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A few years ago, Matt and I went to this very cool pop-up restaurant near our home. Their claim to fame was bacon jam fries.  Neither one of us knew what bacon jam was but the owners insisted we try it.

Once I did, I became smitten. Oh, bacon jam, where have you been all my life? It wasn’t just good on the fries, I realized, but almost anything: from crackers to burgers and other grilled meats, from roasted veggies to cheese.

And I was determined to make this at home and have it whenever I chose Matt left me enough to have!

My first attempt was before I had an instant pot, so it took hours since it really is about carmelizing the onions.  And I tweaked the recipe I found online because it contained coffee… I hate the taste of coffee in everything so I certainly didn’t want to muck up my bacon jam love affair with something like that. So in came some bourbon, or sometimes some brandy, to make me swoon!

Using the instant pot, I’ve reduced the time from several hours to only 30 minutes which means I get to eat this yummy concoction and have time to make a new batch before anyone knows.

I’m sharing both the traditional cooking method and the instant pot method.

In a few days, I’ll show you how I make a show-stopping, easy, brie en croute with this amazing bacon jam.

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Bacon Jam

A delish relish with two options to make: traditional and instant pot methods. 

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time40 mins

Total Time1 hr

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: American

Keyword: bacon, bacon jam, instant pot, onions, relish

Ingredients

• 2 LBS sliced bacon
• 3 medium sweet onions
• 3 TBs bourbon or brandy
• 1/4 cup beef broth
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar

Instructions

The Start

• Dice the bacon and the onions.

Instant Pot Method

• Put the instant pot on saute.
• Once hot, add the bacon and onions, stirring occasionally.
• Cook the bacon and onions until the bacon renders its grease and the onions are translucent.
• Discard all but about 1 TBS of the bacon grease.
• Add bourbon or brandy. Use it to deglaze the pot, scraping up all the good bits.
• Turn off saute and add remaining ingredients. Stir until combined.
• Put on lid and pressure cook high for 10 minutes. Quick-release pressure once time is up.

Traditional Method

• Saute the bacon in a large pot until the bacon has rendered its grease Remove the bacon.
• Discard all about 2 TBS of the grease and saute the onions in the same pot on low heat. Stir occasionally until they carmelize, up to an hour or so.
• Add bacon back to the pot and turn up the heat. Add the brandy or bourbon and let evaporate a bit while stirring.
• Add the remaining ingredients. Reduce heat to simmering.
• Cook, stirring frequently until the jam has thickened.

The Finale

• Use an immersion blender or a food processor to break up the bigger bits. If you like your jam a bit thicker, cook another 3-5 minutes (saute function on instant pot or simmer on low).
• Refrigerate for up to two weeks. (I use a jar.) You can also freeze this for up to three months (as if it will last that long).