Wake and Bacon Bloody Mary
From Craig Christopher, Beer Kitchen, Kansas City, MO, in The Bloody Mary: The Lore and Legend of a Cocktail Classic, with Recipes for Brunch and Beyon [1] by Brian Bartels
Notes
As my friend Chef Bill would say, “If I could wrap the world in bacon, I would do it.” Barbecue-soaked Kansas City’s Beer Kitchen is known for some unbelievable Bloody Marys: the Cajun Mary, the Beefeater Mary (featuring a smoked beef stick), and the Wake and Bacon Bloody Mary recipe here. If you’ve been waiting for a bacon vodka recipe, this is it. And you only need the fat to make the vodka. Keep the bacon for yourself and any well-behaved loved ones.
GARNISH cooked strip of thick-cut bacon, celery stalk, pitted olive, and lemon wedge
Ingredients
- Bacon-infused vodka:
4 strips bacon
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
750 milliliters Tito's vodka
- Wake and Bacon Bloody Mary mix:
56 ounces Sacramento tomato juice
2 1/2 ounces Worcestershire sauce
2 ounces Cholula hot sauce
1 1/2 ounces freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 ounces freshly squeezed lime juice
1 1/2 teaspoons celery salt
1 1/2 teaspoons steak seasoning
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon prepared horseradish
3/4 teaspoon tomato paste
- Wake and Bacon cocktail:
2 ounces bacon-infused vodka
5 ounces Wake and Bacon Bloody Mary mix
Ice
Cooked bacon, for garnish
Celery stalks, for garnish
Olives, for garnish
Lemon wedges, for garnish
Directions
- For the bacon-infused vodka: In a cast-iron skillet, cook the bacon over medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Flip the bacon and cook the other side until crispy, about 5 minutes more. The goal is to render at least 2 tablespoons of bacon fat. Remove the cooked bacon and let the bacon fat cool in the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a container.
- Combine 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat and the black peppercorns in a large sealable container or mason jars with the vodka. Seal and refrigerate for 6 hours to allow the flavors to integrate. Transfer to the freezer and freeze for 30 to 60 minutes. The fat cap will look like hardened wax curdling on top of the surface.
- Skim off the fat cap with a big spoon and discard. Let the infused vodka come to room temperature, then pass the vodka through a fine-mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth or a coffee filter. Store in a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 3 months.
- For the mix: Combine all of the ingredients in a large pitcher. Store in a in a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 10 days.
- For the cocktail: Combine the vodka and Bloody mix in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Roll the ingredients back and forth with another shaker 3 times and strain into a pint glass filled with ice. Garnish with bacon, a celery stalk, an olive, and a lemon wedge.
Reprinted with permission from The Bloody Mary, copyright © 2017 by Brian Bartels. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.
Information
- Category
- Drinks, Cocktails
- Cuisine
- North American
- Yield
- 12 drinks