Sometimes you make something once and know that you’ll never try any other version of it; it’s just too perfect to stray from.
Ina Garten’s chicken stock comes to mind. Sure I’ve made variations on it, but this is my base recipe for chicken stock. I’ve seen plenty of chicken stock recipes that look/sound great, but I can’t bring myself to make them. I’ll always be loyal to Ina’s stock.
This is now the case with Spoon Fork Bacon’s Boozy Bacon Jam. It’s just unreal. Spicy, rich, complex, boozy… and most importantly, bacony. Oh so wonderfully bacony.
I’ve had bacon jam in restaurants before (I’m looking at you aged cheddar grilled cheese with bacon jam and tomato *insert Homer Simpson drooly noise*), but when I made this version I knew I was sold for life. Once all the bacon jam crostini were gone, it was time to apply this to basically everything else I could think of.
First stop: bacon jam roasted chicken & vegetables.
Check it out, it’s this easy: smear some bacon jam under the skin and on the underside of some bone-in chicken thighs, lay those babies on some chopped veggies and you’re ready to party. The veggies end up swimming in a sea of bacony goodness. Bacony. I can’t say it enough.
Originally, Â I made this with onions, potatoes, and carrots for a lazy Sunday supper that needed to be done before The Walking Dead came on. (Is that show getting insane or what?!? I LOVE IT.) It was delicious, but I knew for this post I had to step it up by including bacon’s best vegetable friend: the brussels sprout.
Now if you’re someone who doesn’t like brussels sprouts and you’re somehow at peace with that (I’m looking at you now Patrice…), then I suppose you could substitute carrots or some other hearty vegetable. But come on. Brussels sprouts and bacon were just made for each other.
To freshen everything up after their roasting and caramelizing and marrying, I added some lemon juice and parsley.
Bacon Jam Roasted Chicken & Vegetables
As I mentioned above, I’m using this bacon jam, but feel free to use a different recipe, or even a store-bought variety. I bet this would work with other savory jams as well!
Serves
4
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds brussels sprouts, damaged/discolored outer leaves removed, large ones quartered, smaller ones halved
- 1 1/2 pounds (about 3 large) yukon gold potatoes, cut into large chunks
- 4 medium bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- 3/4 – 1 cup bacon jam
- vegetable oil
- kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place the vegetables in a pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Toss with a small amount of vegetable oil, salt and pepper. The bacon jam will release a lot of fat and flavor in the cooking process, so you don’t need much.
- Lightly season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. Carefully separate the skin from the chicken thighs at one end, leaving it attached at the other edges. Evenly spread a tablespoon of bacon jam between the skin and meat. Spread the rest of the jam on the other side of each chicken thigh. Place the chicken skin side up on the vegetables and roast for 40-50 minutes (until they register 165 degrees), depending on the size of your chicken thighs, stirring once.
- Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes on a plate tented with foil; keep the veggies warm in the oven. Serve with parsley and lemon.
