In this Smoked Candied Bacon recipe, you’ll only need 3 ingredients, a smoker, and about an hour and a half to make bacon that has the perfect blend of sweet, salty, and smoky.
Millionaire Bacon
Bacon is already delicious, but adding syrup and brown sugar to give the bacon a sweet and salty combination, combined with the smoke flavor that seeps in, it creates an irresistible treat, that’s also sometimes called “Millionaire Bacon.”
It’s so enjoyable to eat by itself but it’s also fun to top classics with, like I did with these deviled eggs with candied bacon or what the bacon turns out like on top of the maple bacon brie.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Smoking bacon on a pellet smoker for an hour and a half at 210 degrees, or until the bacon is fully cooked.
The name originated from a saying, “This bacon tastes like a million bucks.”
Yes. Bake candied bacon in a 375° F oven, for 30-40 minutes or until bacon is fully cooked.
Ingredients Needed: (See recipe card below for the full recipe)
- bacon – thick cut bacon was used in this recipe, and is recommended. If using a thinner bacon, the cook time could be shorter.
- brown sugar – using more or less brown sugar is optional.
- syrup – real maple syrup or pancake syrup works for this recipe.
Tip: If you’d like to have a bit of heat to your bacon, sprinkling crushed red pepper flakes on the bacon, at the same time you add brown sugar, is recommended.
How to Make Smoked Candied Bacon
Preheat the smoker to 210°F (or similar if your smoker doesn’t land at 210).
On a baking sheet or a piece of wax paper, place the bacon down, making sure not to overlap the pieces.
Using a pastry brush, brush maple syrup on to each piece of bacon.
Sprinkle brown sugar on top of each piece, trying to sprinkle it evenly.
When the smoker has preheated, place each piece on the smoker, making sure not to overlap the pieces so it cooks evenly. Smoke the bacon for an hour and a half, or until the bacon is fully cooked.
Remove smoked bacon from smoker and serve while warm.
What to Serve Candied Bacon With:
As a topping: This candied bacon would be delicious served on top of these burgers made in the oven, on this chicken club sandwich, or on these Hawaiian roll breakfast sliders. Or, take a BLT to the next level adding it to these Avocado BLTs.
As a side dish: Serve millionaire bacon alongside these fluffy pancakes, these fried onions and potatoes, and this biscuit and gravy casserole.
Craving More Smoked Recipes?
Originally published: October 2015
Photos updated and republished: April 2025
Recipe
Smoked Candied Bacon
Ingredients
- 1 pound thick sliced bacon
- ¼ cup maple syrup more/less if desired
- ¼ cup brown sugar more/less if desired
Instructions
- Preheat your smoker to 210 degrees
- Lay out each piece of bacon on a piece of wax paper or a cookie sheet1 pound thick sliced bacon
- Drizzle maple syrup over each piece of bacon, spreading the syrup evenly on each piece of bacon, using a basting brush¼ cup maple syrup
- Sprinkle brown sugar over each piece, spreading evenly with the brush¼ cup brown sugar
- Transfer bacon to smoker racks
- Smoke for 1-½ hours or until bacon is fully cooked.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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