Bacon Pecan Brittle
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Feb 20, 2025 
Our Bacon Pecan Brittle Recipe is a crispy, airy homemade caramel candy, speckled with salty bacon and pecans. It makes a marvelous holiday gift.
Why We Love Bacon Pecan Brittle
Making edible presents is one of my favorite parts of the holidays.
Our family makes these gifts together each year. Working on this project brings us joy, knowing our treats will make other people happy.
Sometimes, we make a wide array of cookies, other times, soft, chewy caramels, and then, now and again, we make layered fudge.
No matter what we decide to cook in mass quantity to pass out to our friends, we always have fun!
Easy Homemade Candy
This year, I’m thinking of making a brittle recipe with our friends.
Candy brittles are often considered difficult to make, but honestly, nothing could be further from the truth.
Yes, you do need a candy thermometer to make brittle. And yes, it’s very hot and could burn you—but then so could soup.
Fear not of candy making. You’ve got this!
How To Make Bacon Pecan Brittle
In my humble opinion, brittles are either the best homemade candy or the worst homemade candy.
If the brittle is ultra hard, it hurts your teeth. Yet when it’s good, the texture is crisp, light, and airy with tiny candied bubbles suspended evenly throughout. This sort of fluffy brittle is hard to resist!
The difference in these two extreme brittle textures comes down to…
A) Watching the candy thermometer closely.
B) Working quickly. If you read the recipe ahead of time and are prepared to act fast, your brittle will come out perfect every single time.
Peanut brittle is nice. However, you can add anything to your candy brittle mix, so why not shake things up for the holidays.
This year we are making Bacon Pecan Brittle. This salty-sweet candy combo is bold and rich with an intense buttery flavor and a pop of porky essence.
It’s a fun twist on classic candy brittle, yet it still appeals to the masses.
Bacon Pecan Brittle Ingredients
- Granulated sugar – Essential for most candy recipes.
- Corn syrup – For sheen and texture.
- Water – The candy will lose some moisture in the steam while boiling, yet it will still end up with the right consistency.
- Butter – Adding fat results in the textural difference between classic hard candy and brittle.
- Pecans – Instead of peanuts. However, you could add any nut you like!
- Bacon – Because you know what they say about bacon…
- Vanilla – Adds underlying depth.
- Baking soda – This provides the chemical reaction in which the air bubbles are formed.
How To Make Pecan Brittle with Bacon
- Prep the Pan – Cover a large rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Butter the paper generously so the brittle doesn’t stick to the pan or paper.
- Prep the Pot – Attach a candy thermometer on the side of a large stock pot. Make sure the bottom of the thermometer reaches down to the bottom of the pot. Add the sugar, corn syrup, water, and butter.
- Cook the Bacon – The bacon must be very well cooked, but not burnt, so the candy can sit out at room temperature. Chop, brown, and drain well.
- Boil the Candy – Watch the candy thermometer. When it reaches 275 degrees F or “Soft Crack” carefully stir in the pecans. Continue to boil the candy until the thermometer reaches 295 degrees F or “Hard Crack” then turn off the heat. Stir in the vanilla extract, dried bacon, and baking soda. The baking soda will bubble up and create air pockets in the candy.
- Work Fast – Quickly and carefully pour the molten brittle onto the baking sheet in a zigzag pattern. Then immediately move the sheet to the refrigerator (or freezer) to cool fast, retaining as many air bubbles as possible.
- Crack – Once the brittle sheet is hard, break it into pieces!
Get The Full (Printable) Bacon Pecan Brittle Recipe Below!
Equipment Needed
- Candy thermometer – Highly important, do not wing it.
- Large stock pot – Boiling sugar can double and triple in size. Make sure your pot is large enough to handle the growth.
- Large rimmed baking sheet – You need the edges to stop the hot liquid brittle from running over the edges.
- Parchment paper – Or foil, so the brittle comes off the baking sheet.
If brittle is not your thing, this is a different kind of brittle. I’m pretty sure it will win you over to the dark side.
If not, check out more of our edible gift recipes!
- Snowball Party Mix
- Mexican Burnt Milk Candy
- 3-Ingredient Chocolate Truffles
- Chai Chow
- Peppermint Krispie Snowballs
- Mexican Chamoy Candy (Dulces Enchilados)
- Peanut Butter Potato Candy
- Fluffy Divinity Candy Recipe
- Mexican Chamoy Candy (Dulces Enchilados)
- Chocolate and Peanut Butter Candy
Bacon Pecan Brittle Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 2 cups whole shelled pecans
- 3/4 cup cooked bacon, chopped or crumbled (8-10 raw thick-cut strips)
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Cover a large rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Butter the paper generously.
- Place the sugar, corn syrup, water and butter in a large sauce pot. Attach a candy thermometer on the side of the pot, with the bottom down in the sugar mixture. Turn the heat on medium-high and bring the sugar to a boil.
- Meanwhile, chop the bacon finely, place it in a skillet, and cook over medium heat until brown. Then drain the bacon bits well on paper towels. They need to be dry, not greasy when added to the brittle.
- Watch the candy thermometer closely. When it reaches 275 degrees F or “Soft Crack” carefully stir in the pecans. It usually takes 15-25 minutes to reach this temperature.
- Continue to boil the candy. The moment the thermometer reaches 295 degrees F or “Hard Crack” turn off the heat. Carefully stir in the vanilla extract and dried bacon bits. Then stir in the baking soda. The mixture will bubble up to create air pockets.
- Quickly, yet very carefully, pour the hot liquid brittle on the prepared baking sheet. Pour it in a zigzag pattern across the baking sheet so it spreads out and fills the sheet in an even layer.
- Immediately move the baking sheet to the refrigerator or freezer so that it cools fast, retaining as many air bubbles as possible. This creates a light airy texture.
- Once the entire sheet of brittle is hard, break it into 36 pieces. Store the brittle in an airtight container until ready to serve.
I brought this to a game day party and everyone went crazy over it! Making again for a Superbowl party.
Do you think adding a bit of a kick to it would work – maybe sprinkle cayanne pepper before it sets
Hi Denise,
That sounds delicious! If you try it, please report back. :)
This was my first time making brittle. I followed the recipe but it turned out fairly thick (we like a thinner brittle) and when I spread it out on the pan it lost the baking soda fluffiness. What would I need to do to make it a little thinner of a consistency? More water? Pull off the heat a few degrees sooner?
Thank you for your recipe and help!
Hi Kelsey,
I would start with adding a couple of tablespoons of water and prepare as instructed. The brittle base should be a bit thinner.
You did it. This has to be a first. …adding bacon to brittle. I have never seen this before in my 57 years. A fan of brittle and a fan of bacon… one would think! Thanks for sharing and forcing me to go down this road!
Would using brown sugar have any effect on the consistency of the brittle? I think it might go very nicely with the bacon.
Hi Ed,
You can definitely make brown sugar brittle! Just go by the same temperatures on the candy thermometer. The texture is very similar.