Bacon - Frying to a Soft or Firm Crisp

Once, forty-five years ago or better, my sister and I were looking at a package of bacon, and a frying pan, and trying to fathom how to cook it.

It isn't hard to do, but once a technique is learned, it becomes second nature.

The bacon I purchase, comes in a flat, plastic sleeve. It is sliced and spread like cards in the package. You can get bacon that is sliced very thin, to bacon that is sliced very thick.

Bacon is a cured product. It is pork belly that is coated with a special curing salt for a week or so, then smoked at a low temperature until the meat is almost cooked through, then, sliced and stored until ready to use.

We cook our bacon in a frying pan. Medium heat. No extra oil. A small amount of water.

The bacon is separated into individual strips, and placed side by side in a cold pan. Then, after the meat is arranged in the pan, the heat is turned on. I use medium heat. I was told to use a small amount of water in the pan to keep the bacon from curling as you cook it. It may help the situation, but if bacon wants to curl, it's going to curl despite your best efforts.

Usually, you start the pan, and ignore it until you can smell the bacon. Then, you start to flip the pieces over. As it cooks, it pulls the grease out of the piece. The edges will start to brown. The strip of white fat along piece will start to shrink and the meat that is marbled in, will start to brown. It starts out very limp and as it is cooked, becomes firmer and firmer.

When you have a nice browned color, remove the bacon from the pan and place on a paper towel to absorb the extra grease. You may eat it as soon as it is cooled. If you eat it too soon, you will burn your mouth, so be cautious.

Enjoy!

Cutting the bacon in half just makes them easier to flip. We use ours for BLT's, so it is nice to have the bacon short enough to fit on the sandwich.

Pan. Water. Bacon. Heat. Cook. Turn. Turn. Turn. Turn. Drain. Eat.