Have Your Bacon and Eat it Too – 5 Great Ways to Use Bacon

We blimmin’ love bacon.

We adore it by itself, with a big brekky, in a burger, on a pizza, in a salad or even in a club Sammy. If bacon is there, we are too.

But the more we profess our love for bacon, the more we start to dream about other creative ways we could incorporate it into our meals. Alas, we found ourselves deep diving into the internet world, searching for the coolest, most interesting and weirdest ways to use bacon. We always knew that bacon wasn’t boring, but we have to say, even we were surprised by how versatile our favourite salty snack can be!

So, we thought it was only right to share our findings with you.

Read on for our top 5 great and surprising ways to use bacon.

Bacon Fries

First up, this yummy recipe on our website combines two of our favourite things – fries and bacon. You might be picturing a massive plate of French fries covered in gooey cheese and crispy bacon. Mmmm.

But while that picture makes our mouths water (and is a tried and tested fab way to use bacon) we wouldn’t say it’s anything out of the box.

What is interesting, however, is the idea of making low-carb bacon avocado fries. These tasty morsels are keto-friendly, gluten-free, and oh-so-moreish. We guarantee you’ll be going back for seconds.

It’s also super customisable. Switch the avocado out for your choice of veggies like zucchini, pickles or whatever else you fancy! Filling, delicious and even pretty healthy!

Bacon Jam

We’ve all tried and loved onion jam or relish, but we bring to you its much more delicious cousin: bacon jam.

The savoury taste of the bacon mixed with the sweetness of brown sugar, coffee, onions and balsamic simmers away slowly, creating the most delectable jam that would be perfectly at home on your next platter. Seriously, this will blow your pals away! You can also use it on burgers, toast, grilled cheese, or anywhere else you’d use jam or relish. Yum, yum, yum!!!

To make this delicious concoction, grab some thick cut bacon like the Henderson’s Middle or Mid-Eye 500g or 600g pack, then follow these steps.

1. Cut your bacon into half-inch slices, then fry it up until cooked but a bit chewy. Remove them from the pan.

2. Pour out your bacon drippings, leaving just a tablespoon in the pan, then add 2 whole sliced onions to the pan. Cook for about 8-10 minutes, then reduce the heat right down.

3. Add ½ cup of brown sugar. Caramelise your onions on low heat – this should take about 20 minutes.

4. Next, pop the bacon back in with ½ cup of water and ⅓ cup of strong brewed coffee.

5. Keep cooking, stirring every 5 minutes, until your mixture looks thick and jam-like. It should take about 30 minutes.

6. Take off the heat and stir in 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar.

7. Refrigerate for up to a week, or eat and enjoy the bacon-y goodness!

Bacon and Fruit

Bacon and fruit don’t tend to be thought of in the same sentence. Fruit’s great and so is bacon – but bacon and fruit!?

We weren’t too sure about it either, but we’ve tasted the fruits of these recipes (pun fully intended!) and we’re pleased to be proven very wrong.

We present Exhibit A: Bacon and Apple Lettuce Cups. They sound weird but they’re actually wonderful!

And Exhibit B: Bacon-Fried Apples. Another deliciously weird example of this match made in heaven!

A few of our other favourites include Figs with Bacon and Chile (kudos to the bon appetit website for providing us with this gem!), Bacon Wrapped Grilled Peaches (thanks to the foodiecrush website!) and Mum’s famous banana, bacon and maple syrup pancakes (thanks Ma!).

Bacon Salad

It sounds like a bit of an oxymoron: “bacon salad”. Salad typically brings to mind a picture of leafy greens, maybe a few tomatoes and cucumbers, perhaps even a bit of crumbled feta. But bacon? Reeeeeally?

Yes, siree! We’re firm believers that anything can be made better with bacon and salad is not exempt.

This Bacon and Asparagus Summer Salad is always a winner, but truth be told, we’ve found that bacon can be added to almost any salad for some delicious flavour and texture.

If you cut it up as finely as possible and fry it until super crispy, it’ll be the perfect topping for any salad. Heck, it might even get the kids to eat their greens!

Bacon Sweet Treats - Adults Only!

Yes, we are for real. Bacon and alcohol are a thing!

We kid you not; bacon can be combined with your favourite liquor to create the ultimate adults-only sweet treat.

We must confess that this Bourbon Bacon Brittle concoction didn’t last long at Henderson’s HQ – it was demolished in minutes!

We’re also told that bacon features in a few tasty adult-friendly drinks, like this Bacon and Bourbon Cocktail. We’re yet to try it ourselves, so maybe you can taste-test it for us and report back on the results…

We’d love to hear some of your favourite weird, wild and wacky bacon recipes! Flick us a message on Facebook or Instagram to share your favourites.