Bacon Jam

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 800 g bacon (breakfast bacon in slices)
• 250 g shallot(s)
• 2 large onions, red
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp paprika powder, smoked
• ½ tsp pepper, mixed
• 2 tbsp hot chili sauce (Sriracha chili sauce)
• 120 ml whiskey (Jack Daniels or Jim Beam)
• 120 ml maple syrup
• 60 ml balsamic vinegar
• 150 g brown sugar

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes

Bacon jam with whiskey. Perfect for burgers, on bread, or with fried potatoes.

Chop the bacon into small pieces, about 1-1.5 cm wide. I used scissors; it works better than a knife. Dice the onions and shallots. Add all the bacon, without any fat, to a large pan and cook over low heat (I used level 5 or 6 out of 9). The goal is to melt all the fat from the bacon. With this amount, this will take about 45-60 minutes. It’s ready when the bacon is nicely browned and the bacon fat is foaming profusely. Strain the bacon through a sieve and collect the bacon fat in a saucepan. Return 2-3 tablespoons of the fat to the pan. Add the onions and shallots and cook over medium heat. When they start to turn golden, add the chopped or crushed garlic. Cook briefly. Then add the chili sauce, paprika, and pepper and stir to combine. Stir in the maple syrup and whiskey and increase the heat to high. Simmer for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Then add the balsamic vinegar and sugar and let it reduce slightly. Now return the bacon to the pan and reduce the heat to medium. Simmer for another 5-10 minutes, stirring constantly, depending on the desired consistency. If necessary, you can run the jam through the blender again, but I like it nicely chunky. Pour the jam into clean twist-off jars and seal.