Bacon Wrapped Little Smokies are one of our favorite appetizers to serve on game day and at holiday parties. These little sausages are wrapped in crispy bacon and have a caramelized brown sugar glaze on top, making the best sweet and salty combo. This is easy recipe, only requires 4 simple ingredients and you can make a huge batch in less than 1 hour.
This is the perfect appetizer for your next party, so let me prepare you to make a double batch! These along with my lil smokies pigs in a blanket always fly off the platter in no time!
Another great appetizer that we like to serve with these are fried cheese balls and Crockpot Meatballs with Grape Jelly. You can also make a similar version, slow cooker little smokies in grape jelly, which are amazing too!
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🥓 Ingredients:
- a pound of bacon – we used regular pork bacon, not thick cut.
- cocktail sausages – Hillshire Farms brand is our favorite! You can find them in any grocery store near the lunch meat and regular sausage.
- light brown sugar – dark brown sugar could be used as well.
- fresh cracked black pepper
For a full list of ingredients and their measurements, 📋 please view my printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Optional Garnish:
Serve these sticky brown sugar bacon wrapped little smokies sausages with mustard, barbecue sauce, or your other favorite dipping sauces.
Substitutions and Variations
- Spicy: sprinkle cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes over top of the brown sugar mixture.
- Bbq sauce: brush on your favorite sauce just before they finish baking.
- Sausages: any variety of cocktail sausages will work.
- Hot dogs: if desired replace the little smokies with cut up hot dogs.
- Seasoning: you can add garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, or paprika over top.
- Air Fryer: Follow the regular instructions and place in the air fryer. Secure them with toothpicks. Use cooking spray to grease the basket. Air fry for 15 minutes at 350 degrees.
🔪 Instructions:
PREP: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Step 1: Cut the bacon slices into thirds.
Step 2: Wrap each of the lil smokies with a piece of bacon so the ends overlap. Place the seam side down. Pack the bacon-wrapped smokies tightly in a single layer so they don’t come unwrapped while cooking.
Step 3: Sprinkle a half cup of brown sugar and pepper over the top.
Step 4: Cover the the brown wrapped little smokie sausages and refrigerate for 1-2 hours. This helps the sugar and bacon flavors marry together. After a couple hours, you’ll notice some of the brown sugar has seeped into the bacon and juices, but there is still a good amount on top of the sausages.
Pro Tip: Refrigerating these delicious appetizers makes the bacon fat and sugar melt together, so don’t skip this step!
Step 5: Bake for 45-50 minutes or until the bacon is crispy and golden brown. To keep warm, leave in the oven on the lowest setting or the warm setting.
SERVE: Serve with your favorite dipping sauces!
Baking Tips for Bacon Wrapped Sausages
- If you choose to use thick cut bacon, the cooking time may vary or it may not get as crispy since the slices of bacon are so thick.
- Need to make more at one time than what will fit in your dish? Use cookie sheets instead that are lined with aluminum foil, and secure each one with a toothpick.
- We prefer using a glass dish because clean up is easy. The brown sugar caramelizes and gets really sticky. A quick soak in warm water loosens all the caramelized sugar from the glass dish and washes easily.
- As long as the little smokes are packed tightly next to each other you won’t need toothpicks.
Fun Fact
Did you know that bacon grease was used as an explosive in World War II? – The Suxxex Kitchen
Recipe FAQs
Keep leftovers in an air-tight container for up to 5 day in the fridge. Reheat in the oven or air fryer to get them crispy again.
Yes! Cover them in the refrigerator up to a day ahead and bake when you are ready.
More Addictive Appetizers You’ll Love
If you tried this Bacon-Wrapped Little Smokies Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the 📝 comments below.
Bacon Wrapped Little Smokies
Ingredients
- 1 lb. bacon
- 14 oz. package of cocktail sausages
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Slice bacon into thirds – using a longer piece of bacon will wrap too many times around the sausage and will not crisp up during baking.
- Wrap each little smokie with a piece of bacon, overlapping the ends., Place seam side down and tuck into glass 8×8 baking dish. You want the wrapped sausages to sit snug up against each other – if there is space between the pieces, the bacon will come unwrapped. If using a larger baking dish, you can secure each piece of bacon around the sausage with a toothpick.
- Sprinkle pepper and brown sugar over the top of the sausages.
- Place a sheet of plastic wrap over the dish of sausages and refrigerate for 1-2 hours – this allows the brown sugar and bacon fat to meld together.
- Bake 45-50 minutes, until bacon is crispy.
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Notes
Keep any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days. Reheat in the air fryer or oven to make them crispy again. Avoid microwaving or else they will be a little soggy. Notes: To air fry – Preheat your air fryer to 350°F and cook for 15 minutes. Wrap each piece and use a toothpick to keep it in place. We prefer using regular bacon instead of thick cut. If you opt for thick cut bacon, you might need to adjust the cooking time or the bacon might not crisp up as well. Using a glass baking dish makes cleaning up a breeze. Brown sugar can caramelize and stick to the pan, especially if you’re using a baking sheet or metal dish. To avoid this, either use a glass baking dish or line a metal dish thoroughly with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Hot soapy water will help dissolve caramelized sugar from glass dishes. When using a larger baking dish or if there’s extra space in the dish, you may need to secure the bacon-wrapped little smokies with toothpicks. If the sausages are packed closely together, toothpicks are not necessary.
Nutrition
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