On a leisurely morning, nothing beats the pleasure of brewing a cup of tea as the savory scent of bacon fills the air in the kitchen. However, achieving the perfect crispness in bacon is not always as easy as it seems. While preparing bacon may appear simple, I have never been fond of frying it in oil due to the undesirable greasy and limp texture it often results in, potentially ruining a breakfast sandwich.
Recently, while scrolling through social media, I came across a chef who claimed that bacon could be made even more delicious without any extra ingredients—just a bit of water. Although the concept of cooking bacon in water may sound unusual, the idea behind it is that the meat should release its own fat, allowing it to crisp up and develop a more intense flavor.
Intrigued by this method, I decided to put it to the test to determine whether it was merely a passing internet trend. After trying out the technique, I can confirm that it indeed enhances the taste of bacon significantly.
Cooking bacon using this method turned out to be surprisingly simple. I placed the bacon strips in a cold frying pan and added enough water to cover them. Then, I heated the pan over medium-high heat until the water started to boil, and subsequently reduced the heat to medium.
After waiting for about five to eight minutes for the water to evaporate, which took a bit longer than traditional frying, I used the time to make a cup of tea. As the water fully evaporated, the bacon started to sizzle and quickly became crispy. I continued cooking until it reached the desired level of crispiness, then turned off the stove and assembled my breakfast sandwich. The first bite pleasantly surprised me with how delicious the bacon turned out.
Curious about the effectiveness of this method, I delved into the reasons why it works so well and learned that bacon is more prone to burning and uneven cooking when fried in oil.
It appears that adding oil to bacon is unnecessary, as the meat should naturally release its own fat, and using oil can lead to the white fatty parts burning before the lean meat fully cooks, resulting in unevenly cooked and charred edges with a chewy rather than crispy texture.
By using water to cook the bacon, it allows for a gentler cooking process, ensuring that the fat renders evenly, resulting in a uniformly crispy texture throughout every part of the bacon.
While the water cooking method may take a little longer than frying, the outcome is definitely worth it. The bacon turns out beautifully golden, crispy, and with a delightful smoky flavor. It no longer retains the unpleasant greasiness often associated with frying, making it hard for me to consider cooking bacon in oil again, as it simply tastes richer and better when cooked with just a splash of water.