by Bryon Adams
A Bad Ass Bacon Fatty is the perfect way to start the day whether your hosting an all-day barbecue cook-off in your backyard or just looking for something to feed the family at home, the cabin or campsite. It’s a bacon shell filled with eggs, cheese, veggies that is wonderful for sharing. Besides, how can you top a smoked breakfast?
Note that the process of making a Bad Ass Bacon Fatty requires a bacon weave. If you are new to the process of a bacon weave, please check out this video from HowToBBQTV or this post from the epic pitmaster Bill Gillespie. As for the choice of bacon, this is one situation where you don’t need the top-notch quarter-inch thick bacon. Skip the deli bacon; packaged bacon is thinner and will stretch easier.
Depending on size, one Fatty serves 8-12.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds bacon
- 1 lb ground sausage
- 1 cup frozen hash browns
- 3 eggs, scrambled Eggs
- Veggies, your preference
- Wood chips
- Seasonings, to taste
- Toothpicks
Directions
Preheat your grill or smoker to 275F by starting a medium sized fire in the base. I use the Thermoworks Smoke 2-Channel Alarm to monitor my smoker while I prepare the fatty. You will also need wood chips: cherry, oak, apple, mesquite or your favorite. It is not necessary to soak the wood chips.
Cut up your veggies; think onions, garlic, sweet and/or hot peppers. You can keep veggies raw, but I saute my veggies before adding them to the fatty so they are not as crunchy. When almost translucent, season and put them in a bowl. Set aside.
Make 3 scrambled eggs season with salt and pepper and set aside.
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Building a Bad Ass Bacon Fatty: build bacon weave, cover with layer of ground sausage,
add chopped veggies (raw or cooked), and top with cheese. Roll it up and smoke it!
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Make bacon weave, weaving the bacon to about the width of one slice of bacon. If you need to make the bacon weave longer — in order to fit all of your fillings — overlap slices so that they lock together. Once you have a weave about 12 – 18 inches long you are ready to assemble the Fatty.
Take out small chunks of ground sausage and place them on the bacon. Pulling out chunks makes it easier to spread out. Spread the sausage out across the bacon weave, but leave about an inch all around the weave. Season as you see fit with salt, pepper, herbs and other spices.
Add frozen hash browns, scrambled eggs, and veggies in layers.
Carefully roll up your fatty into a roll; go slow because it will want to start falling apart. Once rolled up add as many toothpicks as it takes to ensure it stays together. As the bacon cooks it will start to pull together a bit.
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Two of my favorite new tools for summer grilling and smoking. Left: ThermoWorks Smoke lets me track the temperature of meat (top) and smoker (bottom) at the same time.
Right: ThermoWorks Thermapen Mk4 is awesome for instant temperature readings, and powers down automatically when the probe is closed.
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With a preheated grill or smoker to 275 F, place your Fatty on the grill or smoker. I use the Thermoworks Smoke 2-Channel Alarm to monitor my temperature. Insert your probe so that the tip is in the center of the Fatty. You can also use a Thermoworks Thermapen Mk4 to take instant temperature readings. Cook until the internal temp is 170F.
Remove Fatty from grill or smoker and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Remove toothpicks. Slice with the width of the Fatty and serve.
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The cross section of a Bad Ass Bacon Fatty is a true sight to behold. It’s almost as pretty as it is delicious!
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