Pepper or Candy Bacon

Sweet, hot, sticky and a little dangerous. This is thick-cut bacon rubbed with brown sugar and a serious amount of pepper, then cooked slow on the griddle until the sugar turns into a glaze.

A tablespoon of cayenne is a lot. That's the "pepper" half of the name. Dial it back and you've got the "candy" half.

Start it cold

Put the bacon down while the griddle is still heating up to 350°F. Starting cold lets the fat render out slowly, so the bacon cooks through before the sugar has a chance to scorch. Throw sugared bacon onto a screaming-hot griddle and the outside burns while the fat's still flabby.

Heads up

Keep the heat in check. This is the one bacon where "a little hotter to speed it up" backfires. Brown sugar goes from glaze to burnt in seconds.

Flip often, pull early

Regular bacon you can mostly leave alone. This one you babysit. Flip it regularly, and near the end let it sit in the syrupy mixture on the griddle to pick up the glaze, but keep your eyes on it.

Tip

Keep a wire rack right on the griddle. As each piece looks done, move it up onto the rack. It stays warm, the glaze sets, and it's off the hot steel before it can burn.

It's great next to eggs, and it's even better crumbled into a Diner-Style Omelet. If you're cooking for a crowd, swap it in for the plain bacon in the Full Griddle Breakfast.