Posted on 08/12/2023 5:30:47 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
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How to Make a Perfect BLT
What makes a BLT the perfect sandwich? It’s the bacon, isn’t it? Of course it’s the bacon! It’s always the bacon. But wait, what about the tomato? Ah, equally essential! You absolutely need a fat slice or two of flavorful, perfectly ripe tomato. And then, not least, there’s the lettuce. Limp lettuce could never do. The crisp bite of cold iceberg lettuce is crucial. Yes, it takes all three elements — the B, the L, and the T — working together as one delicious whole. Here’s how to make the best BLT.
We’ll start with the bacon, as any reasonable person would. For tips and advice on creating the best bacon for BLTs, we turn to resident bacophile Chef John. He recommends baking the bacon. You might say, he’s a bacon baker.
How to Make Perfect Bacon for BLTs
Chef John’s bacon-for-BLTs method involves several easy steps. It may take a few minutes more on the front end, but you’ll save that time on the clean-up end.
Step 1: Break Out the Heavy-Duty Aluminum Foil
Tear off a piece of foil that’s twice as long as your baking sheet. Watch the video below to see Chef John’s patented pull-and-pinch method for prepping the foil. “Using heavy duty aluminum foil and creating some valleys for the bacon fat to flow results in perfectly flat, perfectly crisp, yet still succulent strips of bacon,” says Chef John. “Perfect for a BLT!”
Step 2: Place the Bacon on the Aluminum Foil.
Place the pinched, ridged foil on your baking sheet and lay the bacon down across the foil. You can go perpendicular to the pinched peaks (the preferred method) or horizontal — ultimately, it doesn’t matter all that much. Either way, the bacon fat will drain into the troughs.
Step 3: Bake Your Bacon
Place the bacon in an oven preheated to 375 degrees F and bake it to beautiful — about 25 to 30 minutes.
Why is this the best way to cook bacon for BLTs? Chef John explains: “The fat runs down into the crevices, so the bacon cooks above the fat and not in it. And that produces a very even doneness and superior texture. You get a beautiful crisp strip. But it’s not dry. It’s still tender and succulent. Perfect for a BLT.”
If bacon’s the boss of the BLT, then ripe, juicy tomatoes are the chairman of the BLT board. Thick slices of tomato provide the essential juicy counterpart and soft mouthfeel to the crispy, flavorful bacon. The best tomatoes are large, dense, slicing tomatoes, preferably heirloom, and obviously in season. True, you can find big red tomatoes in the store year-round; but if you’re in search of the perfect BLT, you’ll only realize your quest when tomatoes are in peak season.
Let Us Discuss Lettuce
Iceberg lettuce is the classic choice for a reason. It’s that crunchy character and overall excellent texture. Also worthy, romaine lettuce. Fancy-pants folks will experiment with arugula and the like, and that’s fine, nice for a change of pace. But in pursuit of the perfect BLT, we’ll go with iceberg all the way. (Save a section of iceberg for these Wedge Salads on a Stick).
Bread and Mayo
So we’ve gotten this far and haven’t even mentioned the ingredient that provides the sandwiching. The bread. Again, feel free to go low brow here. A couple slices of toasted white bread make an ideal foil for the B and the T. You’ll just want to slather ‘em up with enough mayonnaise. No need to make your own fancy mayo from fresh eggs — unscrew a jar and have a ball. Just be sure to provide enough moisture.
How to Layer Your BLT
Add mayo to both slices of toast. Lay down a bed of lettuce on the bottom piece of toast. Next, the bacon. Finally, the tomato slices. Viola, the perfect BLT!
https://www.allrecipes.com/article/how-make-perfect-blt/
At an early age and to this day, I have preferred Maricle Whip to mayo on a BLT
Also, the bread should be toasted such that the juice from the tomato permeates it rather than make dough of plain bread
It’s the MAYO Grasshopper, the MAYO!
Hubby loves them but no lettuce.
The best BLT I’ve ever had was in New Orleans, and was made with fried green tomatoes, as well as regular tomato slices. So when I want to indulge myself, that’s how I make them now.
Friends and family have been giving us tomatoes from their gardens.
We love BLTs!
BLTs for BLD!! (Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner!)
Put up eight pints of pickles last week - wife is till recovering from surgery so I was on my own - not bad for the fist time solo.
Tomatoes are taking forever to ripen, but we have had a ton of grape tomatoes.
Zuccinni did NOT all arrive at once this year, so we've been able to eat them without panicking. The rest of the squash is VERY slow, I suspect a rabbit's been snacking early morning.
Great crop of peppers this year, all kinds - very healthy.
That's all that's shaking right now in central Connecticut.
I have always seen Miracle Whip as horrifying toxic waste, capable of transforming any food item into a Superfund site. That stuff is foul.
Still, I know there must be plenty of people who like the stuff, or it wouldn’t still be sold. I don’t mind if other people eat it, as long as I never have to.
Agree with the toasting of the bread, especially white bread.
When my boys were young, summer meals were always BLTs and a popsicle for dessert - but they had to eat the popsicle OUTSIDE! ;)
Preach it.
My version:
MUST be a homegrown tomato - the supermarket ones won’t do.
Sourdough bread is my fave, toasted.
Mayo- homemade, Hellman’s 2nd choice
Bacon - I do bake it in the toaster oven
No lettuce, so mine is a BT
Options depending on my mood:
Onion - very thin slices
Fresh basil leaves
Sprinkle of hot sauce on mayo layer
*******
Headed for Aldi’s to see if they have a bottle of extra-virgin olive oil that won’t require a bank loan. The Plan is to infuse the oil with rosemary from my herb garden for use on the roasted veggies I am making tomorrow for our Lake picnic.
The rosemary olive oil sounds great on the veggies. :)
I always bake bacon - and that’s on the To-Do List, today. We are dangerously low, LOL!
One other trick I like is to chop up the bacon and put it IN the mayo then spread it on. Much easier to eat. I find that unless you really CHOMP on the sandwich, you always end up pulling OUT a piece of the bacon. This seems to solve that problem and still gives you the same flavor.
Supermarket tomatoes have no flavor. I agree with your sourdough and mayo selections, though I love nice crisp pieces of lettuce. We cook our bacon in the oven, too, but not a toaster oven, though I’m sure that works.
Good luck with your rosemary olive oil. Sounds great!
Late Summer Mother's Classic Comfort Food! Perfect! Best with still warm garden tomatoes! Yumm!
For those put off by off the shelf mayo! :O)
(Rancid whipped canola oil in jar in the refrigerator which was opened 6 months ago? Horders Mayo....I understand completely. )
(Off to previous commitment.)
OK Smart Ass....now do that verse in Deuteronomy about not eating Pork! :O !
Yes, we always viewed Miracle Whip as definitely down-market, even slightly trashy. I remember thinking it was very sweet. Miracle Whip is to mayo what “sweet tea” is to proper tea.
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