How to: Microwave Bacon

One thing I don’t love about cooking blogs is when the author gets too in-deep with the personal stories. Know what I mean? It’s like – all you want is to know how to cook crispy bacon in the microwave in one easy step, and to get to the info you have to read through an homage to, like, some random dog’s birthday, you know?

Well, guess what. My blog, my dog. He is not random. And Tuesday was his birthday. Happy Birthday Tazewell!

I felt that this post was appropriate for Tazewell’s birthday because, well, it’s about how to make great bacon, fast. Tazz has been nothing but encouraging when it comes to deciding whether there should be more crispy bacon around the house.

This post is a bit delayed because Tuesday night was also my one-year Nora-versary, and we went out to dinner to celebrate. Tazz came with, and enjoyed sirloin off the “pooch patio” menu. A wonderful time was had by all. There is a picture of our group on my Facebook site, and a picture of Tazz and his dinner on Instagram, if you need more Nora, or more Tazz. I always do!

But back to the bacon.

I had heard about microwaving bacon, and a few months ago, I gave it a try.  I was not disappointed. It is a great option if frying bacon is too messy for you, or you don’t have time to bake it – I have also had problems with bacon grease making a mess in the oven. Here, the paper towels soak up all of the grease – the clean-up is so easy! If bacon isn’t the focus of the meal, and you are just adding it to another dish, like this Loaded Baked Potato Crustless Quiche or these Potato Skins with Chives, Cheese + Bacon, toss the bacon in the microwave while you are prepping another ingredient, and save yourself some time and clean-up.

Microwaving bacon takes between 3 and 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of your bacon and the power of your microwave. Once at a friend’s rental house with a dated microwave, it took closer to 8 minutes, but I have never needed more than 4.5 minutes in my own home.

The directions are easy: Just lay 3 pieces of paper towel on a microwave-safe plate. Cut 3 pieces of bacon right down the middle, to make 6 small pieces. Lay them in a single layer on the paper towel.

Cover with 2 more pieces of paper towel, and microwave on high for 3 minutes. Check at 3 minutes and continue with 30 second intervals until they are crispy. The bacon will continue to crisp for a few seconds after the microwaving stops, so don’t worry if they don’t seem like they would crack in half right when the timer goes off.

The thinner your bacon is, the quicker the microwaving will be. I have been using a reduced-sodium bacon from Whole Foods, and the pieces are so thin that they take 3 minutes (hmmm… maybe they are just “reduced sodium” because they are thinner than regular bacon?). A “normal” piece of bacon will take between 4 and 4.5 minutes. I have not tried thick-cut bacon, but maybe soon! The size of the plate is good for portion control – you can really only fit 3 pieces (6 half-pieces) on at once. If you need to make a second batch, let the plate cool first, or use a second plate. My plates are always really hot when I remove them from the microwave after cooking bacon.

Good news! I mean, even better news than being able to microwave bacon. Drum roll… you can also microwave TURKEY BACON! I was nervous to try it, but I am so glad I did. I find that turkey bacon is a little slimier (sorry) coming out of the package, so I blotted it dry, and then lined the plate with 2 paper towels on the bottom, the turkey bacon cut in half, and then one piece on top. It started popping in the microwave sooner than pork bacon, so I checked on it. It needed less than 3 minutes and was perfectly crisp. Crisper than I have ever gotten turkey bacon before. Try it out! Just keep an eye on it in the microwave.

Crumble the cooled bacon on a salad, or just eat it off the plate!