Maple Bacon on a Stick w/ Chef Matthew Lief, Landhaus (Video)

Food. Smorgasburg. Maple Bacon on a Stick.

It can take some time (and a little convincing) to get Manhattanites off the island of hustle-and-bustle, but these three things usually do the trick.

Granted, bacon on a stick is most tempting on a nice day outdoors… so, what to do when Smorgasburg closes for the season?

Solution: Landhaus at the Woods, in Williamsburg. The permanent fixture to those Saturday and Sunday Landhaus pop ups (of which have been around since 2011).

Enter: craft beer, cocktails and indoor/outdoor beer garden style seating.

Say no more.

For NYC-born Matthew Lief, the Chef and Owner of Landhaus, who spent his childhood between New Jersey and Maine – the trek to Brooklyn seems to be incomparable. Lief has lived in South Africa and Paris – and his co-chefs and partners have held residence in L.A., Manila, and the Philippines.

The cosmopolitan trio has won the hearts (and stomachs, obviously) of New Yorkers, with their Smorgasburg stand: offering farm-to-sandwich staples. But, given the staff’s extensive traveling (and backgrounds), the casual, fun, American fare offers an America, Korean, Mexican and Filipino twist – while still being affordable. Obviously, our friends need the extra cash for their “lengthy” commutes.

For those who need a little extra convincing to cross the East River, we went straight to the source. In our exclusive video, Matthew breaks down how to make his amazing Maple Bacon on a Stick.

There’s no way we’ll make it home with leftovers, but at least now we can recreate it in our kitchens.

Maple Bacon on a Stick Ingredients

• 1 x 2lb piece of smoky slab bacon, skin on
• 2 large sprigs rosemary
• 3 sprigs thyme
• 2 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Good quality maple syrup

Prep

1. Roast the bacon a day before use, as it’s much easier to work with when it has chilled completely.

Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 300°F and set a pan of water on the bottom under the lowest rack.

2. Soak the herbs in water. Place a couple sprigs each of rosemary and thyme on the skin side of your bacon.

3. Wrap the slab of bacon tightly in plastic wrap, using several layers to form a parcel. Then wrap the plastic covered bacon tightly in foil.

4. Place the slab of bacon directly on the rack over the pan of water. After one hour at 300°F turn the oven down to 250°F and let the bacon cook for 2 more hours.

5. While the bacon is roasting, put the paprika, fennel and salt in a spice or pepper grinder and grind to a fine powder.

6. Carefully remove the bacon from the oven (it may drip juices) but do not unwrap it yet. Allow the parcel to cool on your countertop to room temperature before placing in the fridge.

7. When the bacon has completely cooled, remove it from its package and pull off the skin and either discard or save it for making soup or a dog snack. There will be a translucent golden gel. This is the nectar of the gods and will add amazing flavor to anything you use it on.  Remove 
the herbs and discard them.

8. Heat up your charcoal grill or a cast iron grill pan till it is raging hot.

9. Slice the bacon as thick as you like. Matthew’s usually ranges from ¼ to ½” thick. Brown the bacon on each side until it is slightly charred. Slice the bacon into bite size pieces, sprinkle with the spice mix and a little drizzle of the maple syrup.

Head to our Recipes section for more delicious recipes.

How do you fancy your bacon? Tell us about your favorite bacon treats in the comments!