• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Breakfast
    • Desserts
    • Dinner
    • Drinks
    • Gluten Free
    • Mexican Food
    • One Pot
    • Paleo
    • Pasta
    • Quick Meal
    • Recipe Videos
    • Salads
    • Sandwiches and Burgers
    • Skillet Meal
    • Soups
    • Tacos
    • Vegan
  • About
    • Copyright
    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclosure and Content Uses
    • Image Usage Policy
    • Nutrition Disclaimer
  • Cookbook
  • Contact

A Simple Pantry logo

Home » Recipes » The Best Damn Bacon Jam

Published: Aug 13, 2018 · Modified: Mar 31, 2019 by Karly · This post may contain affiliate links

The Best Damn Bacon Jam

28458 shares
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Throw out those other recipes, because there isn’t a Bacon Jam around that can compete with this deliciousness!
Bacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on itThat’s right folk, you heard it from me first!

This really is the best damn bacon jam, I promise. No weird ingredients like coffee, or mustard, or whatever else people are using to make bacon jam.

Oh no, we aren’t doing that here. I took my ingredient cues from the original bacon jam, Skillet Bacon Jam.

Bacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on itIf you’ve ever checked out the ingredients list on the label, you’ll see there are literally very few ingredients.

And for good reason, too. You just don’t need them. Seriously. Even though this recipe is all about the bacon, it is also all about the onions.

Bacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on itBacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on it
What do you mean, it’s all about the onions?

Onions are just…onions. What is so damn special about the onions?

Well, it’s because they are caramelized, of course! Perfectly caramelized onions are what makes this bacon jam so damn bacon jammy delicious.

Caramelized onions are a labor of love. But not so much labor, because they are really easy to make. It just takes time, and patience, which can be hard when they smell so so good.

In general, onions take about an hour to caramelize, and you check them maybe every ten minutes, to give them a good stir and scrape up the black bits that form on the bottom of the pan. That stuff is flavor gold, so you need it.

I used sweet yellow onions for this recipe, but you can opt for regular yellow onions if you please, they still caramelize great, but won’t be quite as sweet as the sweet yellows.

The Best Damn Bacon Jam Recipe | asimplepantry.comLook at them, turning all delicious. Even my onion poo-poo’ers love them. I will convert them, I will!

Once the onions are caramelized, you deglaze the pan with a little balsamic vinegar, scraping up the rest of the black bits and anything else in the pan. Then I add some more balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, and salt, and stir them up to make a thick, dense mixture.

This mixture will be blended with the bacon that’s just waiting to be made into bacon jam. Try not to eat all the bacon like I did. It is a sad day to be out of bacon whilst making bacon jam.

The Best Damn Bacon Jam Recipe | asimplepantry.comThe Best Damn Bacon Jam Recipe | asimplepantry.comI put everything in a blender, but I have a feeling my food processor would have gotten the job done faster.

This will be a thick and goopy mixture, so it will take a little time to get blended down. You can stop at any point when you feel you’re satisfied with the texture.

Chunky, or smoother, either way is delish!Bacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on it, bacon jam grilled cheese triangles stacked on each otherUse it in the same manner as regular jam, just with a savory taste instead. And absolutely, positively, promise me you will try it with some grilled cheese. Bacon Jam Grilled Cheese. It’s a life-changer, my friends.

Bacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on it

Bacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on it

The Best Damn Bacon Jam

You won't find anything strange in this stunning and flavorful Bacon Jam, just caramelized onions, bacon, and a few not-so-secret ingredients, so get ready to indulge in those best bacon dreams and get cooking!
4.62 from 50 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Spreads
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings: 8
Calories: 450kcal
Author: Karly Gomez

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ lbs. bacon
  • 2 sweet yellow onions sliced into thin ribbons
  • ½ cup + 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lay the bacon slices out in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake for 14 minutes, or until the bacon is nice and crispy. Lay out on paper towels to drain and set aside, reserving 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease.
  • Add the bacon grease to a large skillet and heat over medium, medium low heat, then add the onions and stir around to coat with the bacon grease. Allow to slowly cook for an hour, checking every ten minutes or so to stir and scrape up any black bits that form on the bottom of the pan.
  • Once the onions are a dark golden brown color, deglaze the pan with the 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, scraping the pan as the vinegar dissolves. Add the remaining balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, salt, and pepper and stir until a thick glaze forms, around 5 minutes.
  • Add the onion mixture and bacon to a food processor and pulse until the desired consistency forms. Scoop the bacon jam into a jar and devour immediately, or refrigerate until future use. Use within one week.

Nutrition

Serving: 2tbsp | Calories: 450kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 38g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 60mg | Sodium: 1310mg | Potassium: 250mg | Sugar: 12g
MADE THIS RECIPE?Click here to leave a comment + star rating! ★★★★★

Share your photo and tag @asimplepantry or #asimplepantry!

Bacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on it, bacon jam grilled cheese triangles stacked on top of each other Bacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on it

Bacon jam in small tulip jars, spoon with bacon jam on it, bacon jam grilled cheese triangles stacked on top of each other

Originally Posted: August 16, 2015. Updated August 13, 2018.

Imagery Shot With

photo-accessoriesCanon EOS 6D | Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens

« Easy Midwestern Cucumber Salad
Herby Tomato Soup »

About Karly

From her childhood home in Southern Minnesota, Karly embraces the crazy of everyday life by creating delicious dishes her family and friends love, while experimenting with new flavors and techniques and photographing the results. Karly’s love for beautiful foods and joy for creating is infectious to all who meet her.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Janet says

    September 30, 2022 at 4:33 am

    What size jelly jars 4 or 8oz!

    Reply
  2. Dotty says

    March 16, 2022 at 8:29 pm

    I made this recipe again and shared it with two other people. They loved it. Try it on a grilled cheese. Delicious!

    Reply
  3. Scott says

    February 06, 2022 at 8:09 pm

    1 star
    This tastes just like everyone else’s complaints about other recipes ! May as well have saved the time and made a batch of sloppy Joes …. What a waste of time and bacon blechhh

    Reply
  4. Cheryll says

    January 25, 2022 at 6:20 pm

    Can this be frozen or canned?

    Reply
  5. Joe says

    December 30, 2021 at 10:26 pm

    5 stars
    I just made this for Christmas 2021 to accompany a Sous Vide Beef Shank and Yukon Gold mashed potatoes. I chose to use a large dice pepper bacon instead of putting in a food processor. It was excellent!

    5 days later I reheated and served with a seared salmon, flavor was amazing and so smokey and rich. This is now my number one condiment which I am calling a Caramelized onion, Bacon slaw!

    Reply
  6. Dotty says

    October 28, 2021 at 7:33 am

    5 stars
    I have made this multiple times and shared it with my sister. My niece suggested to try it on a grilled cheese sandwich and it was delicious.

    Reply
  7. Donna Irelan says

    October 24, 2021 at 5:38 pm

    How much does this make?

    Reply
  8. Frieda Huntley says

    July 20, 2021 at 5:36 pm

    5 stars
    WOW! I added to a turkey, provolone on ciabatta. The whole family loved it!

    Reply
« Older Comments

Leave a Review Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

author karly gomez of a simple pantry with a background of red bell peppers
Hi, I'm Karly! Welcome to A Simple Pantry, where you’ll find inspiration for any meal and every occasion with tried-and-tested recipes, step-by-step tutorials, and occasional cooking videos that help you prepare easy gourmet dishes the whole family will love.
START HERE

i prefer margaritas and sitting in the shade to piña coladas and getting caught in the rain.

digital magazines and phone with cookbook viewing

Copyright © 2023 A Simple Pantry on the Brunch Pro Theme

28458 shares