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??
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!
IF and I mean IF you can stop yourself from gobbling this up spoonful after spoonful…Spread it on hot biscuits, hunks of bread, add it to steamed or sauteed veggies, pancakes, BLTs, grilled cheese sandwiches and burgers! Squeal!! (Ha no pun intended). The list can go on and on!
Homemade Bacon Jam would also make an amazing food gift this holiday season. 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 would totally be your BFF if you gifted me with a jar of Bacon Jam! Or homemade booze…or Pizzelle’s…haha!
Hey, I know what I like!
I am excited to partner up with Hatfield for this recipe. Who by the way is local to me, which I love!
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!
Hatfield Quality Meats commitment to my area, animal stewardship, sustainability, and quality products are one of the reasons I am happy to reach for their bacon, sausage, roasts, hams and more when I shop and the main reason I am proud to partner with them. And I will also say that in my opinion, their dedication to all of the above is how they have not just lasted over a century, but thrived!
Did you know that Hatfield has 7 varieties of bacon??
You can try different bacon each day of the week! Classic, Applewood, Thick Cut Hardwood Smoked, Reduced Sodium, Hickory Extra Thick Triple Smoked Bacon (what!!!), Maple Brown Sugar Extra Thick Triple Smoked Bacon and Cherrywood Extra Thick Triple Smoked Bacon. It’s a bacon-lover’s dream!
Turn bacon…into Bacon Jam!!
For all kinds of delicious recipes, special offers and more, check out Hatfield Quality Meats around the web via their website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.
Try my recipe for Bacon Jam Recipe, tag me on social media if you make it @SouffleBombay. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
How Do You Make Bacon Jam?
To make Bacon Jam, you just need a few ingredients. Bacon of course, as well as onion, garlic, sugar, seasonings, and herbs. 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.
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, its a piece of cake. Soon it’ll be a signature dish or food gift of yours.
Tip: 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 ways. 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.
How Can I Use Bacon 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 my Bacon Cheese Jalapeno Quick Bread!
Recipe originally published on December 13, 2016. Updated December 19, 2019, to reflect changes in the recipe which I think make it better and easier.
Enjoy!!
- 2 pounds of Hatfield Thick Cut Bacon
- 1½ cups of chopped Vidalia onion
- 2½ TBS garlic paste or 3 cloves of garlic
- 1¼ cups brown sugar
- ¼ cup sherry vinegar
- 2 TBS balsamic vinegar
- ¼ cup 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
- Cut your bacon into ¾ inch pieces and cook until crisp, stirring it around often.
- Drain all but ½ TBS or so of the bacon grease out.
- Add in the onions and saute for about 6 minutes.
- Next, add in the garlic paste (preferred) or garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes, stirring the whole time.
- Add in brown sugar, vinegar and water. Stir and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
- Add in Thyme sprigs and pepper and continue simmering, stirring often, for 10 minutes, 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 chunkier.
- 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 to thick.
LaNeshe says
December 13, 2016 at 1:54 pmI love the Hattfield Applewood bacon. Cool recipe!
Jo-Lynne Shane says
December 13, 2016 at 5:45 pmYUM. I mean, bacon!!! But I’d never have thought to make jam with it. So cool.
Colleen says
December 13, 2016 at 10:32 pmBacon Jam can change your life for the better!!
Rachel says
December 14, 2016 at 1:52 amPerfect for Christmas morning!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
December 15, 2016 at 5:50 amI loooooooooove bacon jam and this looks perfect!!
Kim Beaulieu says
December 15, 2016 at 9:03 amWe love bacon jam. It’s good on everything. Or solo. Eating right out of the jar is totally acceptable. This is gorgeous.
Angie | Big Bear's Wife says
December 15, 2016 at 3:44 pmooo I am so making some of this for Thomas! oooo A perfect Christmas gift!
Kirsten/ComfortablyDomestic says
December 15, 2016 at 9:06 pmI 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.
Karyn Granrud says
December 17, 2016 at 8:44 pmWhoa!! 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!
Nora Barnum says
July 5, 2017 at 7:54 pmLooks 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!
Martha says
August 11, 2017 at 2:05 amAs 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.
Nadine Reedy says
July 11, 2017 at 3:43 pmI am also wonder about quantity. Seems like a lot of bacon & expensive for just 12oz of jam. Also would like to can.
Robin says
January 6, 2020 at 12:30 amYeah but its homemade bacon jam… cant really put a price on that🥓🥓🥓
Karen Napholz says
June 13, 2018 at 12:31 amCan this be frozen like “freezer jam”?
Colleen says
June 13, 2018 at 10:24 pmI have not tried that…It’s always gone!
Kelley says
May 5, 2019 at 11:54 pmYes. I fill small jars then store in the freezer. Works great
Mike Workman says
June 17, 2018 at 10:06 amSounds 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?
Janet says
June 27, 2018 at 1:22 pmI 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.
Colleen says
June 30, 2018 at 12:41 pmGreat answer, thanks Janet!
Pamela Carnley says
July 4, 2018 at 7:04 pmI just made this recipe this morning. We will be using tonight for our 4th of July hamburgers! This recipe is so yummy!
Anna says
November 22, 2018 at 6:24 pmToo 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.