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Bacon Jam Recipe

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This Bacon Jam Recipe is a bacon lover’s dream! I mean bacon is one of my top joys in life… I know I am not alone on that! Right??

Bacon Jam Recipe

When I was a kid growing up in Philly, I would often stay overnight at my Grammy’s. When I woke she would give me all the bacon I could eat. ALL-the-bacon-I-could-eat!

As the oldest of 5 kids growing up in Philly, THAT was monumental! At home, I could maybe snag 3 strips… if I was lucky!  I still smile at the thought of those lazy weekend mornings at my Grammy’s…and all of that glorious bacon. Food memories are some of my favorite memories!

Bacon makes everything better or so the saying goes. BUT this Bacon Jam Recipe…really, really does! 

Besides Burgers, What do I put Bacon Jam on?

IF you can stop yourself from gobbling this up spoonful after spoonful… you will love it spread on:

  • hot biscuits
  • place atop a round or wedge of warmed Brie or Camembert cheese (so incredible)
  • toast
  • eggs
  • steamed or sautéed veggies
  • pancakes
  • BLTs
  • grilled cheese sandwiches
  • burgers (I mean…OMG!!!)
  • pierogis and so much more!
Bacon Jam recipe on a spoon

The list can go on and on! Homemade Bacon Jam is a fantastic offering to put out for a Burger Bar at a BBQ. 

Other Uses for Bacon Jam

Homemade Bacon Jam is an amazing food gift during the holiday season (or any time of the year) . Make a batch for you and one for a friend, scrape it into a 4, 6 or 8 oz. jar, wrap some ribbon around it, attach the recipe and you will have a happy friend or loved one.

I’m all about food gifts. You can view my best homemade food gifts post for even more options.

I would totally be your BFF  if you gifted me with a jar of Bacon Jam! 

What bacon should I use to make bacon jam?

Of course, the number one ingredient is BACON. It’s the most important ingredient and my favorite bacon to date is Hatfield bacon (AND they are local to me).

Hatfield is a 120-year-old business. Before the roads had cars on them, Hatfield was delivering meats to the doors of Pennsylvanians. Today, they produce quality meats for far more than just Pennsylvania! Love that!

Turn bacon into Bacon Jam!! 

Turn bacon into Bacon Jam!

Check out my 1 minute  TikTok video on how to make this easy recipe for Bacon Jam

Ingredients for Bacon Jam

  • Bacon
  • Vidalia onion
  • Garlic
  • Brown sugar
  • Sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
  • Balsamic vinegar
  • Water (you could also add in a TBS or two of bourbon vs water)
  • Fresh thyme
  • Black pepper
  • Optional: Cayenne red pepper / maple syrup

How to make this recipe

Ingredients: Bacon, onions, garlic, red wine or sherry vinegar, balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, black pepper, red pepper, fresh thyme and water.

Bacon Onion Jam

Bacon Jam is not one of those things you can walk away from as it cooks. Taste as you go and adjust to your liking. Once you make this a couple of times, it’s a piece of cake. Soon it’ll be a signature dish or food gift of yours. 

Tips

  • If you want a more sticky gooey jam, add in a 1/2 cup to 1 cup of fig jam after you remove what you made from the heat, just stir until its mixed in. It complements the bacon perfectly. I have made this both with and without.
  • The addition of the fig jam makes the Bacon Jam sweeter. You can counter that (if you wish) by adding in some Cayenne pepper, which I do in the written recipe. I typically like some heat.
  • The trick to making it is having your ingredients prepped and organized and then as the mixture cooks down into jam that you pay attention to taste and texture. You don’t want it to burn.

How to use this Bacon Onion Jam

Oh! The list is almost endless! Atop fried eggs, on toast, on avocado toast, on burgers, on a round of Brie cheese warm from the oven (or cold), in a small bowl with a tiny spoon as a part of a cheese or charcuterie board or on crackers.

I love it atop fresh steamed green beans and off of a spoon all by itself…Heaven! I am sure you can come up with many more uses. It makes the best food gift!! 

Love Bacon as much as I do? Try one of my top 6 Bacon dishes:

  1. Bacon Cheese Jalapeno Quick Bread!
  2. Glazed Bacon Wrapped Sausage Bites
  3. Grilled Bacon Wrapped Chicken Skewers
  4. Steamed Green Beans With Bacon Jam
  5. Sriracha Candied Bacon (Pig Candy)
  6. Grilled Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin with Chipotle Glaze
Bacon Cheese and Jalapeno Quick Bread

This recipe originally published on December 13, 2016. Updated April 26, 2022, to reflect changes in the recipe which I think make it better and easier.

If you make this, show me 🙂 Tag me on Instagram or Facebook @sb15admin

Enjoy! -Colleen

The BEST Homemade Food Gifts Bacon Jam - Easy to make and adds such dimension to vegetables, sandwiches, burgers and more! Makes a great food gift!
Print Recipe
4.67 from 15 votes

Recipe for Bacon Jam

This Bacon Jam recipe makes an amazing food gift. use it as an appetizer and top a baked Brie or crostini. Spread onto toast. avocado toast or add a dollop to your fried eggs or avocado toast. I also love it atop green beans and burgers! So many uses.
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time30 mins
Total Time40 mins
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Bacon Jam, How to make bacon jam
Servings: 12 oz
Calories: 398kcal
Author: Colleen Kennedy

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds Bacon
  • 1 1/2 cups of chopped Vidalia onion
  • 4 large cloves garlic, minced or 3 TBS garlic paste
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
  • 2 TBS balsamic vinegar
  • 1/4 cup water (you could also add in a TBS or two of bourbon vs water)
  • 6 sprigs of fresh thyme
  • Black pepper
  • Optional: a couple of dashes Cayenne red pepper IF you like heat and sometimes I add in 2 TBS of maple syrup towards the end

Instructions

  • Chop your bacon and cook until almost crisp, stirring it around often.
  • Drain all but 1/2 TBS or so of the bacon grease out.
  • Add in the onions and sauté for about 5 minutes.
  • Next, add in the garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes, stirring the whole time.
  • Add in brown sugar, vinegars and water. Stir and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
  • Add in Thyme sprigs and pepper and continue simmering another few minutes, stirring often, being careful not to burn.
  • Taste and adjust seasoning to your preference if necessary.
  • Remove Thyme sprigs and allow the mixture to cool.
  • You can then pulse the jam a few times in your food processor for a finer jam or leave it as is. Up to you.
  • Once completely cool, store in airtight jars in your refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
  • Heat it up a bit to enjoy on whatever you like. If you need to after reheating adding a TBS or so of water if the jam is too thick.

Notes

You can tinker withy the flavors in the easy to make condiment. Add in some minced jalapenos if you enjoy spicy. Add in a TBS or two of Bourbon (in place of part of the water) for a different flavor.
Swap out shallots for onions, change up the type of vinegar you use etc. Make it your own.

Nutrition

Serving: 12g | Calories: 398kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 508mg | Potassium: 212mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 28IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 1mg

Enjoy!!

Since I am not a Registered Dietitian or Nutritionist, I use a WordPress plug-in to calculate the nutritional information provided in the recipe card.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  5. Kim Beaulieu says

    We love bacon jam. It’s good on everything. Or solo. Eating right out of the jar is totally acceptable. This is gorgeous.

    Reply

  7. Kirsten/ComfortablyDomestic says

    I would SO be your BFF if you gave me a jar of bacon jam for Christmas. Slathering this on toasted bread for a BLT sammie is nothing short of brilliance. It’s nice that you have a business like Hatfield that is committed to animal welfare and sustainable farming practices in your area.

    Reply

  8. Karyn Granrud says

    Whoa!! What a tasty and totally unique gift to give to the neighbors! I bet your house was smelling amazing after cooking up all that bacon!

    Reply

  9. Nora Barnum says

    Looks amazing…I plan to make some! I have a couple of questions:
    If I wanted to can this for later use…how long would you suggest I put it in a hot water bath?
    Your picture shows the jam in a 16 oz. mason jar. The recipe says it makes 12 oz., so quantity-
    wise, how much do you actually end up with?
    I’m just trying to figure out how much I’d need to make 4 – 16 oz. canning jars.
    Thank you!

    Reply

    • Martha says

      As a home economist I would not recommend trying to can this type of item . Because of the high fat and the densities of the ingredients it would be very difficult to kill all of the potential bacteria. This would not insure a safe product. It should be stored in the refrigerator as listed.

      Reply

    • Tess says

      I would refer to the ball canning book for canning meat. It would need to be pressure canned at 90 minutes or so depending on altitude and size. But there are no ingredients in it that suggests it cannot be canned.

      Reply

  10. Nadine Reedy says

    I am also wonder about quantity. Seems like a lot of bacon & expensive for just 12oz of jam. Also would like to can.

    Reply

  12. Mike Workman says

    Sounds like a great recipe which I would like to try but Vidalia onions are not available in the UK. Any suggestions for a suitable replacement?

    Reply

  13. Janet says

    5 stars
    I live in northern part of the US. Vidalia don’t have a long shelf-life, so the onions often are mushy by the time they get to our stores. I stopped using them long ago.

    Yelllow-skinned onions are fine to use, IMO. If the onions you are using are eye-watering, nose-burning strong, use a bit less, and saute a bit longer being careful not to burn or over brown.

    Reply

  14. Pamela Carnley says

    5 stars
    I just made this recipe this morning. We will be using tonight for our 4th of July hamburgers! This recipe is so yummy!

    Reply

  15. Anna says

    2 stars
    Too sweet for my taste. To fix it I had to add another pound of bacon and another cup of onion. To cut on the sweet taste I added a cup of coffee. Next tune I would decrease the sugar to 1/3 of the amount. I would add more if needed.

    Reply

  17. Linda says

    We don’t like onions but use a lot of onion powder, can this be used instead? Or any recommendations for something other than onions?

    Reply

    • Colleen says

      Hi Linda, It’s traditionally made with onions, if you like things spicy…sweet and spicy…maybe use a couple jalapenos or a mix of poblanos and jalapenos? Just an idea. Let me know what you come up with.

      Reply

  20. Terri says

    5 stars
    ALL THE BACON?! You lucky girl! I had to move out before I could get all the bacon. Wow – this bacon jam sounds like it’s right up my alley – I could get all the bacon this way 🙂

    Reply

  21. Carlos at Spoonabilities says

    A couple of years back I thought it was crazy the idea of bacon jam but after I tasted I got totally hooked! I’m pretty sure that homemade bacon jam will taste even better.

    Reply

  22. Eileen Kelly says

    5 stars
    I can’t get enough of this bacon jam. It is great on a toasted baguette and perfect added to a charcuterie platter.

    Reply

    • Colleen says

      No, it is not necessary. I just like the subtle flavor. I grow it along with oregano in a pot so I always have it on-hand.

      Reply

  26. Kathaleen Harris says

    5 stars
    Brought this bacon jam and some red onion jam to hunt camp. Both are great on burgers. Can’t get a lot of fresh stuff out there but these jams MADE the hamburgers!

    Reply

  27. Kay says

    Can’t wait to make this! Sounds absolutely delicious! Can’t seem to find Sherry vinegar, can I use white wine vinegar ?

    Reply

  29. Michelle says

    5 stars
    Holy smokes this is so delicious!! Just when you thought everything was better with bacon… you learn about bacon jam!!!

    Reply

  31. Mike says

    I have not made this yet but have already made some mental note changes. For the bacon I am going to use the ends and pieces they sell in bulk, and chop it up. With all the other ingredients the brand will not make a big difference. In place of brown sugar I am going to use pure maple sugar, and also add a couple Tbs of real maple syrup. Instead of grd black pepper I’m going to use cracked black pepper.

    Reply

    • Colleen says

      Sounds good! When I first began making this years ago, I would go to the Amish farmers market by me and get the bacon ends, works perfectly!

      Reply

    • Colleen says

      I can’t see why you can’t freeze it. I have never done it myself, but it should freeze well.
      I have no experience with traditional canning.

      Reply

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