Monthly Archives: March 2009


How to cook bacon

I love crisp bacon. (You probably do too.) My doctor almost had a heart attack when I told him that I eat a pound of bacon every weekend. (Well, at least 3/4 of a pound.) He was only slightly assuaged when I told him that the bacon had been completely rendered of its fat content leaving essentially a crackling.

For years I struggled with the issue of how to cook bacon so that it was supremely crisp. I tried everything. It’s been so long that I don’t remember what caused me to find the secret but it’s so completely counterintuitive that I thought I’d share it.

You should start with good bacon. It doesn’t have to be thick-sliced but that’s the way I like it. My preferred brand is Wellshire available at Whole Foods:

The secret is to do the “frying” in a enough previously-rendered bacon fat to submerge the uncooked bacon:

Cooking on a medium-high flame, you need to watch carefully (at least until the process is well-understood). When the downward-facing side is a medium-dark brown, turn the bacon.

When the second side is the same color, it’s done. Remove the bacon to a double layer of paper towels and blot each strip while still hot.

Allow to cool so it becomes completely crisp and eat it. Notice how very little fat remains in what you’re eating. Cook up some more!

Recipe Videos

I hope we can generate some useful video of recipes being prepared. Here’s the very first one I ever shot (in 2000): “Lemon Risotto” starring Deb Dawson:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNEi7izf9DI&hl=en&fs=1]

Last night’s dinner

What do food bloggers do except write elaborate descriptions of the outrageous meals they made on a weeknight? (So, you’ve been warned!)

Some five years ago, Manhattan food critics were stunned when Daniel Boulud put the foie gras hamburger on the menu at DB Bistro Moderne. They mostly commented on the price ($32 today) rather than on the novelty; after all, Larousse Gastronomique contains the recipe. I’ve never had enough curiosity to give up a Manhattan meal at, say, Anthos, to try the DB Bistro version but I was always curious about whether the combination actually worked.

All this to say that it’s not hard to find out. Get the fresh foie at Savenor’s:
Foie-Gras-in-package

Grind your hamburger from chuck making certain that you have at least 20% fat:
two-raw-hamburgers

Grill it up and put it on top of some caramelized onions:
hamburger-on-bun

Finally, sear some foie gras for the top:
Foie-gras-hamburger

It’s really good!