Trader Joe’s Sweet Sriracha Uncured Bacon Jerky. I love bacon and I love jerky and I love Sriracha, so what coule be a better combination than the three of those things!?!? I couldn’t wait to get this home and start gorging myself on this deletable melange of three of my favorite things! But I am here to tell you that Trader Joe’s doesn’t quite pull it off.
Firstly, how many times have you had pork jerky? There is a reason they make it out of beef. Pork can be lean, maybe lean enough for jerky, but like I said why don’t we see more pork jerky out there? Inquiring minds want to know… but this really isn’t Jerky in the true sense of the word. This is pre-cooked bacon bacon with some sugar and sriracha added for good measure. Where have I had something very similar before? Hmmm… let me think… Oh let me give you my recipe for candied bacon!
Check this book out: Bacon Nation: 125 Irresistible Recipes
1 lb of bacon (I like Trader Joe’s apple wood smoked uncured bacon)
Raw sugar (about 2 cups)
2 tbs Sriracha sauce (more or less depending on hot you want it)
1. Turn on oven to 350. Put cooling rack on a baking sheet with parchment paper under the rack to catch the bacon drippings.
2. Put bacon in a bowl and toss with the the sriracha sauce
3. Put sugar on a plate of flat bowl
4. Dredge each piece of bacon in the sugar
5. Arrange the bacon on the rack but don’t overlap the pieces.
6. Put in the oven for about 20 minutes
7. Now comes the tricky part. Keep an eagle on the bacon. It can burn quickly. Resist the urge to pull it out too early. Can take another 10-20 minutes to finish depending on the thickness of the bacon.
8. Pull out of the oven and let cool. Enjoy!
So there, you have made your own bacon jerky and you will be the envy of all your friends!
What did I really think of this product? I think you can make this at home with minimal effort and save yourself the astronomical $5.49 for 2 OUNCES! Did I like the way it taste? Yes, it was quite good. It was a bit gooey and messy pulling it out of the bag. It does have a lot of bacon fat so if you are looking for something lean, this is not it. It had a good amount of heat but at 2 oz, it was over in a flash. If it was just based on taste, I would give this an 8 or 9 Bells, but considering that you can make it at home for much less money and the fact that you only get 2 ounces in a package, this is a no go for me. Based on all that, I am going to rate this Trader Joe’s Sweet Sriracha Uncured Bacon Jerky 5 Bells!
