Maybe you like your bacon super crispy, or perhaps you prefer your bacon to be chewy. Either way, there’s the perfect bacon recipe out there waiting for you. One thing we like to do is cook up some bacon in advance and freeze it. It freezes beautifully and it’s great for recipes.
You can find tons of bacon recipes on the internet and in family recipe albums.
In fact, pulling together a comprehensive list of the best bacon dinner recipes was difficult because there are so many great bacon ideas.
Bacon has long been a popular indulgence for many food lovers, adding a smoky and savory touch to countless dishes. From simple scrambled eggs to complex culinary creations, this versatile ingredient has a well-earned spot in recipe repertoires worldwide. As appetite for bacon-inspired dishes continues to evolve, there is a constant search for innovative and enticing recipes that showcase the potential of this delicious treat.
For those captivated by the mouthwatering allure of bacon, this article offers a variety of satisfying recipes that stretch the limits of ordinary bacon cuisine. Ranging from appetizers to main courses, these dishes celebrate the unique flavor profiles that good-quality bacon can bring to the table. By exploring unconventional pairings and methods, these recipes ensure that bacon enthusiasts can enjoy their favorite ingredient in ways they’ve never tasted before.
Whether it’s crispy and crumbled or wrapped and roasted, bacon has an uncanny ability to enhance any dish, contributing both texture and taste. In the following recipes, bacon takes center stage, making each dish a tantalizing adventure that is hard to resist. For those seeking to expand their bacon horizons, these ideas will surely inspire creativity and ignite taste buds.
What is it about bacon that is just so addictive? Whether you’re eating bacon and eggs for breakfast, a BLT for lunch, or bacon-wrapped chicken as an elegant dinner entrée, bacon recipes please the palate like nothing else.
Some experts believe that bacon offers the perfect combo of fat, saltiness, and crispiness, but all we know is that we love it.
Let’s dive in and explore some of the amazing things you can do with bacon.
Everyone loves pizza, and if you have a house full of hungry bacon lovers, you can’t go wrong with this tasty pizza.
Here’s a bonus: this pizza also serves up healthy portions of spinach, so it’s a win/win recipe.
You can top a pizza with tons of different toppings, but there’s something magical about the combination of these caramelized onions, sauteed spinach, and crispy bacon pieces.
You can absolutely make your pizza dough from scratch, but you can also easily make this pizza with store-bought pizza dough.
When it comes to salty and crunchy snacks, popcorn is an all-time favorite.
But what happens when you pair popcorn with bacon recipes? Something wonderful!
To make bacon-cheddar popcorn, you use the bacon grease to pop your popcorn kernels. This flavorful grease adds tons of flavor to your popcorn and you may find yourself liking it more than your regular buttered popcorn.
Once your popcorn is popped, mixing it up with crumbled crispy bacon adds an even more delicious bacon flavor.
Are you craving bacon but living a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle? Give these crispy slices of “mushroom bacon” a try.
Portabello mushrooms do such a great job of imitating the texture of meat, so this is a natural solution if you’re trying to serve up some bacon flavor for vegans or vegetarians. It almost looks like a bacon slice.
The flavor of maple bacon comes from maple syrup and liquid smoke.
This “bacon” also gets tons of flavor from smoked paprika, apple cider vinegar, sea salt, and miso paste.
As if guacamole right by itself isn’t decadent enough, here we go adding in crispy bacon bits, five cloves of deliciously roasted garlic, and sweet roasted cherry tomatoes.
Doesn’t that just sound like heaven in a bowl? Pass the tortilla chips, please!
This guacamole is flavored with fresh lime juice from two limes, which also helps to keep the guacamole green.
For seasoning, use cumin and sea salt. Be sure to have plenty of minced red onion and chopped (or whole) cilantro for that signature southwestern flavor.
If you’re looking for something utterly unique, you’re going to love this gooey, deliciously messy peanut butter bacon burger.
We get it. It sounds bonkers. But trust us on this. You will be hooked once you try one of these unusual burgers.
Here’s what happens. When you get your peanut butter on the cooked hamburger, it starts to melt. That’s when the magic happens.
Just make sure you have plenty of napkins.
The mayo and pepper jack cheese really brings out the flavor of the beef, the salty bacon, and the peanut butter. Oh, and you can use creamy or chunky peanut butter.
Although some bacon and pork purists don’t agree with cooking bacon in the microwave, it’s a widely popular way of cooking our favorite fatty meat.
Believe it or not, bacon cooked in the microwave turns out just as tasty and crispy as bacon cooked on the stovetop or in the oven.
In fact, some people believe that microwaving is the best way to cook bacon. In just six minutes, you can have the perfect strip of crispy bacon ready to eat.
You can use a special microwave bacon cooker, but you can also simply use a large plate and some paper towels.
This recipe for candied bacon is also called “Million Dollar Bacon” because it tastes like a million bucks.
Millionaire Bacon first became popular when it was invented by Hoyul Steven Choi, the co-owner of a San Francisco restaurant named Sweet Maple.
To make this candied bacon, you need to use thick cut bacon or sliced slab bacon. The brown sugar is what gives it the sweet flavor we all love, and crushed red pepper flakes, black pepper, and cayenne pepper bring all of the good drama.
Naturally, we couldn’t make a list of dinner ideas with crisp bacon without including the classic homemade bacon, lettuce, tomato sandwich (BLT).
To make the perfect BLT sandwich, you need bacon that’s straight and crispy. To get your bacon this perfect, you need to cook it in the oven or the microwave.
Be sure to use the ripest tomatoes you can find and creamy mayonnaise.
For bread, you can use any type of bread you like, but if you use a super dense bread like rye or sourdough, you will have tons of flavor. It has to be toasted, though, to be a classic BLT sandwich.
A grilled cheese sandwich is an American classic. When you add additional ingredients to it, the humble grilled cheese sandwich becomes sensational.
By itself, turkey can be a bit bland, which is part of what makes turkey great. It goes with everything.
However, when you pair it up with a grilled cheese sandwich, creamy chunks of avocado, juicy tomatoes, and crispy bacon slices, you’ve got a little slice of heaven on a plate.
We love that this grilled cheese sandwich is made with Mozzarella cheese because Mozzarella is super melty.
Smokies are a beloved finger food, and they’re great for parties as appetizers, quick snacks, tailgate parties, and even for breakfast.
When you pair smokies with brown sugar and bacon, you know you’ve got a dish that will get gobbled up quickly.
Want to know something that makes this recipe even more perfect? These smokies can be prepared in advance and they also freeze exceptionally well.
Once you have these little nuggets of wonder frozen up, all you have to do is pop them out of the freezer and into the microwave. Streaky bacon adds tons of flavor. Yum!
The balsamic flavor in these veggies makes this an excellent side dish for any meal.
We love the veggies in this recipe. They include zucchini squash, carrots, green bell pepper, and broccoli.
Spices used are ground oregano and smoked paprika. Sea salt brings out the flavor of the veggies.
Add some garlic and onion to make this side dish even better.
Also, you can change up the veggies so that it’s a completely seasonal dish. For example, you can use sweet potato, cauliflower, butternut squash, yellow squash, jalapeno, and red bell pepper.
At first glance, it doesn’t seem like New England clam chowder is one of the most notable bacon dinner recipes.
However, this delicious classic potato clam chowder wouldn’t be the same without crispy bacon crumbles on top.
The bacon adds a savory and satisfying crunch to the creamy New England clam chowder.
The chowder gets its creaminess from bottled clam juice and chicken broth (chicken base).
With plenty of clams, this chowder is full of protein. The potato chunks, celery, and garlic add the veggies you need to make this a fully satisfying meal.
Chicken ranch bacon bubble up casserole is made with layers of cream cheese, flaky biscuits, shredded chicken, loads of cheddar cheese, and of course, bacon.
If you love cheese, this may be one of your favorite meals with bacon.
Don’t worry, though. You get plenty of good veggie nutrition with this casserole thanks to the broccoli florets.
This casserole recipe is creamy as can be because of the milk, butter, three cups of cheddar cheese, and ranch seasoning.
While this recipe doesn’t specify cream cheese, be sure to add in at least half a block (four ounces) or more to make your casserole extra creamy.
You can serve this chicken and bacon dinner with a baked potato for absolute elegance.
Fettuccine Alfredo is a hugely popular pasta dish, and when you add delicious crumbles of bacon, the dish is even more flavorful.
The homemade Alfredo sauce gets tons of flavor from heavy cream, grated Parmesan cheese, butter, and chicken broth.
The recipe doesn’t specify what kind of bacon to use, so you can get creative. When you use applewood smoked bacon in this recipe, it takes the dish to even greater heights of flavor.
Serve this pasta dish with a salad and some breadsticks and you have a winning meal.
Spinach artichoke dip is surely one of the most popular dips of all time.
This creamy dip is traditionally served in a bread bowl that’s made from sweet Hawaiian bread. However, you can serve it in a casserole dish as well.
This dip recipe has a twist to it because you’re actually going to cook your bacon in a skillet on the stove. Then, you’re going to brown your onions in the bacon fat.
Once your onions are browned, you also add your spinach and artichokes, along with some spicy red pepper flakes.
Serve this dip with potato chips, bread, tortilla chips, and more. Add jalapeno to this dip to make it a bit spicier.
If you love peanut brittle, you’re going to swoon over this delicious bourbon bacon brittle.
This brittle recipe calls for spicy candied bacon and toasted pecans. However, it’s the bourbon whiskey that makes this brittle stand apart from the rest.
A bit of red pepper flakes adds some unexpected kick, and brown sugar and vanilla extract gives this brittle a delightful caramel flavor.
The recipe includes instructions on how to make candied bacon, and it’s yummy enough to serve as its own treat right by itself.
Because wraps are so incredibly easy to pull together, it’s no wonder they’ve gotten so much attention in recent years.
You can use any flavor of tortilla and can even opt for a low-carb option.
This wrap recipe makes use of a boneless chicken breast, and it gets tons of seasoning from hot sauce, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and ranch dressing.
For veggies, you can’t ask for more nutrition than this. With carrot, creamy chunks of avocado, and lettuce, these wraps are brimming with a delicious crunch.
If there’s anything you can do to make a donut even more delicious, surely frosting it and piling it up with bacon will do the trick.
These donuts are made using yeasted dough and flavored with sweet and decadent maple icing.
The donut batter is seasoned with pure vanilla extract and nutmeg.
The creamy maple icing is made with pure maple syrup and maple extract for added flavor. Confectioner’s sugar keeps the icing smooth and creamy, and a tiny bit of salt adds contrast and interest.
If you’re looking for party food that will keep a crowd happy, this baked bacon cheese dip is exactly what you need.
Because it’s loaded with cream cheese and sour cream, this sip is super creamy.
Other cheeses in the dip are sharp cheddar cheese, shredded Mozzarella cheese, grated Parmesan cheese, and pepper jack cheese. This dip is basically a cheese-lovers wonder food.
You can use any number of dippers for this dip, including bread, potato chips, tortilla chips, fresh veggies, crostini, pretzels, and of course, chips.
There are some folks in the world who refer to themselves as “bacon-vegetarians,” which means that they are vegetarians, but can’t resist an occasional slice of bacon.
If you’re truly following a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle, you can enjoy this wonder of the plant world: eggplant bacon.
Cassie brings decades of experience to the Kitchen Community. She is a noted chef and avid gardener. Her new book "Healthy Eating Through the Garden" will be released shortly. When not writing or speaking about food and gardens Cassie can be found puttering around farmer's markets and greenhouses looking for the next great idea.
