Crispy Bacon
Techniques | American
Cooking bacon in a splash of water sounds wrong, but it’s the easiest way I know to get crispy, evenly cooked rashers without burnt edges or undercooked fat. I’ve been doing it for years and didn’t realise it wasn’t common until I posted it on TikTok and the comments lost their minds. The water gently renders the fat and cooks the bacon through before any of it sees real heat, so by the time the water has evaporated the bacon is set up to crisp without burning. It’s a chef’s home kitchen trick, and once you’ve tried it you won’t go back.
Crispy Bacon Explained
Why the water method works
The water poaches the bacon at 100°C, which renders the fat slowly and cooks the muscle through gently. As the water evaporates the temperature climbs, the rendered fat takes over and the bacon starts to fry in its own fat. The result is rashers that are crisp from edge to edge with no soft, fatty bits and no burnt corners. The whole point is starting cold and letting the water do the work.
Choosing your bacon
Streaky bacon (also called middle bacon in Australia, or American-style) has the most intermuscular fat, which is what renders down and crisps up. Back bacon and shortcut will work too but won’t get as crisp because there’s less fat to render. Lay the rashers flat in the pan with a little space between them so they crisp evenly, and start in a cold pan, not a hot one.
Ingredients
- bacon, streaky bacon works best in my opinion
- water
Directions
- In a large, cold pan, lay the bacon out flat and add a little bit of water. You want just enough water to just cover it.
- Place your pan on a stove on a high heat for 2-3 minutes. This will slowly reduce the water until it completely evaporates.
- Once the water has evaporated, turn the stove down to medium temperature and your bacon will start to crisp up. Make sure you keep your eye on it so it doesn’t burn.
- Once the underside has some colour on it, flip your bacon. Cook on this side for 1-2 minutes and flip again. I flip it another once or twice so both sides have lots of colour. You can turn down the heat if you feel it’s cooking too fast.
- Take it out of the pan and place onto a paper towel or wire rack. Allow it to cool for 3-4 minutes before getting stuck in.
Recipe notes
Streaky bacon:
This is the bacon with visible stripes of fat running through it (also called middle bacon). The fat is what renders and crisps. If your butcher has dry-cured streaky, that’s the best option, the surface dries out and crisps faster than wet-cured supermarket bacon.
Water:
Tap water is fine. You only need enough to just cover the bacon, around half a cup for 6 rashers. Too much water just means a longer evaporation time before the bacon starts to crisp.