How to Cook Bacon So It's Crispy, Tender, and the Most Perfect Ever

Didn't think frying bacon could get any better? We prove it can.

Here’s a simple way how to make bacon that’s crisp and tender instead of dry and crumbly. Make crispy bacon with no risk of overcooking. Bacon cooked in water? It works!

Place the bacon (in strips or cut into pieces) and just enough water to cover it in a skillet over high heat. When the water reaches a boil, lower the heat to medium. Once all of the water has simmered away, turn down the heat to medium-low and continue cooking until the bacon is crisp and well browned. When we tried this method, the meat plumped up as it cooked instead of shriveling, leaving the bacon pleasantly crisp yet moist, not tough or brittle.

The addition of water keeps the initial cooking temperature low and gentle, so the meat retains its moisture and stays tender. By the time the water reaches its boiling point (212 degrees), the bacon fat is almost completely rendered, so you’re also much less likely to burn the meat while waiting for the fat to cook off.

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[draxish]

Been cooking bacon for 40 years, tried this a couple times now and admit that it does make the best bacon.

[Tommen]

I don’t understand all the negative feedback and often from people who haven’t tried it. We should encourage people who go to see the trouble of making such videos often just to help other people. If we put them down they are not motivated to do them. The great thing about Youtube is these people.

[louisrios]

I followed this method for a few years after seeing this video. I definitely liked the result -- the bacon gets cooked more evenly than with normal pan-frying. But it took forever to cook an entire package of bacon this way. I've now switched to baking on parchment paper, and I don't miss this method at all.

[archer]

Thanks, after spending the last 20 years cooking my bacon exclusively with the sun and a magnifying glass I was looking for a way to finally shave 30 seconds off the cooking time

[sandragrupposo]

Started for breakfast, finished for lunch

[genevey]

This works great. It does take longer, but you just start it before you start mixing up your pancake mix or whatever elaborate breakfast you are making anyway. Like all good cooking, it is about the timing (it is similar to, and takes about as long as boiling the water for pasta or potatoes). This is for a weekend breakfast/brunch. I also tried it with quite a bit less water and it seemed to work fine in less time. This is for people that like to cook. Enjoy the process...

[BrittaStorm]

I bake my bacon in the oven, comes out perfect every time.

[andalusiacadiz]

I cook mine in the oven, just as good! I saved the bacon grease for refried beans. SO good!

[Bigandrewm]

Alternatively, use the pan lid and add only enough water to form steam. This will still help distribute the temperature a lot and you'll get more even cooking in lots of kinds of "dry" foods.

[paintball]

how to spend 25 minutes making 3 slices of bacon

[russefrance]

In England, we used to call this boiled bacon. About 400 years ago, someone said, 'Hey, guess what...if you remove the water, it cooks real quick'.

[BloodManticore]

I just did this bacon, and the result is that: a) Yes you spend more time cooking it and b) It does not matter, the bacon was so perfect I almost couldn't comprehend it with my human brain. The texture, the flavor, the fat and the meat were on the whole bacon, and I just need to tell you that your life will not be the same if you try it.

[Herbie]

I followed this step by step. I ended up with a delicious bowl of bacon soup.

[eddie]

Right on man! You have family coming over, do you want to make some bacon and eggs? This is the way. Works fabulous.

[Codiggity]

You can do this by starting with a cold pan and simply cooking the bacon over Med-Low heat.. same result, 1/3 of the time

[savagecub]

Please send this video to EVERY breakfast buffet chef in Europe !!!

[robgindc]

Just tried this, but added Japanese BBQ sauce to the water. So good I'm dancing around my living room, no music playing, eating bacon & groovin'. 🤤🤣

[GarciaOnThaBeat]

This does not change the fact that in Antarctica there are 21 million penguins and in Malta there are 502, 653 inhabitants. So if the penguins decide to invade Malta, each Maltese will have to fight 42 penguins.

[LynneCunningham]

Bake it on a cookie sheet (with edges to hold the oil) lined with parchment paper. Flip half-way through cooking. Comes out evenly cooked and each piece lays perfectly flat.

[hawaiidispenser]

I once scoffed at this method... but I finally tried it this morning and the bacon was PERFECTION. Crisp, evenly cooked, and still juicy with a pleasing chew. It was, without a doubt, the best bacon I ever cooked (my usual method is just med heat in a pan until browned). However, this method also took about 20 minutes, instead of the usual 6-8 minutes. I think next time I'll experiment by just cooking it on med-low without water from the beginning to see if the water makes a difference or if it's just the long, low cooking.