Bourbon Bacon Brittle

This bourbon bacon brittle is everything you love about sweet, salty, and smoky all in one bite. Loaded with spicy candied bacon, toasted pecans, and a splash of bourbon, it’s an unforgettable candy that’s as fun to make as it is to eat.

Break it into shards, wrap it up, and you’ve got the ultimate homemade gift, or keep it all to yourself.

Reasons You’ll Want to Make This

Any time I cook bacon in the oven, air fryer bacon, or make a batch of bacon ends and pieces on the stove, I think about how much I miss ordering the candied bacon at Sweet Maple in San Francisco.

If you’ve ever wanted to turn bacon into candy, this is your moment. The mix of rich caramel, buttery crunch, and smoky bacon makes this bourbon bacon brittle recipe completely irresistible. The bourbon gives it depth, the bacon adds salt and spice, and the pecans tie it all together with a nutty crunch.

This is the treat that turns heads at any party. It’s unique, indulgent, and guaranteed to be the first thing people ask for the recipe for.

What You’ll Need To Make It

Full ingredient quantities are in the recipe card below, but here’s a quick overview.

You’ll need high quality bacon, bourbon whiskey, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, granulated sugar, corn syrup, butter, baking soda, vanilla, and toasted pecans.

If you’ve never made brittle before, don’t worry, this one’s almost as easy as traditional peanut brittle or my hazelnut brittle. Once you taste this bourbon bacon pecan brittle recipe, you’ll never go back to plain nut brittle again.

How to Make Bourbon Bacon Brittle

You’ll find the complete directions in the recipe card below, but here’s the short version.

First, the bacon gets baked with bourbon, brown sugar, and red pepper flakes until crisp and candied, then it’s added to a classic brittle base for that signature sweet-salty flavor.

While the candied bacon cools, cook the sugar, butter, water, and corn syrup until golden on the stove. To complete the brittle, you’ll stir in baking soda, vanilla, bourbon, and pecans, then pour it out onto parchment. The final step is to quickly top it with the chopped candied bacon and let it cool before breaking into pieces.

That’s it. You’ve made homemade bacon bourbon brittle that tastes like candy for grown-ups.

Substitutions and Variations

This bourbon brittle recipe is endlessly customizable. Here are just a few ideas of what you can do.

• Skip the bacon for a classic bourbon pecan brittle.
• Swap pecans for almonds or cashews.
• Add a drizzle of dark chocolate once it cools.