Branmors American Grill

Really want to spice up your cheeseburger? Add a little pizazz to your morning eggs? Or even better yet, a biscuit & egg sandwich with aged white cheddar? Try making a spicy Sundried Tomato Bacon Jam. What? Bacon! Jam? You heard me right, bacon jam.

Now, bacon jam is not really a new thing.  It is really great stuff! Bacon jam sounds like it could really be something exotic, but it has been around for hundreds of years. Simply put, bacon jam is basically a potted meat.

Potted meats are traditionally meat scraps, herbs, spices and some kind of acid like vinegar or spirits like brandy or whiskey. Preparing potted meats was like giving an extra lifeline to your leftovers, preserving them and making them last a few more weeks. Making a potted meat is simpler than making pates or even mousses. By using quality ingredients, one can make a slew of off shoot variations.

As for my version of a simple bacon jam, I wanted to make it simple, with a little sweetness and a bit of spice… but not too much.

Use the best bacon you can get…  I prefer Neuske’s. Super smoky, excellent quality… nice & thick.

Bacon jam is excellent on slices of tomatoes, plopped on a warm biscuit, stirred into a bowl of beans or spread on top of a cheeseburger. Or you can just grab a spoon and dig into your jar.

Sundried Tomato Bacon Jam

Ingredients:

3 pounds of bacon

1 cup of garlic, minced

1 ½# Spanish onion

1 pound sundried tomatoes, julienne

12oz. strong coffee

2 cups Honey

1  Tablespoon leaf thyme

1 cup of strong brewed coffee

3 Tablespoons liquid  hickory smoke

1 pound brown sugar

1 cup champagne vinegar

3 Tablespoons black pepper

2 Tablespoons salt

Method:
Cook the bacon until fat is rendered, but not too crisp. Cut cooked bacon into two-inch sized pieces.
On medium heat, cook the onion and garlic in one tablespoon of rendered bacon fat in a medium-sized pot for two minutes. Add the cooked bacon, spices, honey, brown sugar, champagne vinegar and coffee. Simmer on low for two hours, stirring occasionally. If jam starts to get dry, add water, 1/4 cup at a time.

After two hours, place bacon jam into a food processor, and puree for two or three seconds, tops. You just want to bring it together but still have some chunks.