I started with this:
It ended as this:
In the midst of cooking I had to bring the dog out, my neighbors two floors down were wandering the halls wondering what "that divine smell" was. I've used it underneath poached eggs, on toast, smeared on a bad sub. Most recipes called for a stout, coffee, or water, I compromised and went with an Imperial coffee stout (an amazing one at that too). I kept track of what I did, and what I used.
Ingredients:
- 285g of bacon, cut cross-wise about an 1/2-1"
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 3 1/2 tbs maple syrup
- 180 ml Coffee Stout
- 60 ml Apple Cider Vinegar
- 4 cloves of garlic rough cut/smash
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 2 tbs brown sugar
Directions:
1. In a cold pan, place ALL THE BACON!! Then put on medium heat.
2. How long depends on how crispy and how much texture you want the jam to have. I think I wound up having it cook for like 15 minutes. Make sure you keep stirring it around so it doesn't stick
3. Transfer bacon to a paper-towel covered plate, pour grease into whatever you put your bacon grease into, then pour back into the pan just enough to coat it.
4. Add the onions, cook until they have that beautiful cooked onion look some call translucent. Just under 10 minutes. about 5 minutes into this, add your garlic. I actually wound up adding the rest of the grease for more bacon flavor and also it absorbed up what was there and I didn't want them to start burning.
5. Lower heat, stir in paprika. When it gets mixed in, your stomach will start to growl at the heavenly smokey smell that happens here.
6. Stir in brown sugar and maple syrup. After about a minute it'll start to thicken up.
7. Turn that heat up to medium-high, throw in the beer and the vinegar.
8. If it boils, lower temp till you can hold a simmer for about 15-20 minutes.
9. Turn off heat, let it thicken up and settle for about 5 minutes (longer if it isn't cool enough for blender by then)
10. Into blender and press them buttons until you get the texture you want.
Enjoy, warm, cold, whatever. I must have mixed and matched and consulted about two dozen recipes, but it was worth it.
