Billionaire Bacon Recipe using your new pantry staple: Bacon Zest

Spice up your life (or, at least, your chicken sandwich) with KC’s newest local hot sauce: H Sauce.

Photos by Tyler Shane

America’s favorite pork cut is getting a makeover with Bacon Zest. Bacon Zest is a seasoning that takes bacon to the next level with its uniquely subtle barbeque flavor. Think of a barbeque rub - but for bacon (insert heart eye emoji). With ingredients such as paprika and brown sugar, bacon turns into a tangy and sweet delight. The flavor is exceptional considering it was created by local high school students for a class project. Bacon Zest is a testament to Kansas City’s love of food and innovation with its three flavors of classic barbeque, sweet barbeque, and honey barbeque.

Get creative by using it to top your deviled eggs or “salt” the rim of your bloody mary glass because the zest is wonderfully versatile. Bacon Zest is an all-around seasoning, a blend of flavors pre-concocted for your convenience – your new pantry staple.

You may have heard of millionaire bacon but with Bacon Zest adding more quality and value to this recipe, billionaire bacon feels more appropriate. The brown sugar, maple syrup, and Bacon Zest are used to caramelize the bacon slices, so they achieve the epic combination of sweet and savory. Billionaire bacon is delicious enough to be enjoyed enough on its own but can elevate other recipes such as club sandwiches or by garnishing deviled eggs or bloody mary cocktails. Enjoy this simple but might recipe!   

Hot Tip: The creators of Bacon Zest and I agree, the best way to cook bacon is in the oven! The heat is distributed more evenly, rendering the fat slowly. This process makes for perfectly crisp bacon. 

Billionaire Bacon Recipe

Ingredients:

½ C. brown sugar

4 Tbsp. Bacon Zest

4 Tbsp. real maple syrup

1 lb. thick cut bacon

Preparation: 

Preheat oven to 400F.

1. Prep bacon by placing slices side by side on a foil lined baking tray. 

2. Mix brown sugar, Bacon Zest, and maple syrup in a small bowl and stir until combined.

3. Using your hands or a utensil, spread the Bacon Zest mixture onto the bacon, coating the surface of each slice as much as possible. 

4. Put tray in oven for 30-40 minutes on the middle rack. Cook until desired crispiness is achieved. Rotate the tray halfway through cook time.

5. While bacon is in the oven, prep another baking tray with a baking rack or foil. 

6. Once bacon is finished cooking, with tongs to transfer bacon to baking rack tray, placing the slices side by side. 

7. Allow the bacon to rest at room temperature for 15 minutes (important step! -  it’s necessary for the bacon to cool to allow the sugars to harden and create a crispy caramelized texture)

8. Use bacon as desired or store at room temperature while covered for 2-3 days.

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