Let’s chat about the microwave. Many kitchens have this appliance. It is handy for warming coffee and reheating leftover food too. This little box often gets ignored. People underestimate what it does. But this appliance holds surprises. It can unlock different cooking methods. Imagine steamed vegetables made easily. Delicate fish is simple to cook. You can even bake items inside. Perfectly toasted nuts are possible. It’s time we thought again. Let’s see the microwave differently now. It’s not just for reheating meals. It’s a versatile and powerful tool. It makes fantastic food fast with minimal fuss.
Let’s talk about bacon cooking next. Making bacon often means oily splashes everywhere. You watch it closely, hoping for crispy, not burned, results. Pan-frying is classic but still messy. It can make bacon uneven sometimes. Bits get too cooked or stay chewy.
This needs your full attention, which is really a pain when you’re busy. Microwaves might not seem right for crisp bacon, but Chef Frank Proto has a method that says it does just that. He promises crispy bacon fast and easy. Proto says he wouldn’t use one at work, but it’s great for home cooks needing a few slices quickly.
This way is quite simple too. It needs minimal items, and clean-up is light afterward. Basic items include a microwave plate. You need several sheets of paper towel. Get your bacon ready for cooking. Start by putting bacon strips in a single layer.
Place them on paper towels covering the plate. This first layer is very important. It catches the fat dripping from the bacon during cooking. Cover the bacon with more paper towels afterward.
Add maybe two or three more sheets on top. This top layer actually serves a dual purpose. It also follows a simple scientific principle. Paper towels catch splatters, making less mess.
Their main job is soaking up extra fat, Proto shared. He says this aligns with how microwaves cook food. Think of pan-frying; bacon cooks in its own fat. That gives it flavor but can also make it uneven and soggy.
Bacon, Spinach and Cream Potatoes
Equipment
- 1 Large Pot For boiling potatoes
- 1 Small skillet For cooking bacon and onions
- 1 Potato Masher Or fork/ricer
- 1 Kitchen towel For wringing out spinach
Ingredients
Main
- 3 pounds Idaho potatoes peeled and sliced
- Salt
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 strips center cut bacon chopped
- 1 medium onion quartered and thinly sliced
- 1 cup cream
- 2 boxes frozen chopped spinach defrosted and wrung out in a kitchen towel
- Salt and pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg eyeball it
Instructions
- Place potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring up to a boil, salt water and cook until tender, 12 to 15 minutes.
- To a small skillet over medium heat add a little extra-virgin olive oil and bacon and brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Add onions and cook until soft, 5 minutes more.
- Drain the potatoes and place back in the hot pot. Add bacon, onions and defrosted spinach to potatoes, mash to combine then add cream. Mash until smooth and season the mixture with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
Notes
This method makes bacon crisp better by removing fat. Paper towels wick away the fat so it gets dry. But towels also aid cooking by producing steam, similar to adding water for steaming vegetables.
Bacon naturally has moisture inside it. Paper towels trapping this moisture create steam. Steam helps cook the bacon all the way through. It cooks evenly when started this way. Microwaves heat the water and fat in bacon. The fat melts, and the paper towels pull it away.
Steam helps cook the bacon before crisping begins. Bacon is layered and covered like that. Then the plate goes into the microwave on high power. Cooking time is fast for microwave bacon.
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Chef Proto suggests four to six minutes. The time depends on how thick the bacon is. It also depends on how crispy you want it. One test took only three minutes even. This speed is a big benefit over other methods.
It’s good for a quick breakfast you make yourself, or when you need bacon for sandwiches or salads. Comparing methods shows its benefits clearly. Pan-frying is fast for small amounts.
But it needs watching, as it splatters oil a lot. It can often cook unevenly. Oven baking is great for cooking lots of bacon. It cooks evenly with no splattering at all. You don’t have to watch it while it bakes. But it takes longer, waiting for the oven to heat up.
Cook the Book: Bacon Fat Mayonnaise
Equipment
- 1 Immersion blender or whisk An immersion blender makes emulsification much easier and faster.
- 1 Medium Bowl Large enough to contain the mixture and allow whisking or blending.
- 1 Measuring Cups and Spoons
Ingredients
Main
- 5 egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 7 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 1/4 cups rendered bacon fat
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Freshly ground Tellicherry black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Ensure all ingredients, particularly the egg yolks and bacon fat (if it solidified), are at room temperature.
- If the bacon fat has solidified, gently warm it until it is liquid but not hot.
- In a medium bowl, combine the egg yolks, Dijon mustard, and freshly squeezed lemon juice.
- Using an immersion blender or whisk, begin mixing the yolk mixture.
- Very slowly, drip or drizzle the liquid bacon fat into the yolk mixture while continuously blending or whisking.
- Continue adding the bacon fat in a slow, steady stream as the emulsion thickens.
- Once all the bacon fat is incorporated and the mixture is thick and emulsified, season with fine sea salt.
- Add freshly ground black pepper to taste and mix to combine.
- Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
- Transfer the bacon fat mayonnaise to a clean container and store in the refrigerator.
Notes
The microwave method is efficient and fast. It makes a small mess with the paper towels used. Perfect for a few slices; you don’t have to heat up the oven. The science is simple here, quite fascinating, honestly. Microwaves make molecules shake and heat up.
Water and fat are polar molecules that they target. Bacon has a lot of water and fat inside. As the microwave heats things, the fat melts out. Paper towels above and below act as wicks. They pull the melted fat away from the bacon strips.
Removing the liquid fat lets the bacon get dry. Its structure gets brittle as the water leaves it. This creates the crisp texture we like. First, steam cooks the bacon thoroughly, you see. It stops rubbery spots that you get on the stove.
Testing the method proves the results are good. The bacon turns out super crispy and delicious. Speed and simplicity are real advantages here. Need a few slices for a salad topping sometime?
Instead of a messy pan, you use a plate and paper towels. You get perfect bacon in minutes, truly. Clean-up is tossing the paper and wiping the plate. Success needs a few practical ideas remembered always. Timing is important when cooking bacon. It depends on your microwave’s power level.
The thickness of your bacon also changes the cooking time. Thicker bacon needs more minutes, perhaps six. Thinner bacon might finish in three minutes total. Start with a shorter time, add 30 seconds to check. Do this until your desired crispness is achieved. Like toasting nuts, avoid burning them.
Remember, using safe cookware is always vital. Never use plastic that isn’t labeled microwave-safe. This is crucial with fatty foods like bacon. Heating fat can leach unwanted chemicals, unfortunately. Stick with glass or ceramic microwave-safe plates, please.
Ones for microwave use are usually fine. The plate and bacon will be hot; handle carefully. Once your bacon is ready, you can use it in many ways. It’s good for a quick meal eaten alone.
Crumbling it on salads adds flavor and texture. Putting it on burgers makes them better. Incorporate bacon into countless other foods. The convenience helps in adding bacon to weeknight meals. It’s less of a chore and cooks very fast.
Embracing the microwave for more than just reheating helps. It handles tricky foods surprisingly well, really. Like bacon, with speed and effectiveness shown. Understanding the simple science aids confidence.
Microwave Cornbread Eggs Benedict
Equipment
- 1 Microwave Oven
- 1 Microwave Safe Bowl (1-quart) For poaching eggs
- 1 Microwave Safe Plate For cooking bacon
- 1 Microwave Safe Cup or Bowl For cornbread muffins
- 1 Small Microwave Safe Bowl For cheese sauce
Ingredients
Main
- 2 large eggs
- 4 strips bacon
- 1 package microwave cornbread
- 4 slices American cheese
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce recommended: Tabasco
- 1 teaspoon mustard
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Chives chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Fill a 1-quart microwave safe bowl 1/2 full with water. Crack the eggs into it and poke a hole in the yolks with a skewer or toothpick. Microwave on high for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes until the whites are set and the yolks are still soft. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- Put 2 layers of paper towels onto a microwave safe plate and place the bacon strips on top. Microwave on high power for about 3 minutes, or until crisp. Set aside.
- Mix the microwave cornbread according to package directions. Cook 2 English muffin size portions using a microwave safe cup according to package directions. Remove from the cup and put onto plates.
- Tear the cheese into pieces and put them into a small microwave safe bowl. Add the milk, hot sauce, and mustard and season with salt and pepper. Microwave on high for 1 minute, stirring half way through, or until the cheese is melted and smooth.
- To assemble, top each cornbread muffin with 2 slices of bacon. Put a poached egg on top of each and cover each with half the cheese sauce. Garnish with chives and serve.
Notes
Heating fat and water, with the paper towel absorbing, helps. Steam cooks through, leading to a crisp finish. You get results similar to or better than those of traditional methods. All while saving time on cleaning up after you finish. Next time a bacon craving happens, maybe try this. Remember the power of the microwave sitting on your countertop.
Bacon-Wrapped Water Chestnuts
Equipment
- 1 Rimmed Baking Sheet
- 1 Cooling Rack Fits inside the baking sheet
- 1 Resealable Plastic Bag Or mixing bowl for marinating
- 1 Mixing Bowl For the glaze
- 1 Toothpicks
Ingredients
Main
- Two 8-ounce cans whole water chestnuts drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 14 slices bacon cut crosswise into thirds
- 1/3 cup ketchup
- 1/3 cup firmly-packed dark brown sugar1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- Nonstick cooking spray
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Combine the water chestnuts and soy sauce in a resealable plastic bag and let marinate at room temperature, tossing and massaging the bag occasionally, for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Wrap each water chestnut in a piece of bacon and secure with a toothpick. Set a cooling rack into a rimmed baking sheet and arrange the bacon-wrapped water chestnuts on top. Bake until the bacon renders its fat and is crisp, about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, stir together the ketchup, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and 1/3 cup water in a bowl to make a sauce.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven and carefully lift the cooling rack off the baking sheet. Drain away any fat in the baking sheet and wipe dry with paper towels. Line the baking sheet with foil and lightly spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray. Carefully transfer the bacon-wrapped water chestnuts to the bowl with the sauce, swirling to fully coat, then spread out on the baking sheet.
- Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake, tossing every few minutes, until the sauce is reduced to a sticky glaze, about 15 minutes. Immediately transfer the bacon-wrapped water chestnuts to a warm serving platter. Sprinkle with pepper and serve while hot.
Notes
Baking on a rack in the first step is crucial for rendering fat and achieving crispy bacon. Don't skip this.
Watch the glaze closely in the second baking step. Brown sugar can burn quickly once it reaches a sticky consistency. Tossing every few minutes is key.
For a touch of heat, add a pinch of cayenne pepper or chili flakes to the glaze mixture.
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