Recipe Index

Ingredients

• 5¾ oz minced bacon fat
• 1 pinch ground mace
• 1½ oz crispy fried onions, ground to a powder
• 1 pinch black pepper, plus 1/2 tsp for the sandwiches
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• 1 pinch ground allspice
• 8¾ oz unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 tsp salt, for the bacon butter
• rapeseed oil (3 1/2 tsp), for the ketchup
• 14 oz onions, roughly chopped, for the ketchup
• ½ oz cumin seeds, toasted and ground
• ¼ oz coriander seeds, toasted and ground
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed, for the ketchup
• ¼ oz dried oregano
• ½ oz smoked paprika
• 5¼ oz dried chipotle chillies, stems removed
• 2½ oz tomato purée
• 12¼ oz chopped tomatoes
• 2 lb 3 oz dates, pitted and chopped
• 3½ oz date syrup
• 1¼ cups red wine vinegar
• 10 oz black treacle
• lime juice (2 tsp)
• 2¼ oz salt, for the ketchup
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 6 rashers middle back bacon
• 6 fresh sage leaves
• 2 free-range eggs
• 2 brioche buns, halved
• 1 tbsp chipotle ketchup (made above), or more to taste

Method

1. For the chipotle ketchup: soak the chipotle chillies in hot water for 20 minutes, then drain. Heat the rapeseed oil in a large pan, add the chopped onions and cook for 10 minutes until soft. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, oregano and smoked paprika and cook for 1 minute.
2. Add the soaked chillies, tomato purée, chopped tomatoes, dates, date syrup, vinegar, treacle, lime juice and salt. Simmer gently for 45–60 minutes, stirring often, until thick and dark.
3. Blend the ketchup until completely smooth, pass through a sieve if you like, and leave to cool. It keeps for several weeks in the fridge; you only need a little for the sandwiches.
4. For the bacon butter: cook the minced bacon fat in a pan over low heat for 15–20 minutes, rendering and crisping it gently. Drain, cool slightly, then beat into the softened butter with the ground crispy onions, mace, black pepper, cayenne, allspice and salt. Chill until spreadable.
5. Heat the vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Fry the bacon rashers for 2–3 minutes per side until crisp at the edges, adding the sage leaves for the last minute so they crisp too. Set aside and keep warm.
6. Fry the eggs in the bacon fat left in the pan for 2–3 minutes until the whites are set and the yolks are still runny. Season with the remaining black pepper.
7. Toast the cut sides of the brioche buns in the same pan for 1 minute until golden.
8. Spread the bun bases generously with bacon butter, then add 3 rashers of bacon and the crisp sage to each. Top with a fried egg, spoon over the chipotle ketchup, add the bun lids and serve at once.

Prep: 1 h · Cook: 2 h

Nutrition not computed — the source recipe data produced an implausible result and is flagged for review.