Country Ham and Bacon Jam
My sister called me a few months back and asked if I had ever made Bacon Jam. Made it? I'd never even heard of it! Bacon? Jam? You've got to be kidding.
I searched this one out and of course had to make some. If it involves pig, it's my friend. The finished product is a tad hard to describe - think of distilling the essence of bacon into a thick, smokey, slightly sweet, slightly salty spread - and you'll begin to get the idea. I've played with this ever since that first batch, and of course since country ham is the best stuff on earth, I had to try that one. This is my winner - it's going on a batch of burgers tonight!
16 ounces bacon, diced
12 ounces country ham, diced
2 large yellow onions, sliced
1 small head garlic, cloves peeled and minced
1/2 cup Brown sugar
1 cup Coffee
1/2 cup Apple cider vinegar
1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
1. In a large Dutch oven, cook bacon and country ham until crispy and rendered. Remove from pan and reserve.
2. Add onions and garlic to the bacon/ham drippings, and saute until transluscent, about 8-10 minutes.
3. Add bacon back to pan, and add brown sugar, coffee and apple cider vinegar. Bring to a simmer.
4. Keeping the heat very low – and the contents at a bare simmer, cook for three to four hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. The end result will be a very dark brown, fragrant, extremely concoction.
5. If you wish, once the jam has cooled a bit, you can pulse it in the food processor so that all the tasty bits are approximately the same size. Place mixture in a mixing bowl, cover, and refridgerate overnight.
6. Once thoroughly chilled, you’ll be able to pull the congealed fat from the top of the mixture. Just scrape a spoon across the top, and discard.
7. At this point you’re good to go! Place jam in a glass jar, and put it on anything you want! Biscuits, toast, burgers, sandwiches – a dab behind your ears – you get the picture.
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