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Chicken rolled in seasoned brown sugar, wrapped in bacon, and baked. Yum! This sweet and savory dish is certain to become a family favorite. This Bacon Wrapped Chicken recipe can be baked in the oven or even thrown on the grill. And great news, this recipe is super simple to make!
Bacon-wrapped chicken makes a perfect main dish, appetizer, or snack. It just depends on how you cut the chicken. I had a package of 12 strips of bacon, so I chose to cut my chicken into 12 pieces as well. One strip of bacon per each piece of chicken. If you leave your chicken breast whole, you will want to use 2-3 strips of bacon per piece. Or cut the chicken into 24 or 36 pieces and cut each strip of bacon in half or thirds, to make 24-36 appetizer bites. Just try to cut the chicken into similar size pieces so they all cook evenly.
How to Make Bacon-Wrapped Chicken
Season each side of your chicken pieces with salt and pepper or your favorite seasoning. Roll each piece in the brown sugar mixture. For a Keto and Paleo-friendly dish, just omit the brown sugar or opt for a brown sugar substitute like Truvia Brown Sugar Blend or Sukrin Gold. Wrap each piece of chicken in bacon. Place on a baking sheet with the bacon seam side down or secure with a toothpick if necessary. Bake and enjoy!
Wrapping chicken in bacon adds flavor, fat, and moisture to the meat. For this recipe, it is best to use regular or thinner-cut bacon. Thick bacon is not recommended as it will take too long to cook all the way through. The chicken can overcook while waiting for the bacon to cook thoroughly. If all you have on hand is thick-cut bacon, you are going to want to pre-cook the bacon just a little, 5-10 minutes should do.
I chose to use a broiler-type pan for this recipe, the fat drips to the bottom of the pan and the bacon gets crispier this way. You can use a regular baking sheet for this recipe, just make sure it has at least one-inch sides to catch the drippings. Place aluminum foil under the bacon-wrapped chicken, so any sugar and bacon drippings can be easily cleaned up.
Cooking time will depend on the thickness of your chicken breasts. Larger, thicker breasts will take longer to cook. If you’re not sure if they’re done the safest way is to check with a meat thermometer. Chicken breasts are fully cooked when the internal temperature at the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165° F.
Bacon Wrapped Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, cut into thirds (12 pieces)
- 1 package bacon (12 slices)
- salt and pepper (to taste)
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¾ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- 1 Tbsp minced garlic (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F.
- Cut chicken to the desired size, and season each side with salt and pepper.
- In a small dish; combine brown sugar, garlic powder, and onion powder.
- Coat each piece of chicken with the brown sugar mixture, and save any extra for topping later.
- Wrap each piece of chicken in bacon, place on a baking sheet with the bacon seam side down, or secure the bacon with a toothpick if desired.
- Sprinkle minced garlic (optional) and any remaining brown sugar mixture on top of the bacon-wrapped chicken.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes or until bacon is crispy. If you prefer extra crispy bacon, broil for 1-2 minutes to finish.
