Name: Five-Spice and Sesame Candied Bacon
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 12 ounces center-cut bacon; 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar; 1 teaspoon pepper; 1 teaspoon five-spice powder; 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Why This Recipe Works

For our candied bacon recipe, we wanted fully rendered, crispy strips of sweet-savory bacon. To get there, we tested our way through a slog of fatty, soggy, and syrupy bacon that sagged under the weight of its coating. After all that testing, we found that light brown sugar (not liquid syrups or other solid sugars such as granulated or confectioners’) was the way to achieve that satisfying crunch. Using center-cut bacon rather than thick-cut (which didn’t cook through before the sugar burned) or regular-cut (the uneven ends made equal coverage difficult) proved crucial for achieving uniformly crispy results. In the end, the process was as simple as sprinkling a mix of sugar, pepper, and Chinese five-spice powder over bacon and then topping with sesame seeds and baking it on a foil-lined baking sheet for about 20 minutes.

Before You Begin

Do not use dark brown sugar here. We call for center-cut bacon because we found the strips to be of more even thickness than regular bacon. The bacon on one baking sheet may cook more quickly; if this happens, it’s OK to remove this sheet from the oven before the other. Lining the sheets with aluminum foil eases cleanup.

Instructions

Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with aluminum foil. Cut bacon in half crosswise. Arrange bacon on prepared sheets.

Combine sugar, pepper, and five-spice powder in bowl. Sprinkle sugar mixture evenly over bacon (do not flip and sprinkle on second side). Use your fingers to spread sugar mixture evenly over each piece. Sprinkle sesame seeds evenly over top.

Bake until bacon is dark brown and sugar is bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking (if bacon on 1 sheet finishes cooking sooner, it’s OK to remove this sheet from oven first). Transfer bacon to wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Serve.