Bacon Jerky

Bacon jerky is the low and slow variation of candied bacon. It is cooked slowly to render the fat and ensure a nice chewy texture. This bacon jerky recipe uses three ingredients: spicy sriracha, maple syrup, and of course bacon to deliver a delicious flavor that is bite-sized and snackable.

If there is one thing that doesn't sit on my counter very long, it's Trader Joe's Sweet Sriracha Uncured Bacon Jerky. It's almost like it vanishes from a full bag on the counter to an emptied bag in the trash.

But at nearly $44 a pound, that is an expensive treatment if you are buying it regularly. So to save a bit of cash, I've started to make it at home.

The reason jerky sells for such a premium is because of the amount of time that goes into it, but as a home cook, if you set a timer it's almost no work at all.

I love the texture and the heat in that product. And while this is no copycat recipe, it is good in its own right. I've kept things to just three simple ingredients. And yes, you can play with the ratio if you don't like it with medium heat.

My husband and I have found ourselves nibbling at it as a snack or even putting it on sandwiches.

What does this taste like

Meat Candy. The only accurate way to describe jerky is chewy meat with a nice layer of flavor.

It's not dry but its been dehydrated to reduce the fat content. This recipe in particular tastes like candied bacon jerky as the sweetness is coming from maple syrup.

Jerky has a certain chewy texture to it. If you were to try to cook it at higher heat you'll get a crumbly texture.

Tips for making this

• Use regular cut bacon, not thick-cut bacon as you want the meat to dehydrate.
• You can use a dehydrator or you can use your oven. I found 200F in an oven to get a good texture much like beef jerky. Likewise, I've used 145F in a dehydrator.
• You can cut the recipe in half and store the bacon in your refrigerator until you are ready to prepare it.
• Elevating the bacon above the cookie sheet is essential to ensure the fat has room to escape and that heat can evenly circulate around the bacon.
• If your bacon is really fatty, then consider trimming that part off. I wouldn't worry about the streaks in the middle, but some brands are fattier than others.

Variations

The following flavors also pair well with bacon:

• The following spices also make a good compliment to the bacon: black pepper, or garlic powder.
• The following sweeteners would also work: brown sugar or honey.
• You can play with the ratio of sweet to spicy as well. If you like it sweeter, add an additional tablespoon of brown sugar, or make it 3:1 sweet to spice.

Watch me make this (44 Seconds)

Step by step directions

 Step 1: Preheat your oven to 200F. In the meanwhile, remove bacon from your refrigerator to come up to room temperature for about 15 minutes. And slice in half.

Step 2: Mix together the marinate.

Step 3: Place bacon on a cookie sheet with cooling rack over it. Brush on the sauce.

Step 4: Cook the bacon in oven for 2.5 hours until bacon has rendered much of its fat and achieves your desired texture.

Step 5: Allow to cool on rack for about 10 minutes. Place in air tight container or enjoy as it is now ready to eat.

Final Thoughts

I hope you enjoy this Bacon Jerky!

If you try this, would you mind hitting the “Rate” button? I’d love to know what you thought of it. If you modified the original recipe here, please let me know how it turned out. I love comments!

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