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Home/Caramel/Spicy Caramelized Bacon & Peanuts

Spicy Caramelized Bacon & Peanuts

Caramelized bacon and peanuts are only minutes away with this fast-and-easy chef’s caramelization technique.

Spicy Caramelized Bacon & PeanutsI can still remember the first time I made a perfect caramel syrup. Pure magic. Happy dance.

And once I mastered the technique, if it could be caramelized, it would be caramelized.

Spicy Caramelized Bacon & PeanutsDried rose petals, popcorn, walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts, pumpkin seeds, cocoa nibs, dried coconut, oranges, apples, pears, butternut squash, pumpkin, and yeah, even bacon. Just about everything tastes better with caramel.

Spicy Caramelized Bacon & PeanutsAt the Northwest Culinary academy and in my early writing, I almost always taught the caramel technique called the wet method. This involves cooking sugar with water until the water evaporates and the sugar then caramelizes.

This method is slower and gives the cook more control over the caramelization process. It’s primary downside, besides time, is crystallization of the sugar midway through the process. To avoid this, the cook must keep the sides of the pan free of sugar crystals, either by washing the sides down with a wet pastry brush or using a lid to cause steam to accomplish the same thing.

Spicy Caramelized Bacon & PeanutsBut these days, who has time to stand by the stove while the water evaporates? And who wants to worry about sugar crystals forming? Not me.

So the method I use here to melt the sugar is the dry method–the method most often used by professional chefs.

Spicy Caramelized Bacon & PeanutsThe dry method is not difficult, but may take some practice to master. If you have no experience with this method, be prepared to discard just the sugar in your first couple of attempts.

Spicy Caramelized Bacon & Peanuts_3Without water as a buffer, the sugar melts, then caramelizes very quickly. If you error, it will probably be on the side of letting the caramel get too dark. If in doubt, toss it out. Don’t risk adding the toasted nuts and cooked bacon to a caramel that looks and smells burnt.

Spicy Caramelized Peanut & Bacon

 

Spicy Caramelized Bacon & Peanuts
Author: Susan S. Bradley | LunaCafe
Serves: 1½ cups
Burnt sugar, roasted peanuts, smoky bacon, and smoky chiles make a heavenly flavor pairing. great as a sweet nibble, but also as an embellishment for all kinds of chocolate desserts. Leave in chunks, or seal in a Ziploc bag and crush with a mallet for a finer crumble.
Ingredients
  • ¼ teaspoon chipotle or ancho chile powder
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more in a grinder to finish
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • ½ cup skinned, roasted, lightly salted whole peanuts, separated into halves
  • ½ cup cooked, crumbled bacon
  • ½ cup sugar
Instructions
  1. In a small bowl, combine chile powder, cinnamon, and salt.
  2. Locate a silicon spatula and set the spices, butter, vanilla, peanuts, and bacon next to the stovetop, within easy reach.
  3. Lightly coat a 9- by 12-inch, edged baking sheet with vegetable spray and set it next to the stovetop as well.
  4. In a 9½-inch-diameter stainless steel-lined sauté pan (light color interior is important), add the sugar.
  5. Turn on the heat to high and watch closely as the sugar starts to melt. Swirl the sugar in the pan to distribute the portions that are caramelizing first, and then if necessary, stir with a silicon spatula to evenly melt the sugar.
  6. Remove the pan from the heat immediately after the caramel turns a medium amber color, and swirl in the butter, spices, and vanilla. Be careful as the mixture may sputter and foam up. Stir with a silicon spatula until creamy and smooth.
  7. Quickly add the peanuts and bacon, and coat with caramel.
  8. Pour onto the prepared pan, and separate as best you can with the spatula.
  9. Cool completely, lift from the pan with a metal spatula, and break into small chunks with your hands.
  10. Store in an airtight Ziploc bag at room temperature for up to 2 days.
3.2.2885

More LunaCafe Caramel Recipes

  • Caramelized Ancho Chile & Cinnamon Almonds
  • Toasted Hazelnut, Honey & Garam Masala Brittle
  • Burnt Carmel Sauce
  • Peanut Butter Caramel
  • Rhubarb Rose Petal Caramel Syrup + 4 Variations
  • Spiced Apple Cider Caramel Sauce
  • Spiced Caramel Apple Sauce

Cookin’ with Gas (inspiration from around the web)

  • Chipotle Bacon Caramels | Local Kitchen Blog
  • Maple Bourbon Bacon Jam | Closet Cooking
  • Salted Caramel & Candied Bacon Ice Cream | Spoon Fork Bacon
  • Whiskey, Caramel, Marshmallow and Bacon Bark | Endless Simmer

Copyright 2015 Susan S. Bradley. All rights reserved.

Written by:
Susan S. Bradley
Published on:
February 12, 2015

Categories: Caramel, Chile Peppers, Dessert Sauces, Desserts, Nuts, Peanuts, Valentine's DayTags: bacon, brittle, caramel, dessert, peanuts, praline, recipe

About Susan S. Bradley

Intrepid cook, food writer, culinary instructor, creator of the LunaCafe blog, author of Pacific Northwest Palate: Four Seasons of Great Cooking, and former director of the Northwest Culinary Academy.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Renée

    February 13, 2015 at 8:58 am

    It\\\’s official, Susan. You are now my FFBBFF (Fellow Food Blogger BFF), This combination speaks to every late night munchie craving I have ever had, or ever will have, forever. O-my.

    • Susan S. Bradley

      February 13, 2015 at 2:03 pm

      Renée, I would love to be your FFBBFF! We can hang out, drool over food magazines (the photographs!), and eat caramelized bacon and peanuts. Maybe whip up a batch of caramelized popcorn if we’re still hungry. 🙂

  2. Arman

    February 12, 2015 at 11:51 pm

    Susan I only have 2 words- Flavour. Sensation.

    I NEED to make this.

  3. amanda

    February 12, 2015 at 7:41 pm

    I always fail at the dry method. ALWAYS. Like, I’ve had to throw away pans because the sugar is so burnt. This looks so delicious though and I wish I was better at candy making so I could try it!

    • Susan S. Bradley

      February 13, 2015 at 8:36 am

      Amanda, thank you for letting me know this. I wish I could stand beside you and walk you through this method. It would be a good one to make a video on. Maybe I’ll do that and add it to the post. Alternatively, I should go back and add the wet method as an option. It is more failsafe. Once you master the caramel technique, an entire world of marvelous treats is open to you. Don’t give up. 🙂

  4. jackie

    February 12, 2015 at 5:08 pm

    What a creative combination! I can’t wait to try this snack!

  5. Dorothy ShockinglyDelicious

    February 12, 2015 at 4:41 pm

    Yeah, I pretty much want to see that waiting for me on Saturday!

  6. kristy

    February 12, 2015 at 2:06 pm

    These look fantastic! What a delicious treat and your photos are great. Can’t wait to give it a try, Susan!

  7. Laura

    February 12, 2015 at 2:06 pm

    I love the idea of these 3 ingredients together. Genius! And I felt similarly the first time I successfully made caramel 🙂

  8. Marjory

    February 12, 2015 at 12:36 pm

    I am mesmerized by that gorgeous heart! I thought I made caramel once…but, your explanation of the techniques was so helpful…I think I just found a project for me and my girls!

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Susan S. Bradley

Intrepid cook, food writer, culinary instructor, creator of the LunaCafe blog, author of Pacific Northwest Palate: Four Seasons of Great Cooking, and former director of the Northwest Culinary Academy. Read More…

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