Cooking with Cash-Wa Episode 6: Candied Bacon

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) - Brown Sugar-Chipotle Candied Bacon Serves: 4-6

Calling all bacon lovers. This recipe is truly addictive and a fan favorite as it combines salty, sweet, spicy, and savory flavors in each bite. If you don’t have a wire rack, you can place the bacon directly on the foil, just make sure to transfer to parchment paper after the bacon comes out of the oven. Soak rack(s) in warm water to dissolve any baked-on sugar and run through dish machine.

· 12 ounces thick-cut bacon (cut in ½ lengthwise)

· ¼ cup light brown sugar (packed)

· 1 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

· 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder

· 1 teaspoon ground cumin

· 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic

Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350° F. Line 1 if larger or 2 if smaller baking sheets with aluminum foil. Place wire rack over the foil lined pan(s) and arrange bacon about 1″ apart.

In a bowl, combine sugar, pepper, chili powder, cumin, and granulated garlic. Using your fingers, sprinkle sugar mixture evenly over the top side of the bacon only. Use a pastry brush to spread sugar mixture evenly over each piece.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. The bacon will have a dark brown color and sugar will be bubbling. It’s not a bad idea to rotate the bacon sheets halfway through baking to get even exposure to heat.

Allow the bacon to cool for 5 minutes. Serve bacon in low-ball cocktail glasses as an appetizer or use in sandwich, burger, or with Ricotta Pancakes (see recipe).