3993. BACON CHEESEBURGER POUTINE

4 pounds of French fries (about 8 cups)

6 strips thick-cut bacon
1 pound lean ground beef
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon dried parsley
3 cups beef stock
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups white Cheddar cheese curd
Salt
Pepper

Start cooking French fries, however you have decided to make them, from scratch or store bought.

Place bacon in a frying pan and fry over medium heat until crispy, turning regularly. When bacon is done, transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and place paper towel over top to blot grease. Then cut into large chunks.

Melt butter in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, add all-purpose flour and whisk thoroughly until all lumps are removed. Cook for five minutes while the roux is bubbling. This will give the gravy a darker colour and will also cook out the raw flour. Slowly add the beef stock to the roux, whisking as you do to avoid lumps from forming. Once the stock has been added, reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking, uncovered. You need to keep the gravy piping hot so it will melt the cheese.

Place olive oil in a large frying pan set over medium-high heat. When hot, add the beef, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to thoroughly combine all ingredients and continue to cook until beef is completely browned. Taste, and adjust seasoning if necessary.

To plate, set a large handful of French fries on a plate or in a bowl. Spoon about 1 cup of beef over top of beef and some of the bacon over top. Top with cheese curds and then generously spoon gravy over top.

bacon recipe source: Kate's Cuisine, September 5, 2015

3735. BEER, BACON and MAPLE SYRUP POUTINE

4 baker potatoes

olive oil
1 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp garlic salt

4 strips of bacon chopped up
4 slices of peameal bacon chopped
1 tbsp butter
1 garlic clove minced
2 cups of stout beer
1 tbsp mustard
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp maple syrup
salt

cheese curds
green onions

Start by slicing each potato lengthwise into four potato slabs. Then cut each slab into thin fries about a centimeter thick. Keep the fries fresh by storing them in a bowl of cold water. Before use, drain the fries and pat them dry. This is to ensure that the spices and oil stick.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place all the fries in a bowl and sprinkle over the paprika, garlic salt and a couple glugs of olive oil. Roll the fries around and coat evenly. Spread out on two baking sheets making sure that each fry is in contact with the sheet, this will ensure they get crispy. Cook the fries for 50 minutes. Every 20 minutes rotate the trays and give the fries a flip. Hint: you’re going to need a thin spatula to get the fries up and off the baking sheet in order to flip them.

While the fries are cooking start on the gravy by frying up both types of bacon in an ungreased pan on medium high heat. Once crispy, pull out the bacon and let drain on a plate covered with a paper towel. Save the grease. For the gravy, add the butter to the bacon grease and let melt. Then spoon in the flour and stir until a paste forms. Throw in the garlic and stir until it becomes fragrant. Finally whisk in the beer, mustard, Worcestershire, maple syrup and a pinch of salt. Let thicken over a low heat.

To build the poutine, place all the fries on one baking sheet and layer in the cheese curds and bacon pieces. Then pour over the gravy and place back in the oven for 5 minutes or until the cheese is good and melted. Top with green onions and enjoy!

bacon recipe source: Julie Nolke, Feeling Peckish? March 6, 2015

3308. BACON and CHEESE CURD BURGER

makes four servings 


4 thick bacon slices 
1/4 cup packed brown sugar 
2 lb. 85% lean ground chuck or 90% lean ground sirloin 
3/4 cup cheese curds or string cheese, chopped
salt and ground black pepper 
4 good quality hamburger buns 
4 1/4 - inch thick slices ripe tomato (optional) 
4 thin slices white onion (optional) 
4 Iceberg lettuce leaves (optional) 

Place bacon slices on the unheated rack of a broiler pan. Sprinkle each slice with brown sugar. Bake in a 450º F oven for 10 minutes or until crisp. When cool enough to handle, chop bacon; set aside.  

Divide beef into eight equal portions. Pat beef portions into patties approximately 4 inches in diameter and about 3/4-inch thick. 

Equally divide and place the bacon and 3 tablespoons of the cheese curds in the middle of four of the patties, leaving 1/2 inch around the edge of the patty. Top each with the remaining 4 patties. Pinch edges of top and bottom patties together to form one large burger patty. Chill, covered, in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. 

Season burgers with salt and black pepper. For a charcoal grill, place the patties on the well-oiled rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 10 minutes. Turn with a wide spatula and grill 10 to 12 minutes more, until meat is cooked and an instant-read thermometer inserted into patties registers 160º F. Toast buns, cut side down, on grill during last 1 to 2 minutes of grilling.

To serve, place a cooked burger on bottom half of each bun. If you like, top each with tomato, onion, and lettuce.


bacon recipe source: Midwest Living.com

3188. MUSSELS POUTINE with TOMATO-BACON GRAVY

serves 2 as a meal or 3-4 as an appetizer


2 large russet potatoes, sliced into ¼” disks
oil or fat for frying
sea salt
3 slices thick cut bacon, diced
½ a large yellow onion, sliced into rings
3 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
1 cup canned, diced tomatoes
½ cup dry white wine
mussels, rinsed and debearded
1 cup cheese curds or crumbled feta cheese
freshly chopped Italian parsley, for garnish

For the best results, you’ll want to slice the potatoes about an hour ahead of time and place them into a bowl with plenty of cold water to remove some of the starch. After about 30 minutes, rinse the slices thoroughly and place them onto a kitchen towel in a single layer to dry thoroughly, another 30 minutes. I placed a second kitchen towel on top and pressed lightly to absorb extra water. In the meantime you can prep all of your other ingredients.

Once the potatoes are thoroughly dry, heat your oil or fat to 300 degrees in a high-sided pot.  Fry the potatoes (in batches if necessary) until just beginning to soften but not yet become brown, about 4 or 5 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to cool thoroughly and turn off the heat under the oil.

While the potatoes cool from their first frying, start on the tomato-bacon gravy. Cook the bacon in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid until crispy (you’ll be steaming the mussels in it later). Remove the bacon and set aside, leaving all of the drippings behind. Add the onion and a generous pinch of salt to the bacon fat and cook for 8-10 minutes or until caramelized, stirring often.  Add the garlic and cook one more minute, and then pour in the diced tomatoes. Reduce the heat to low and simmer while you get set up to finish the dish.

Begin to heat your oil again for the second frying of the potatoes, this time to 350 degrees. Be sure your mussels are cleaned, debearded, and unopened. Lastly, preheat your broiler to high, placing an oven rack about 4 or 5 inches below it.

When your oil is ready, fry the potatoes a second time until golden brown and crispy, about 3 minutes.  Transfer the fries to another paper towel in a single layer and sprinkle generously with salt.

Return the crisped bacon to the tomato-bacon gravy. Add the wine as well and increase the heat to medium-high.  Once simmering, add the mussels, stir thoroughly once, and cover to steam for 3-4 minutes or until the mussels are just opened.

In the meantime, layer the potatoes in the bottom of a broiler-safe baking dish. Once the mussels have opened, transfer them with a slotted spoon to sit on top of the potatoes.  If the sauce is still at all watery, allow it to reduce a little and then spoon the chunky tomato-bacon gravy atop the mussels. Sprinkle with all of the cheese and place under the broiler to melt, watching carefully to prevent burning.

Once the cheese is sufficiently melted and just beginning to brown, remove the pan from the oven, sprinkle with the freshly chopped parsley, and serve the poutine immediately. We piled our potato slices high with shelled mussels, spoonfuls of tomato-bacon gravy, and hunks of melted cheese curds.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Hilary Finch Hutler, Tummyrumblr, December 4, 2012

2958. GRILLED CHESE-and-BACON SANDWICHES with CHEESE CURDS

makes four servings 


1/2 beef bouillon cube (about 1 teaspoon) 
1/4 cup mayonnaise 
2 teaspoons Sriracha 
salt and freshly ground pepper 
1 tablespoon vegetable oil 
1 medium onion, thinly sliced 
2 teaspoons cider vinegar 
12 slices of bacon 
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 
8 slices of white sandwich bread 
1/2 pound sharp cheddar, cut into 4 slices 
3 ounces cheddar cheese curds (1 cup) 

In a small bowl, mash the bouillon cube into 2 teaspoons of hot water until dissolved. Whisk in the mayonnaise and Sriracha and season with salt and pepper. 

In a medium skillet, heat the oil. Add the onion, cover and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and softened, about 10 minutes. Stir in the vinegar and season with salt and pepper. 

Meanwhile, in another skillet, cook the bacon over moderate heat, turning once, until crisp, 6 minutes. Drain on paper towels. 

Set a griddle over 2 burners and turn the heat to moderate. Butter the bread slices on 1 side. Spread the other side of 4 bread slices with the spicy mayonnaise and top with the onion, cheddar, cheese curds and bacon. Close the sandwiches buttered side out and griddle over moderately low heat until crisp, about 4 minutes per side. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve. 


bacon recipe courtesy of: Frédéric Morin, Food & Wine, October 2011