. Hope you are your family are safe and healthy during this time.
Susan Clack says
I only had about 8 pieces of bacon...had to rescue one for me before I did the candying...so I ended up with only 7 pieces ...I was afraid I'd eat the whole batch so this was a good test run. I used Daily's Honey Bacon, nice & thick. Anyway, when I put the pan in the oven, it didn't seem to be bubbling up as high as you'd said, so I pulled them out and just removed the rack, putting the slices directly on the foil (at about 8 min in). That seemed to get the candying process really going! I pulled the bacon slices off onto the other sheet pan with a clean rack to cool and then looked at the foil...I started scraping off the goodie bits from the foil with a spoon and now I have bourbon bacon BRITTLE! YUM!
Thanks for this great recipe. PS--I didn't have any fleur de sel but that would be a great finishing touch...just a tiny sprinkling of salt...
Kristy Murray says
Hi Susan. Such great tips on all of this as you worked through the recipe. I so happy you enjoyed the bacon. And Mmmmmmm - bacon bourbon bacon brittle. How can you ever beat that. Thanks so much for your comment. Happy New Year!
Alicia says
These sound delicious, thanks for sharing! If you make ahead, what are your suggestions for storing/reheating and serving?
Kristy Murray says
Hi Alicia. Yes, these can definitely be stored and reheated. Ideally, you will want to wrap each cooled piece separately in wax paper or foil and store in a freezer ziplock bag in the refrigerator for up to three weeks or in the freezer for up to four months. When ready to reheat, let the frozen pieces thaw overnight in the refrigerator. From the refrigerator, you can microwave it for 30 seconds or in a 350Β°F for five minutes. Hope that helps. Thanks for asking.
Alicia says
Thank you!
Sandi S Johns says
amazing!!!
Kristy Murray says
Thanks so much Sandi! So happy you like these.
Vicki says
Just one quick question, are these served cold? Can't wait to try these!!!
Kristy Murray says
Hi Vicki. Yes, you can serve them cold. There's no wrong way to eat bacon, lol! Thanks for stopping by and ENJOY!
David @ Spiced says
Woah. Mind blown! I've made candied bacon many times, and I love it! We're also huge bourbon collectors here in our house. I've never thought about combined the candied bacon with bourbon. Yup, this needs to happen. Like today!
Kristy Murray says
Thanks so much David. Bourbon and bacon, who would've guessed. But it really does work. Enjoy!
MJ says
Ours was delicious but wet and sticky! And idea what I did wrong? Flavor was fabulous but many sticky fingers!!! What a great and delicious recipe! And believe me, everyone still enjoyed just sticky!!thanks so much!
Kristy Murray says
Thanks so much for stopping by and trying out the bourbon bacon. You may want to reduce the amount of sugar and honey next time. Also give them extra time after baking to sit before eating them. I've had some be a little sticky at times as well. You can also combine the honey, bourbon and sugar in a saucepan and bring it to a boil, remove it from the heat and let it cool somewhat. Brush that mixture onto each slice of bacon. It takes a little more work but might help with the extra stickiness. Hope that helps.
Cindy Story says
Husband and said best bacon of their life! I used my salted caramel Crown Royal and our honey from the farm, extra thick bacon and brown sugar. Yum! The honey and whiskey really kicks it up a notch. I cooked the mixture first then slathered it on the bacon. Baked, flipped slathered and baked. Definitely worth the effort! Thank you for sharing.
Kristy Murray says
Thank you so much Cindy for sharing. Salted Crown Royal - what a perfect whiskey to use. Great idea.
Gina says
Canβt wait to try this. Have a questionβ¦
So, the first cook is on a wire rack. But is the second cook directly on the parchment paper without the rack?
Kristy Murray says
Hi Gina. Yes the second is cooked directly on parchment paper. I originally cooked the bacon on a wire rack so heat would crips it up on both the top and bottom then transferred them to the cookie sheet with parchment paper. I hope that helps. ENJOY!