The cookbook:

Bacon the Cookbook by Niamh Shields; available for online purchase (baconthecookbook.com, €28.75).

Who is it for?

It’s probably obvious from the title, but this is not a book for vegetarians. An Irish woman through and through, Niamh shares her love for both bacon and global flavours (inspired by her travels) in this 80-recipe, hard-cover book.

Why we love it:

In Ireland, we eat a lot of bacon, but so do many other cultures around the world. Being able to try something familiar, but with a different flavour profile, is a fun way to change up the way we eat without having to change our weekly shop too much.

Niamh Shields lives in London, but is from Dungarvan, Co Waterford. She comes home often and is a well-respected member of the Irish food writing community.

Bacon is Niamh’s second cookbook (her first is called Comfort and Spice) but this was her first foray into self-publishing. Resulting from that increase in creative control, you get a real sense of the food and flavours which make Niamh tick. One of the most popular recipes in the book so far is her bacon and cabbage dumplings – a delightful mix of Irish and Chinese flavours.

Niamh also delves into the sweet side of bacon – like with this sweet and salty classic bacon jam. Her recipe for butter toffee with candied bacon and chocolate looks equally divine (think: an upgraded Daim bar).

Recipe

Niamh’s Classic Bacon Jam

Makes approximately 2 x 370ml (12½ fl oz) jars

“The idea of bacon jam is perplexing, although unless this is the first recipe you have read in this book, and especially if you have yet to explore the Bacon is Sweet chapter, you won’t find it surprising at all,” Niamh writes.

“When you think of jam, you think of sweet fruit preserves. This is more of a chutney, but we call it jam. I didn’t invent it and I didn’t make the rules. The base of all good bacon jams is bacon and onion, sugar and vinegar. Bacon, because bacon, and onion because not only is it a friend to bacon, it brings sweetness and texture too. Sugar and vinegar bring sweet and sour.

“You can add many other things. It is common to include coffee and I include it in this classic bacon jam too.

“In terms of storage, if you have jam jars that you can recycle, this is a great option. Just use as many jars as you need, and make sure you sterilise them first so that they are food-safe. You can do this by washing them in a high-temperature wash in the dishwasher. You can also sterilise the jars in the oven. Wash them in hot soapy water and rinse, but don’t dry them. Put them on a clean oven tray, open side up, at 160°C (320°F) for 15 minutes with their lids also on the tray (if they are metal). Make sure your hands are freshly washed when you handle them afterwards.”

500g (1lb, 2oz) smoked streaky bacon, finely sliced

1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

50g (13/4 oz) brown sugar

50ml (2fl oz) maple syrup

50ml (2fl oz) cider vinegar

250ml (83/4 fl oz) freshly brewed coffee

  • 1 Sauté the bacon over a medium heat in a wide pot until starting to crisp and the fat starts to render out. Remove the bacon to a plate on the side.
  • 2 Fry the onion in the rendered bacon fat until starting to soften, about eight minutes. Add the garlic and stir for a minute. Add the fried bacon to the onion and garlic with the remaining ingredients. Bring to the boil and reduce the heat to low.
  • 3 Don’t put a lid on the pan. Let it cook gently, stirring occasionally. The sugars will caramelise, so you want to make sure they don’t catch the bacon at the base of the pan and burn. If it looks like it is getting dry, add a little boiling water from the kettle, and continue to do this until you don’t need to anymore because you have a very tasty, shiny bacon jam.
  • 4 At this point you may want to blend the jam, or you may want to keep it as it is. That is entirely up to you. Blending it is useful for certain applications, but it loses its gloss.

    • Tip

    I like to serve bacon jam with cheesy potato skins, sour cream and chives. This keeps well in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week (but it’s so divine it will disappear well before then).