I wanted to make an appetizer that travels easily so that I could bring it up to an engagement party I was attending on Long Island. Closet Cooking has a fantastic recipe for Maple Bourbon Bacon Jam that sounded perfect. I altered it to make it into a slow cooker recipe because I didn’t have time to keep something on the stove for 1-2 hours (I actually ended up making this overnight) and made it a bit less spicy.
The jam can be made well ahead of time which made it perfect for traveling!
Ingredients:
- 1 (16 oz) package uncured center cut bacon
- 1 large white onion, sliced
- 5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar
- 1 cup brewed coffee
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup bourbon
- 1 chipotle chili in adobo, chopped, plus a teaspoon of the adobo sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ground pepper, to taste
Note: I am testing out the Samsung Galaxy Camera courtesy of Verizon Wireless, so all photos in this post are taken with the Galaxy Camera. The camera runs on VZW’s 4G LTE network, allowing me to upload photos straight to the web and apps such as Instagram straight from my phone. To check out some of my photos, go to my Instagram and look for the #galaxycamera hashtag.
I have a Ninja Cooking System that works as both a slow cooker and stove top settings. I will include directions for using a Ninja as well as using a traditional slow cooker.
Add the chopped bacon to the Ninja over medium heat until the bacon crisps up.
Remove the bacon from the slow cooker using a slotted spoon and reserve. Drain off all but 1 tablespoon of the grease in the pan. (If using a traditional slow cooker, cook the bacon in a saute pan over medium heat on the stove until the bacon is crispy. Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the grease in the pan.)
Add the onions to the Ninja/pan and saute until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
Add the garlic and saute for about a minute. Add the cider vinegar, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape up the brown bits. (If using a traditional slow cooker, pour the cider vinegar mix into your slow cooker) Add the coffee, brown sugar, maple syrup, bourbon, the reserved bacon, chipotle chili, adobo sauce, cumin, smoked paprika, and pepper to the slow cooker.
Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until the mixture is a syrupy consistency.
Add the mixture to a food processor and pulse until smoother but still with some texture.
Store in mason jars until ready to use. Warm before eating.
It’s delicious just on toasted bread! The flavors are smoky, sweet, and tangy all at once.
I added some brie on top, broiled it for a minute or two until it melted, and then topped it with sun dried tomatoes to make a yummy appetizer.
For more ways to use the bacon jam, head over to Closet Cooking to see all of the suggestions he has (including on a grilled cheese sandwich!!)
Ingredients
- 1 (16 oz) package uncured center cut bacon
- 1 large white onion, sliced
- 5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup cider vinegar
- 1 cup brewed coffee
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup bourbon
- 1 chipotle chili in adobo, chopped, plus a teaspoon of the adobo sauce
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ground pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Add the chopped bacon to the Ninja over medium heat until the bacon crisps up. Remove the bacon from the slow cooker using a slotted spoon and reserve. Drain off all but 1 tablespoon of the grease in the pan.
- (If using a traditional slow cooker, cook the bacon in a saute pan over medium heat on the stove until the bacon is crispy. Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the grease in the pan.)
- Add the onions to the Ninja/pan and saute until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
- Add the garlic and saute for about a minute. Add the cider vinegar, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape up the brown bits.
- (If using a traditional slow cooker, pour the cider vinegar mix into your slow cooker)
- Add the coffee, brown sugar, maple syrup, bourbon, the reserved bacon, chipotle chili, adobo sauce, cumin, smoked paprika, and pepper to the slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until the mixture is a syrupy consistency.
- Add the mixture to a food processor and pulse until smoother but still with some texture.
- Store in mason jars until ready to use. Warm before eating.
Dawn says
How much of the chipotle chili, cumin & pepper did you use? How long if cooking on a stovetop?
Kaitlin @ I Can Cook That says
Hi Dawn! You use one chipotle chili, chopped, as well as 1 teaspoon of the adobo sauce it is in. 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, and ground pepper to taste.
To cook on a stovetop, head over to Closet Cooking’s website to see it. That’s his recipe so I want him to get credit for it. https://www.closetcooking.com/2012/08/maple-bourbon-bacon-jam.html
Chef Jack says
Looks delicious! Bourbon and bacon sounds like the perfect combination. Unfortunately, it also sounds like the very opposite of slimming 🙁
Chef Jack recently posted..Best Ceramic Cookware
Heather Baker says
I have attempted to make this today. Mine has yet to become syrupy. What could be wrong? And there is no way it will fill up 2 small mason jars. I followed the recipe exactly so I don’t know what I did wrong. Can you help?
Thanks!!!
Kaitlin @ I Can Cook That says
Hi Heather,
Hmm. Try adding a mixture of 1 tablespoon cold water and 1 tablespoon cornstarch to it over heat and mix until it thickens. I used two 6 oz mason jars so it might be that you are using larger jars? Please feel free to email me at icancookthat [at] icancookthat [dot] org if you have any other questions or this didn’t make sense!
Kaitlin @ I Can Cook That recently posted..Slow Cooker Maple Bourbon Bacon Jam
Jessica says
8 hours is way too long. I checked on my batch at 6 hours and it was already burnt.
Kaitlin @ I Can Cook That says
Jessica,
I am sorry this recipe didn’t work out. I will change this to something that should be checked from time to time. Every slow cooker is different so a larger time range would be a better way for me to write this recipe.
For your slow cooker, it sounds like putting this on low would be a better option, or to just half the time and keep it on high.
Kaitlin @ I Can Cook That recently posted..Hot Cocoa Cookies