The Clever Ingredient That Gives Candied Bacon A Kick Of Heat

Bacon is good. Candied bacon is even better. And just when you thought bacon couldn't get any more delectable, enter sweet and spicy bacon. It tastes just as the name suggests and once you've tried it, chances are you'll be hooked. What is it about the sweet, salty, spicy combination that makes it so irresistible? There are multiple well-funded studies that delve deep into the science of human taste buds to try and understand these preferences, but for the average person who loves to eat, we don't need to know the details. What really matters is how to achieve this heavenly flavor profile. That's where pepper comes in. 

No matter how spicy you want your candied bacon, you should use a thick cut of bacon. The thicker cut takes longer to cook, giving the sweetness (honey or brown sugar) and spice (cayenne, jalapeños) time to infuse the meat and really make the flavors merge. The result is bacon that is sweet, crispy and sticky with a spicy yet caramelized flavor.

If you can manage to keep this bacon around long enough, it's the perfect brunch item, complementing pancakes and eggs wonderfully. It's also ideal for using in sandwiches and burgers, or as garnish for bloody Marys and Caesars.

Aside from using a thicker cut bacon, the rest of the ingredients are pretty versatile. The kind of sweetener to use is up to you, though honey and brown sugar are the top contenders to get the sticky, crispy edge that everybody loves. Hot honey is a great option for this bacon, for obvious reasons. This hot honey infused with peppers can be made at home or store bought. Brown sugar creates the caramelized flavor that makes almost everything more delicious.

As far as the spice factor goes, this is where you really want to adjust according to how much heat the lucky people eating this bacon can handle. The most basic way to prepare this is with a mixture of brown sugar, cayenne, and red chili flakes. This can be layered on top of the bacon (spices first followed by brown sugar) and left to bake in the oven. For added heat, chop up some jalapeños and layer them on top. Of course, the more jalapeños the more heat. To lessen the intensity of the jalapeños, you can deseed them before using. Other peppers can be substituted in for less or more spice. Banana peppers are a good option for less spice and Serrano peppers definitely pack more heat than your average jalapeño.