With the arrival of summer tomatoes, we've been eating a lot of BLTs. We spread our bacon slices out in a very large pan and cook them on the stovetop, and we were reminded last night that it pays to turn the heat down...
When we're hungry and in a hurry, we're always tempted to crank up the flame and sizzle the bacon fast and furious. But inevitably, we burn it. See, bacon can burn pretty quickly, and there are usually thinner spots in the middle of the slice that cook faster, meaning they'll be burnt to a crisp before the juicy, fatty ends have time to cook.
There's also the problem of hot spots in your skillet. No matter how fancy and expensive the pan we're using, we find that we need to occasionally scoot the slices around to make sure the middles of the slices don't cook too quickly.
All of this is best accomplished if you keep your heat on medium, even low-medium. The bacon will cook more evenly, and you have time to keep an eye on it and flip it before it burns. Because there's nothing worse than having your L and T ready to go, only to have to start all over with the B.
How do you cook your bacon? Do you go slow in a skillet or microwave it?
Related: Tip: Save Your Bacon Fat
(Image: Flickr member rick, licensed for use under Creative Commons)
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This is how I do my bacon. My wife has a hard time waiting but I'm slowly convincing her that it's worth the time. :)
I've heard a low oven works well, too, but haven't tried it since slow on the stovetop works so well.
I use the oven since you can fit more on a baking sheet than in the skillet. about 20-25 min @350.
I like it better stove top -- the oven works for a lot of people, but for some reason stove bacon seems to taste better to me.
Also, I like to cut the slices in half -- it keeps them from wrinkling up, and the slices cook more evenly.
I've also had a tendency to rush bacon--I'm an impatient cook in general... If you cook it on lower heat, does that mean less grease splatter? That would be extra incentive, I hate cleaning up after bacon! Lately I've been doing it in the microwave. I feel guilty using all those paper towels, but the clean-up is SO much easier (and the bacon turns out surprisingly well).
The oven method is really nice for brunch sometimes when you're messing with potatoes and eggs, or maybe pancakes all on the stovetop.
I much prefer the oven method (or toaster oven if it's hot). The pieces seem to stay flatter that way and it saves the stove top from bacon grease splatters.
I also cook my bacon in the oven. I lay it on top of a cooling rack placed on top of a cookie sheet and bake it for about 20 minutes at 375. It comes out nice and crisp, and all the grease gets collected away from the bacon! Plus, the smell of burnt bacon wont permeate the house that way.
I have no doubt that high-broil is the best way to cook bacon -- either crispy or juicy.
1. Turn on broiler.
2. Lay out bacon strips on broiler pan.
3. Place bacon in the oven and walk away for 3 minutes.
4. Watch it like a hawk until the color turns to a light burgundy.
5. Cool on paper towels to allow bacon to firm up.
6. Enjoy!
Why is there so much liquid in the pan in the picture? I fry mine fast without burning no problem, a happy medium is all that's required. I suppose it depends how you like your bacon though. My grandfather grills his.
Cut in half. slow and low with frequent turning to keep flat. Also have to drain of excess fat about 2/3 of the way through.
I cook mine in the oven on 400. The bacon cooks perfectly as long as you turn it once, and it stays much flatter than on the stove top. I line the pan with tinfoil first, which makes clean-up really easy.
I lay bacon on my broiler pan and put it in a cold oven, then turn it to 400F. It doesn't take too long, and the pan naturally collects the grease underneath the bacon. It cooks evenly (with one rotation of the pan, usually). I love this method as it makes for crisp-chewy bacon, and I never have to maneuver molten pieces of meat swimming in lava-grease.
My husband and I got our method from "Men's Health" magazine.
We cook the bacon on a cookie sheet at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes. Nice and crispy, but still with a tiny bit of the yummy bacon fat. No overwhelming bacon smell in the apartment. Perfect.
I declare this a gratuitous bacon post.
Love it. :)
Am I the only one who use my foreman grill for this? The tilt moves the grease away, the cover keeps the grease from coating my entire kitchen. and the top also means no curling. I almost forgot - no flipping. It is easy, fast and not hot for the summer as an oven can be.
I just did a whole batch of bacon in the oven. I keep it as low as 300, and just keep an eye on it. I love the melt in your mouth texture that it gets from oven cooking!
We do our bacon in the oven. There's no way we can fit more than 4 slices in our pan, so a baking sheet is the way to go.
Never in a microwave.
I've been cooking it low and slow for some time now. I put it on a cast iron skillet at 1 or 2, yes, that's right, hop in the shower, back in time to flip it (in boxers!), start the eggs (over easy) and english muffin (toaster oven), back to dressing, then to by the time I'm reasonably done, the whole shebang is done. Then put the muffin on a plate, scoop the egg on it, break the yoke and let it seep into the muffin, put the bacon on the side, let it cool and its ready to go! The bacon is perfect. Meaty with very little fat since its all cooked off. Its not crisp, but you could wait a bit longer if that's your preference.