Landhaus bacon. Photos by Benjamin Lozovsky
Landhaus is a partnership between Matthew Lief, a chef, and Jakob Cirell, a butcher from Arcadian Pastures farm. They launched their farm to sandwich business this summer at the Smorgasburg in Williamsburg. Thick slabs of grilled bacon, on a stick or in a BLT, quickly became a Landhaus signature specialty.
You can find Landhaus selling sandwiches and other treats at the Brooklyn Flea and Smorgasburg.
You can also try the recipe yourself, special to the WG from Matthew Lief:
1 2lb piece of skin-on smoky slab bacon
2 large sprigs of rosemary
3 sprigs of thyme
2 tbls smoked paprika
1 tbls fennel seeds
1 tsp salt
Black pepper grinder
3 tbls olive oil
Good quality maple syrup
I recommend making the bacon a day before you want to use it, as it is much easier to work with when it has chilled completely. Once the bacon is roasted it can be browned and used anywhere you would like thick delicious chunks of tender bacon: sandwiches, scrambled eggs, clam chowder, on macaroni and cheese—the sky is the limit.
1. Preheat your oven to 300 degrees and set a pan of water in the bottom under the lowest rack
2. Using your hand remove the skin from the bacon, but do not discard it
3. Using a sharp knife, score the fat on top of the bacon
4. Grind some black pepper over the bacon fat
5. Place the herb sprigs on top of the scored fat and drizzle some water and the olive oil over the herbs and bacon
6. Place the bacon skin over the herbs
7. Wrap the slab of bacon tightly in plastic wrap, using several layers to form a parcel
8. Wrap the plastic covered bacon tightly in foil
9. Place the slab of bacon directly on the rack over the pan of water
10. After one hour at 300 degrees, turn the oven down to 250 and let the bacon cook for 3 more hours
11. While the bacon is roasting, put the paprika, fennel, and salt in your spice grinder and grind to a fine powder
12. Carefully remove the bacon from the oven (it may drip juices) but do not unwrap it yet.
13. Allow the parcel to cool on your countertop to room temperature before placing in the fridge
14. When your bacon has completely cooled, remove from the package (either discard the skin 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
15. Slice your bacon as thick as you like—mine usually ranges from 1/4″ to 1/2″ thick
16. Heat up your charcoal grill or a cast iron grill pan till it is raging hot.
17. Brown the bacon on each side till it is slightly charred
18. Slice bacon into bite size pieces, sprinkle with the spice mix and a little drizzle of the maple syrup
Your guests will love you forever.
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