Bacon is already hard to beat, but adding a little sweetness and smoke takes it to another level. This Honey & Brown Sugar Candied Bacon is one of those recipes that couldn’t be much easier. We’re taking thick-cut bacon, coating it with Heath Riles BBQ Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze, hitting it with Heath Riles BBQ Honey Rub, and letting the grill do the rest.

After about 45 minutes, you’ve got smoky, sweet candied bacon that’s ready to eat straight off the tray or use to make your next BLT even better.

Honey & Brown Sugar Candied Bacon | Heath Riles BBQ

This is about as simple as a recipe gets. You only need thick-cut bacon and two of our products to put it together.

The Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze gives the bacon a sweet layer of brown sugar and honey flavor, while our Honey Rub adds another layer of sweetness and BBQ flavor on top.

We’re cooking everything at 350°F on a Smokin Brothers Grill fueled with Royal Oak Hickory Blended Charcoal Pellets. After 45 minutes, the bacon comes off looking just right.

Why This Recipe Works

There’s not a lot to this recipe, and that’s one of the reasons I like it. Thick-cut bacon gives us a good base that can hold up to the glaze and seasoning without getting lost underneath all that flavor.

The combination of Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze and Honey Rub builds that sweet candied coating over the bacon. Then, cooking it on the pellet grill brings some hickory smoke into the mix.

You don’t have to flip it, wrap it, or mess with it throughout the cook. Get everything seasoned, put it on the grill, and come back about 45 minutes later.

The Ingredients

• Thick-Cut Bacon. I used 10 pieces of thick-cut bacon, which fit perfectly on a full sheet pan. Thick-cut bacon works great here because you still get plenty of bacon flavor and texture underneath that sweet coating.
• Heath Riles BBQ Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze. This goes directly onto the bacon before the seasoning. It gives us the brown sugar and honey flavor that helps turn regular bacon into candied bacon.
• Heath Riles BBQ Honey Rub. Once the glaze is on, we follow it with a layer of Honey Rub to build even more flavor.
• Cooking Spray. A light coating of cooking spray on the sheet pan helps get everything ready before laying down the bacon.

Grill Setup

For this cook, I fired up my Smokin Brothers Grill to 350°F and loaded it with Royal Oak Hickory Blended Charcoal Pellets.

That’s all the setup this recipe needs. Once the grill is holding at 350°F, you’re ready to get the bacon cooking.

The Process

Prepare the Sheet Pan

Start by spraying down your sheet pan with cooking spray. Then, lay out 10 pieces of thick-cut bacon in a single layer across the pan.

Ten pieces fit perfectly on the full sheet tray I used, giving each piece enough room to cook without stacking the bacon on top of itself.

Add the Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze

Next, add Heath Riles BBQ Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze over the bacon.

Use a Heath Riles BBQ Silicone Basting Brush to spread the glaze across the bacon so you get that sweet flavor over each piece.

Season With Honey Rub

Once the glaze is on, hit the bacon with Heath Riles BBQ Honey Rub.

That’s all the prep work there is to it. Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze, Honey Rub, and we’re ready to head to the grill.

Cook the Candied Bacon

Place the sheet pan on the Smokin Brothers Grill, which should be running at 350°F with Royal Oak Hickory Blended Charcoal Pellets.

Let the bacon cook for 45 minutes. There’s no complicated process here—just let that heat and smoke work on the bacon while the glaze and seasoning create that candied exterior.

Remove and Drain

At the 45-minute mark, check the bacon. Mine was right where I wanted it at exactly 45 minutes.

Pull the bacon off the grill and drain off the excess grease. Once that’s done, there’s only one thing left to do: get in there and give it a try.

The Results

This Honey & Brown Sugar Candied Bacon turned out exactly how I wanted it. After 45 minutes on the grill, the bacon had that sweet candied coating on the outside with plenty of smoky bacon flavor underneath.

The combination of Heath Riles BBQ Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze and Heath Riles BBQ Honey Rub gives you that sweet, sticky finish that makes this a whole lot more than regular bacon. Add in the hickory smoke from the grill, and you’ve got bacon that’s good enough to eat all by itself.

And if you’re making BLTs, this is one easy way to make them even better.

Perfect Pairings

You can serve this candied bacon on its own, alongside breakfast, or use it to add another layer of flavor to some of your favorite recipes.

• Hangover Burger. Add a couple of pieces of candied bacon to this loaded burger for even more sweet, smoky, and savory flavor.
• Biscuits with Garlic Jalapeño Gravy. Serve a few pieces of candied bacon alongside biscuits and gravy for a breakfast or brunch that covers just about everything.
• Smoked Cream Cheese with Jalapeño Bacon Jam. Pair the bacon with this smoked cream cheese for an appetizer spread loaded with sweet, smoky, and savory flavors.
• Easy Breakfast Tacos. Chop up a few pieces of candied bacon and add them to these breakfast tacos for another layer of flavor and texture.

Storing Leftovers

If you happen to have any candied bacon left, let it cool completely before storing it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Keeping the pieces separated will help prevent them from sticking together.

When you’re ready for more, reheat the bacon until warmed through. You can also chop leftover pieces and use them as a topping for burgers, sandwiches, breakfast dishes, or appetizers.

Tips for the Best Candied Bacon

• Use thick-cut bacon. Thick-cut bacon holds up well to the glaze and seasoning and gives you plenty of bacon underneath that candied exterior.
• Keep the bacon in a single layer. Give each piece its own space on the sheet pan instead of overlapping them. I was able to fit 10 pieces perfectly on my full sheet tray.
• Glaze before seasoning. Start with the Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze, then follow it with Honey Rub.
• Keep the grill at 350°F. That temperature worked perfectly for this cook. Mine was ready to come off the grill right at the 45-minute mark.
• Drain the grease after cooking. Once the bacon comes off the grill, drain off the excess grease before serving.

Final Thoughts

It doesn’t take much to turn regular bacon into something special. We started with 10 pieces of thick-cut bacon, added Heath Riles BBQ Brown Sugar Honey Habanero Glaze and Heath Riles BBQ Honey Rub, and cooked it for 45 minutes at 350°F.

That’s it. You end up with sweet, smoky candied bacon that you can serve for breakfast, throw on a burger or sandwich, or just eat straight off the tray.

Give this one a try the next time you fire up the grill. And if you’ve got a BLT planned, you definitely want to use this bacon.

Equipment & Tools

Smokin Brothers Grill, Royal Oak Hickory Blended Charcoal Pellets, Sheet Pan, Heath Riles BBQ Silicone Basting Brush