I had sweet and spicy bacon in a bar in New York and was instantly hooked. I remembered it when planning a dinner party and had visions of presenting it standing it up in a glass, the way you see grissini presented in old-fashioned Italian restaurants.
I did a ton of research in order to find a recipe that met my needs and flavor requirements and my advice to you is that, no matter what sugar/spice ratio or additional spices you decide to use in order to put your stamp on the recipe, cook this on a rack in the oven or as you do traditional bacon, in a pan. I saw lots of different methods online (and tried a few) and most did not work texturally. Bottom line, no matter what it takes, you want crisp bacon so plan accordingly. The recipe listed below is the one that came the closest to what I was attempting to do in terms of cooking.
1 pkg best possible bacon (I used nitrate free, thick cut)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp powdered dried orange peel
1 tsp fennel seed
1/2 tsp rum or bourbon
Preheat the oven to 425. Place a rack on top of a foil lined baking sheet.
Mix all the ingredients together, except the bacon. Brush both sides of each bacon strip with the mixture and place each strip on the rack. Close together is fine, the bacon strips should not touch.
Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the from the oven, turn the bacon strips over and cook for an additional 10-20 minutes until crisp and shiny. For regular bacon, reduce the cooking time by half.
Allow to cool and serve as a snack with drinks. This can also be cut into bite sized pieces (with scissors) and used as a garnish for salads, such as Seared Hamachi Tuna with a Salad of Greens, Shaved Daikon, Herbs and Avocado, Ponzu Vinaigrette.
2017 update: I made a simpler and just as delicious version. Check it out here.
Recipe inspiration, here.
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