Jalapeño Bacon Jam

This Jalapeño Bacon Jam is one of those things you don’t realize you need until you have it. I’m telling you, I never want another burger without it. You can never go wrong with bacon, the jalapeños add just the right little kick, and the rest of the ingredients bring it all together into a sweet and savory condiment that somehow works on just about anything you put it on.

In the past, I’ve tended to shy away from making a jam because it seems like it’s going to be time consuming. The most time consuming part of this entire recipe is cooking the bacon.

The prep is super simple! I like to use my kitchen shears to “cut” my bacon into pieces and then I use my kitchen slap chopper to get my onion diced finely. That just leaves the jalapeños for chopping. And I typically do this while the bacon is cooking. (I make mine in a cast iron skillet – not necessary but I love using mine for this)

Once you’ve gotten your bacon super crispy (more done than what’s in the picture), remove it and place it to the side on a paper towel to use later. Keep only 1/4 cup of the bacon grease in the pan and sautee your onion and jalapeños.

Once the veggies have cooked for a bout 15 minutes, add in your bacon, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, garlic, and chili powder. You’ll just let that simmer for about 8 minutes. You’re not looking for the consistency to be super thick like jam. It will continue to thicken as it cools down. As it cooks, the color will darken, the bubbles will start to disappear, and it’ll get a glossy look to it. It really is that easy!

Jalapeño Bacon Jam

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Ingredients  

• 1 lb bacon
• 1 large yellow onion (finely diced)
• 3 medium jalapeños peppers (finely diced & seeded if you want less heat)
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• ½ cup light brown sugar
• ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup
• 1 tsp chili powder

Instructions

• Cook the Bacon.

  Fully cook your one pound of bacon until it's extra crispy! It's important that your bacon isn't undercooked. Once fully cooked, remove the bacon from the pan and place it on a plate lined with a paper towel to absorb the grease. (You can cook the bacon whole and crumble it afterward or you can cut the bacon beforehand and cook it in pieces. I prefer cutting it beforehand using my kitchen shears and cooking the pieces)
• Reserve the Bacon Grease.

  Pour off most of the bacon grease from the skillet leaving ¼ cup behind. We are going to use this to caramelize the onions!
• Sauté Onion & Jalapeños.

  Add the finely chopped onion and jalapeños to the skillet. With the heat over medium-low, cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions become soft, golden, & caramelized. This takes about 15 to 20 minutes.
• Combine & Simmer.

  Stir in the minced garlic, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, chili powder, and bacon pieces. We are going to simmer this for 7 to 10 minutes while stirring it occasionally only to prevent sticking. It will start to thicken like jam and have a glossy finish.
• Serve!

  You can eat this warm or chilled. I love to have mine on a burger with some coleslaw #drooling. I store mine in a mason jar but you can keep yours in any airtight container in the refrigerator.

Notes

Storing:  You want to be sure to store this jam in any airtight container you have (I use a mason jar because I’m all about the aesthetics lol).  Keep it in the refrigerator!  It’ll stay good for up to 2 weeks.  If you want to keep it longer, you can always store smaller amounts in the freezer!  When you’re ready to use them, just place them in the fridge overnight and gently reheat them on the stove or in the microwave.  

How spicy is the jam?  Coming from someone who can’t handle spicy things – I would say it’s got a very mild spice to it.  One thing I like to do is to remove the seeds from my jalapeños to cut down on the spice. 

 

If you like more texture – use thick cut bacon.

Make Ahead! This jam tastes even better after resting overnight in the fridge.