Spicy Candied Bacon

Time to get your evil on. This easy spicy candied bacon great finger food just made for “bring a dish” holiday party. Take copies of the recipe with you.


Editor Note: Originally published May 24, 2015. Last updated January 26, 2018. This is an evil little recipe that I could make myself sick on gorging. There is absolutely nothing healthy about it, and I hang my doctor head thinking about it. So it is time to “get your evil on”. Enjoy the update for your party pleasure. The recipe is unchanged but the photos re-edited and text expanded.

One of my most popular posts has been Sweet and Spicy Chicken Bacon Wraps. I wanted to change it up a little… who needs that chicken anyways. Just bacon, sugar, and spice should do. So I combined the bacon wrap recipe with my How to Cook Bacon in the Oven post.

My Rating

What did you expect with bacon? You will be the hit of the party.

Play with me PLEASE

Recipe Notes on Spicy Candied Bacon:

I checked around before doing this recipe. There was Emeril’s Cayenne-Candied Bacon on Food Network. From that, I switched out the cumin which I like for chicken for cayenne pepper to spice it up a bit.

Many of the recipes only coating one side of the bacon. And many recipes didn’t use racks for drainage. I tried it both ways and a  rack although not mandatory is a good idea. And if you don’t use the rack, the one-sided coating is a good idea.

Now we are the subject of the rack. You need oven safe racks. You will use them over and over. I have some linked in my shop, but any many stores handle them. Just be sure they are oven safe and not just cooling racks.

With the bacon here, you get it up and out of the drained fat. You don’t have to do that with plain bacon, but with the sugar coating, you want to elevate it.

I used a thick sliced good quality bacon. If you use thinner bacon, the cooking time will decrease some. Also, ovens vary so keep an eye on it the first time you do it.

Lastly, the bacon will puddle some fat on it during cooking. Let it cool a few minutes then pat it off.

Pictures are for a triple batch with three pounds of bacon that yielded 66 pieces.

Preheat oven to 350 convection or 375 conventional.

Mix 1/2 cup light brown sugar with one tablespoon chili powder and 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper.

Prep baking tray with aluminum foil to help clean up and a rack. Spray heavy with PAM.

Cut bacon strips in half and trim any large chunks of fat.

Dip bacon in the brown sugar mixture and coat well.

Spread over the prepared rack leaving a little space then give the bacon a light dusting of additional sugar and spice.

Bake until bacon appears done which is dark along the edges. About 20 minutes for me but start checking at 15 minutes. The sugar can begin to burn when left in too long.

Remove from oven and let sit for a few minutes and pat off any pools of fat on top the paper towel carefully.

Then transfer for cooling.  Another rack, a baking mat, parchment paper or just a plate should do. Do not “drain” on a paper towel due to sticking.

Do you want more recipes from 101 Cooking for Two? Sign up for the newsletter and get all posts delivered straight to your inbox!

Pin Recipe

Print Recipe Add to Saved Recipes Go to Saved Recipes

4.27 from 26 votes

Spicy Candied Bacon

Easy spicy candied bacon that everybody will love. A great finger food for that "bring a dish" holiday party.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Total Time30 mins

Author: Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan

Course : Appetizer

Cuisine : American

Keyword : Dish to Pass, Gift, Party

Servings/Adjust Amount: 22

22

Ingredients

• 1 pound bacon - thick sliced
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 convection or 375 conventional.
• Mix 1/2 cup light brown sugar with one tablespoon chili powder and 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper.
• Prep baking tray with aluminum foil to help clean up and a rack. Spray heavy with PAM.
• Cut bacon strips in half and trim any large chunks of fat.
• Dip bacon in the brown sugar mixture and coat well.
• Spread over the prepared rack leaving a little space then give them a light dusting of additional sugar and spice.
• Bake until bacon appears done which is dark along the edges. About 20 minutes for me but start checking at 15 minutes. The sugar can begin to burn when left in too long. Remove from oven and let sit for a few minutes and pat off any pools of fat on top the paper towel carefully.
• Then transfer for cooling, another rack, a baking mat, parchment paper or just a plate should do. Do not "drain" on a paper towel due to sticking.

Recipe Notes

I got 11 slices of bacon per pound. If using a thinner bacon, the cooking time will be less.

Nutrition Facts

Spicy Candied Bacon

Amount Per Serving

Calories 44 Calories from Fat 18

% Daily Value*

Fat 2g3%

Saturated Fat 1g5%

Polyunsaturated Fat 0.03g

Monounsaturated Fat 0.01g

Cholesterol 4mg1%

Sodium 64mg3%

Potassium 7mg0%

Carbohydrates 6g2%

Fiber 0.1g0%

Sugar 5g6%

Protein 1g2%

Vitamin A 150IU3%

Vitamin C 0.3mg0%

Calcium 1mg0%

Iron 0.1mg1%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Have a question or something not clear? Ask in the comments.

Do you want more recipes from 101 Cooking for Two? Sign up for the newsletter and get all posts delivered straight to your inbox!  

Nutrition is for one serving. Number of servings is stated above and is my estimate of normal serving size for this recipe.

All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.

If you like this recipe or find it useful, the pleasure of a nice 4 or 5 rating would be greatly appreciated.