One of the very first cooking tricks I ever learned was just how much a slice or two of bacon can boost the flavor of an otherwise simple soup or braise. I was hooked from that first subtly smoky, bacon-enhanced bite. You can bet I had bacon stocked in my freezer ever after. Here's how to freeze bacon so that you can grab just a few slices when you need them.
When I'm buying bacon for cooking rather than Saturday morning munching, I spring for the really good stuff: double-smoked, thick-cut, and a good ratio of fat to meat. Check the meat counter at your grocery store — not only is this bacon sometimes less expensive than the packaged varieties, but you can get a better look at its meat-to-fat ratio and overall appearance.
If you freeze the whole package, then you're stuck with thawing (and then using) the whole package. Freezing the slices individually between layers of wax paper takes a few minutes of work at the outset, but allows you to use just a slice or two when you need them.
Take the number of slices out of the freezer when you start to prep your recipe, and they'll thaw in a few minutes at room-temperature. If your recipe calls for chopping the bacon first, I recommend doing so while the bacon is still frozen. I find that it's actually easier to cut bacon cleanly while it's still solid and cold.
How to Freeze Individual Slices of Bacon
What You Need
Ingredients
Any amount of good bacon
Equipment
Wax paper
Gallon-sized freezer bag or other freezer container
Instructions
- Lay the first slice of bacon on wax paper. Lay a long piece of wax paper on your counter. Place the first slice of bacon along one edge of the wax paper.
- Fold the wax paper over the bacon.
- Lay a second piece of bacon over the first. The two slices will be separated by a layer of wax paper.
- Fold the wax paper over the bacon. Fold the wax paper back over the second slice of bacon.
- Continue piling slices of bacon and folding the wax paper over each slice. As you pile the slices and fold the wax paper over top, you'll start to form an accordion with bacon in each fold
- Store in a freezer bag and freeze. Wrap any excess wax paper around the bacon and store it in a freezer bag or other freezer container. Freeze until solid and remove slices as you need them.
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(Images: Emma Christensen)
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Just curious, why wax paper? Could you use parchment paper, or would that not work in the freezer?
@Snoopystar - You could probably use parchment, too. The stacked bacon slices conform to each other and you have to snap off the pieces you need from the pack -- I've just always used wax paper because I assumed the bacon would stick less too it!
this is great! i never thought about better ways to store my cooking bacon in the freezer; i always just used a dull knife to pry a slice or three off the frozen block. (maybe i should have used my head.) thanks!
I always do this, with parchment paper! But I will have to try the accordion method, I currently just roll them up, essentially, and probably waste more paper than necessary.
This is great! I will have to try this with my next package of bacon :)
Well, I feel silly for never thinking of this. I always wanted bacon to come in smaller packs... but now it doesn't matter! Love it.
This is a great idea. I also roll individual slices and store them in a plastic bag. I keep a couple rolls at a time thawed in the refrigerator.
I just freeze mine on a cookie sheet and then throw them all into a ziploc freezer bag once they're frozen. Works just as well and doesn't need to waste wax / parchment paper.
Great idea! I love getting bacon from my farmers' market but can never eat it all at once.
Here is another thought: You can roast the bacon slices (they stay straight when cooked) and then use this method to wrap and freeze them. I use parchment paper too. This way if you want a couple of slices for a recipe, you don't have to dirty a pan to cook them--just chop or mince (while still frozen as suggested) and add them to your recipe. It is also a faster way to have bacon for breakfast.
I do have to hide the package deep in the freezer or else it becomes a snack instead of an ingredient!
I do something like this (not quite as neat and tidy, though : ) when I buy bacon from the supermarket. Lately, though, I've been buying it from my farmer neighbor and he only sells it already frozen--a pound of slices in a vacuum-sealed package. At first I found this frustrating, since we're only 2 people and never use a pound of bacon at a time (actually, we totally could eat it in one sitting...we just know we shouldn't!). I finally discovered that it's totally possible to cut up frozen bacon, as long as the slices are frozen fairly fanned out (rather than in a thick stack). You just need a good knife, or even good kitchen shears.
I prefer to cook my bacon all at once, then freeze it. I cut it into either half strips or smaller pieces. Then leave it to drain and dry for a bit, then throw it all into a ziploc bag in the freezer. If you give it some time to dry, it doesn't stick together. I also save the grease from cooking it in a jar in the fridge.
I find that adding the bacon from the freezer plus some of the grease in place of oil or butter in place of other fat in the recipe (say to fry onions) is just as good as cooking from raw, and can cut a bit of prep time. It also creates less waste because you don't need the wax or parchment paper.
If you leave it in half strips, several seconds in the microwave reheat it perfectly to go alongside your breakfast, with almost no hassle or dirty dishes.
My only problem is that having precooked bacon in the freezer, makes bacon look like a pretty good snack.
I have always froze raw bacon slices individually but have never thought to cook them all at once & then freeze them. Can't believe I never thought of that! Would reduce cooking/clean up time for all the recipes I make bacon for. You all are brilliant :)
I've done this technique and it sucks. Pieces of the wax paper stick to the bacon. I roll my bacon into 2 piece portions and put it in a ziploc bag.
pure genius! i was laboriously cutting bacon-width pieces of waxed paper... now i feel a little dumb...
I've had the same experience as emw1; the bacon is just moist enough for the waxed paper to stick really good before it freezes. I lay the bacon out on a silpat to freeze and then toss it in ziploc. The only problem with pre-cooking all of it is that you can't use it for recipes that use the rendered bacon fat to fry other things. I love butternut squash and sage leaves cooked in bacon fat.
Just like @gingerfire and @Katlian - I just spread mine out on a parchment paper lined pan and sort of "flash freeze" them for about an hour, then dump them into a freezer bag. They don't stick together (in my experience.) I used to accordion fold wax paper but it was a HASSLE and I did have bacon stick to that. Happy freezing bacon!
Duh! Why didn't I think of this? Thanks for the great ideas!
If want to freeze them with paper - use parchment. You can easily just lay the whole lot down, parchment and all, on a baking sheet and cook it all off in the oven with no mess (if you're wanting to cook more than one slice).