Pioneer Woman's Bacon Jam Recipe: The Perfect Spread for Brunch - Blend of Bites (2024)

FAQs

What is the best way to use bacon jam? ›

For safety, we strongly recommend that bacon jam be refrigerated for times suggested by the recipe (2-4 weeks) or that it be frozen for longer storage. Why is botulism such a big deal? Botulism is as serious as food poisoning gets.

To achieve a thick texture, all of the liquids need time to reduce. Make sure you're cooking your bacon jam without a lid over your Dutch oven, so your bacon jam can evaporate. If it's still not thick enough, it just needs more time.

They cook it the best way possible, on a sheet pan in the oven. The bonus is while it takes longer to make this way, you can make more at once, the pieces are more or less flat and they come out crispy. Or they throw it in the deep fryer once it's done.

Bacon jam can be safely refrigerated for two to four weeks. Any amount that you keep in the fridge will need to be used within that length of time. You can store bacon jam in any refrigerator-safe container. Many bacon jam enthusiasts choose to use mason jars for aesthetic reasons.

Use fresh, dry, slightly under-ripe fruit. Strawberries and raspberries are best layered with the sugar and left for a couple of hours before cooking. Plums, currants, gooseberries, cherries etc need to be lightly poached before sugar is added. Pectin, naturally found in fruit is vital to make your jam set.

Whole spices such as cardamom pods, allspice berries, black peppercorns, whole cloves, or cinnamon sticks can be infused in a sachet while the jam cooks, or small amounts of ground spices can be added directly in. Warm spices pair especially well with fruit, and a little goes a long way, so taste as you go!

Affect on Gel Formation: Both lemon juice and vinegar can help with the gel formation in strawberry jam. The acidity in these ingredients helps activate pectin, a natural thickening agent present in strawberries, leading to the desired texture and consistency in the jam.

Additional info. Our Bacon Jam is shelf stable for 2 years unopened and 6 months in the fridge after opening... IF it lasts that long!

So, jam and jelly will deteriorate quicker when stored outside the fridge. This is especially true if the ambient (air) temperature is high, which can cause rancidity or separation of ingredients. It's worth noting that different products will degrade at different rates at room temperature.

What happens if you don't put jam in the fridge? ›

Sealed jars of homemade preserves can also be stored at room temperature. Once the jam or jelly is opened, however, it is best to refrigerate them. Richard explains that this prevents mold and yeast from growing. If not refrigerated, opened jams and jellies are likely to spoil quicker.

With a simple lemon juice trick, your homemade jam will achieve your desired thick texture. Preparing jam is about capturing the sweet essence of the fruit while simultaneously cooking it down to the perfect syrupy consistency.

Lack of acidity: Acids like lemon juice help lower the jam mixture's pH, which reacts with the natural or added pectin to help thicken the jam. If a jam recipe doesn't call for lemon juice or lime juice, it could rely on another ingredient, like added pectin, to set the jam.

Bacon jam is a spreadable condiment made from bacon, onions, brown sugar, vinegar, and maple syrup. The bacon is fried until crispy then mixed with the other ingredients and cooked down until the mixture becomes thick and spreadable.

I preheat my oven to 400 degrees. Lay a cooling rack (or any wire rack) over the top of a sheet pan, and lay the bacon across the wire rack (this allows the fat/grease to drain off as it cooks). I bake it for anywhere from 15 or 20 min-ish, depending on how crispy and well done I want it.

Don't bother with racks, crimped foil, or stacked baking sheets; just lay out your bacon strips on a rimmed baking sheet and bake them in a 425°F (220°C) oven until they're as crisp as you like (about 20 minutes was right for me). Drain on paper towels, and you've got a big pile of perfectly cooked bacon on your hands.