This Bourbon Bacon Jam is sweet, smoky, boozy spread that is perfect for burgers, crackers, or just eating with a spoon right out of the jar!
Yes, I made Bacon Jam.
Then, I added Bourbon!
No, I don't feel one bit guilty about any of that.
Make this bourbon bacon jam.
Now!
Then, slather it on everything in sight.
I guarantee your eyes will roll back in your head.
And that's a good thing.
Trust me on this one.
Orgasmic jam. Life is good.
My regular readers know I don't do very well with alcohol and use it sparingly when cooking. However, this recipe had to have some alcohol in it.
So, I added some. I figure why not live a little. Crossing fingers my tummy doesn't punish me for this decision. In this case it might be worth it though.
I mean it's bacon jam....with bourbon. So, I have to stick close to home for a day or so. Big whoop!
I'll rent a movie, eat more bacon jam, and live with the consequences. It's Bacon Jam, so it's totally worth it.
Plus it's a good excuse to hop on Netflix and stay in my jammies all the live long day! I never pass up a chance to spend a day in jammies.
I should really find some jammies with bacon pictures on them. Now that would be epic. And awesome. One could say it would be porktastic.
Now run along. Make this Bourbon Bacon Jam. Slather, make, repeat. I mean it IS orgasmic jam after all.
Ingredient Notes:
- Bacon - Honestly, use whatever kind of bacon you love the most.
- Shallots - Nothing beats shallots for added oomph to savoury jams. Trust me!
- Onion - For this particular recipe, I recommend using Vidalia onions or any sweet onion. That said, white or yellow onions will suffice if that's all you have.
- Garlic - Fresh garlic is the way to go for this recipe. You could use minced garlic in a jar in a pinch but personally I believe fresh is best!
- Spices - Chili powder and smoked paprika are what I used for this bacon jam recipe. Feel free to add whatever you like.
- Bourbon - Any brand of bourbon will do for this recipe.
- Maple Syrup - Being Canadian, I am a big fan of good quality maple syrup. Use your favourite kind of syrup.
- Balsamic Vinegar - Any brand of balsamic vinegar will work for this jam.
- Brown Sugar - Light or dark brown sugar will work well for this recipe. Dark brown sugar will give more depth of flavour since it has more molasses is it but personally I tend to use light brown sugar for this jam.
How to Make Bourbon Bacon Jam:
- First, cook the bacon ahead of time. Place it in two frying pans to allow room for it to crisp properly. Cook the bacon over medium heat until it browns.. Bacon should be a little crisper with as little visible fat as possible. Then, transfer it to paper towels to drain excess fat off.
- Next, pulse shallots and onion in the food processor. Alternately, you can dice them with knife if you don't have a food processor.
- Leave about 1 to 2 tablespoons of bacon fat in one of the pans. Then, add shallot and onion to the pan, cook over medium heat until they start to caramelize. Add the garlic and cook for about one more minute.
- Then, add the chili powder and smoked paprika, stir to combine.
- Next, increase the heat to high and add the bourbon (carefully) and maple syrup. Bring it to a boil, while stirring and scraping the pan so all the little bacon bits break free from the pan. Continue boiling for about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add vinegar and brown sugar to the pan, continue to boil for about 3 minutes.
- Then, use a sharp knife to cut the bacon into small pieces.
- Toss the bacon into the pan, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 10 minutes. The mixture will thicken in the process.
- Take the jam off the heat. Drain any excess fat off the bacon jam by pouring it through a sieve or use cheesecloth to drain it.
- Next, you have two options, you can pop the mixture into a food processor and pulse until it breaks down more. Or you can leave it chunkier (I like the more rustic, chunkier look) and don't bother pulsing it. Your choice.
- Transfer to jars and store in the fridge.
- Serve.
More Bacon Recipes:
- Chocolate Covered Candied Bacon
- Potato and Bacon Breakfast Hash
- Jalapeno Bacon Poppers
- Grilled Caesar Salad
- Grilled Burger with Caramelized Onions, Mozzarella and Bacon
- Mini Potato Skins with Sour Cream, Bacon and Chives
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Bourbon Bacon Jam
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds bacon
- 2 cups shallots finely chopped
- 1 cup vidalia onion or any sweet onion, finely chopped
- 4 large garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ cup bourbon
- ½ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- ½ cup brown sugar
Instructions
- Begin by cooking the bacon in two frying pans to allow for room for it to crisp up properly. Cook over medium heat until it browns perfectly. You want the bacon a little crisper with as little visible fat as possible. Transfer to paper towels to drain excess fat off.
- Pulse your shallots and onions in the food processor or chop with a knife.
- Leave about 1 to 2 tablespoons of the fat in one of the pan. Add shallot and onion to the pan, cook over medium heat until they start to caramelize. Then, add the garlic and cook for about one more minute.
- Add the chili powder and smoked paprika, stir to combine.
- Increase heat to high and add the bourbon (carefully) and maple syrup. Bring to a boil, stir and scrape the pan so all the little bacon bits comes loose. Continue boiling for about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add vinegar and brown sugar, continue to boil for about 3 minutes.
- Using a sharp knife cut the bacon into small pieces. You can also tear it by hand so it looks more rustic, not too perfect. Personal choice.
- Toss the bacon into the pan, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 10 minutes, the mixture will thicken and look jam like in the process.
- Turn off the stove top. Drain any excess fat off the bacon jam by pouring it through a sieve or use cheesecloth to drain it through.
- Now you have two options, you can pop the mixture into a food processor and pulse until it breaks down more. Or you can leave it chunkier (I like the more rustic, chunkier look) and don't bother pulsing it. Your choice.
- Transfer to jars and store in the fridge.
- You can heat it up in the microwave whenever you want to top something with the jam. I used it over smoked sausages cooked on the grill.
- Serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Thanks for visiting today!
If you’re looking for more Bacon Recipes be sure to check out my recipe index. You can also find a lot more Condiment Recipes as well.
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Toodles! xx
Karen
Is it safe to pressure can the bourbon bacon jam? How long will it keep if preserved this way?
Kim Beaulieu
Hey Karen. I just sent you an email. I have never canned before so I do not even know how to advise on this one. I know there's food safety issues so I would not want to steer you in the wrong direction. It does contain real bacon so not sure how that affects pressure canning safety. I personally would shy away from doing it. This will keep for a decent amount of time in the fridge plus it's just amazing fresh. Not sure that helps you at all. I wish I knew more about canning but it's an area I have never felt comfortable delving into.
Katie
I just made this tonight and it's AH-mazing! Mine came out a little extra thick / candied, I think with the next batch I'll try a little less sugar (I measured the brown sugar packed, but loose might have been better/correct?), and maybe a little more bourbon!
Tracy
This sounds great! Are you using pure maple syrup or an artificial one like Log Cabin?
Kim Beaulieu
Either will work. I'm Canadian so I use pure, but artificial works too. Hope that helps, and thanks so much for the compliment.
Anonymous
Thanks, Kim. I went ahead and bought pure. It's so good it must be evil! 🙂
Kim Beaulieu
Ha, I'm always on board with things so good they're evil. Let me know how it turns out.
Nicole
I saw in the earlier comments that you were going to ask your canning friends if this was safe to can or if the had any similar recipes for canning. I was just hoping you could share these with me. I would love to give these as Christmas gifts but I am hesitant to give anything that needs to be put in the fridge as they live out of town. Thanks 🙂
Kim Beaulieu
No one seems to think it's a good idea. So my advice is no. Unless you're a canning wizard and know some way to make it safe. I'm not so I'm just not comfortable advising folks on it. I can only recommend making it as is. So sorry, but I would hate anyone to get sick because of something on my site. I made it this way, so I can only recommend this way unfortunately. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. xx
Miranda
I'm just wondering if this could be something you could freeze? thanks =)
Kim Beaulieu
I haven't tried it personally but I see absolutely no reason why you couldn't. I freeze everything in sight. It's a great way to store extra food.
Miranda
fantastic! I figured you probably could, i thought i'd be safe and see if you or anyone else had tried it though. thanks!!
Pam
I would think you could freeze it.
Kim Beaulieu
I concur.
Timi
Just made this for Christmas gifts.... Oh my it will be hard to give away!
Kim Beaulieu
Hope everyone loves it. Happy Holidays! xx
annette
About how many shallots does it take to make 2 cups? I am thinking this is a bit pricey to make often, might just be something to indulge in occasionally.
Kim Beaulieu
It completely depends on the size of the shallots, I buy them in bulk so I always have tons on hand. You can buy a monster size bag at Costco for $5. You can use less for this if you on't want to use that many, or mix it up, use half shallots + half onion. It's a recipe that can be adapted to your own tastes. But I hate saying how many shallots because they range in size from teeny tiny little ones that barely would give you 2 tablespoons worth, up to large ones that can give you 3/4 cup in one shot. So for the purpose of this recipe it's better for me to recommend in cups. You can half the amount and it will not affect the outcome greatly, it'll just have less bite. Hope that helps. xx
Kimberly
Ok, So today I found this recipe, and decided to make it, as a topping to goat cheese, on top of toasted baguette slices.
The only changes I made was, I couldn't find my Chili powder, so I used about 1 Tbs of a Chipotle pepper in adobo, and I used Blood Orange Balsamic Vinegar, which I had on hand. I cant wait to make this again and try other things, like possibly sun dried tomatoes as an addition...
So glad I found this recipe, and your site, cant wait to see what the future has in store.
Happy New Year !!
Kim Beaulieu
Thanks so much Kimberly. So nice to meet you. And really happy you loved it. Keep in touch.
John Rankin
I used Southern Comfort for the bourbon. I wouldn't suggest it. It just didn't taste right. Maybe some lemon zest would have fixed it but I didn't have any lemons. If I tried it again I would try something that didn't have as bold of flavor as SoCo.
Kim Beaulieu
Good feedback John, thanks for stopping by to let us know. Maybe a more mild bourbon would be better. It should compliment the jam not overpower it. Bummer it didn't work out for you though. I never like hearing anyone has any issues with recipes. I'm a wuss so I always use the most mild but good quality stuff. Let me know if you try it again.
John Rankin
It was my fault, not the recipe's. So Co is good in BBQ sauce but not jam. Lesson learned! Any suggestions on bourbon for next time?
Kim Beaulieu
Go cheap. I tend to keep the good stuff for drinking, the cheap stuff for cooking.
Seth Price
I made this last night and it turned out amazing. I just used fake maple syrup and Evan Williams bourbon, because I always have both on hand. The only thing I might change is maybe a little less sugar and a little more chili powder.
Kim Beaulieu
Yeah, so happy you liked it. I have to admit I'm a total sugar nut so I usually go heavy handed with it. I always have to remind myself not everyone is a total sugar fanatic.
Beauty Follower
Must be super delicious!
Hugs from Athens 🙂
Kim Beaulieu
Thanks. We love this stuff.
Jazmine
Incredible. I made this Thanksgiving. It was gone soon after.
Alice
Make this for New Years Eve party. It's like the best people were calling it crack.
Anonymous
The constant video ads on here, make the user experience unbearable.
Kim Beaulieu
I'll talk to my ad reps to get them to tone it down. I'm not a fan of them myself. Are they showing in sidebar for you or inside the post? I'm always open to feedback on the site. While I need to make money, my first priority is the user enjoying the site.
Anonymous
This recipe is awesome! Thanks so much!!
Lily
This looks wonderful and I'll make it this week. How much jam does this recipe yield? I want to make some as gifts. Thanks!
Lily
Never mind! I just saw it above.
Ann Davy
Looks and sounds scrummy! Can you freeze it?
Kim Beaulieu
I froze some of the last batch I made. I just put them in small mason jars, the spice size. That way I can pull a week's worth out at a time.
Josiah Spurrier
OMG! Absolutely delicious. I made this Jam for a bourbon themed cook - off at a friends house; Smeared atop a flaky puff pastry filled with my bourbon bbq pulled pork, it was incredible! The bowl of this jam was just about licked clean. Now, as a bacon lover, I say the more the merrier, however I used 1 16oz pack of bacon and it was plenty. This recipe has definitely earned a spot in my recipe book, a must try!
Jennifer P
I must make this. I also have IBS, but some things are just worth it once in a while. This is one of them.