Bacon Marmalade

It’s meaty/tangy/sweet/spicy fantastically delicious.

Hat tip to Chef J. Looney! It’s meaty/tangy/sweet/spicy fantastically delicious, and here’s how I am gonna make it: 

Bacon Marmalade

7 lbs thick-cut bacon
2 cups red onion, diced
5 large cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups dark brown sugar, packed
2 cups raw apple cider vinegar
4 shots espresso
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

"Cut the bacon into small pieces. You’ll need a really big skillet to do this in one batch, or you can use two large skillets side by side. However you do it, 7 pounds is a lot of bacon, and you want to cook it evenly, so dumping it all into a huge roaster or saucepan just won’t do the trick.

Cook the bacon over medium-high heat until it’s good and crispy. Drain the grease off and put the bacon aside for a few minutes. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion and garlic to the pan and cook just until it’s clear, add the vinegar to deglaze the pan, using a wooden spoon to scrape all the meaty brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the brown sugar, cayenne and espresso, and simmer for 2-3 minutes until everything has incorporated. Add the bacon, and simmer over medium heat until thick and syrupy. Don’t cook it too long or you’ll end up with a dry, crusty hard-candy mess. You want it kind of soupy and loose at this point, especially if you’re not going to eat it all right away (and no matter how much you love bacon, you’re not going to eat it all right away – it’s 7 pounds of bacon).

Put the whole mixture into a food processor and pulse gently 3-4 times until it starts to come together, then turn it on and let it blend until it’s the consistency you like. Less time = chunkier marmalade, more time = smoother marmalade. I like mine somewhere in the middle.

There you have it, bacon marmalade. This recipe makes about 2 quarts. It’ll keep in the fridge for 2-3 weeks. I usually heat mine up before eating, but it’s perfectly good right out of the fridge as well."

--That's right: 7 pounds of bacon AND 4 shots of espresso! I am so doing this! For my next trip to the range!