How To Boil Bacon?

How to boil bacon?

In this brief guide we will address the question, “How to boil bacon?” as well as other questions pertaining to the subject at hand like what is the healthier way to cook bacon and the tips for boiling.

How to boil bacon

Unlike other foods that you boil, boiling bacon can be a little time consuming because of the extra fat and salt that it contains. Moreover, you will need to change the water a few times depending on how much salt your bacon has.

Fill up a pan with water and submerge the bacon in it. Now wait for the water to boil and then lower the temperature to maintain a simmer. This is where you should leave it for a good amount of time depending on the size/weight of your bacon. The rule of thumb is 30 minutes for a 450g bacon. Soon after, you will start to see a white froth on top of the water. This is the salt coming out of your bacon. You can either discard this water completely or just remove the froth with a spoon – whatever you like.

You can read more recipes and the step by step process for different kinds of bacon here.

What is a healthier way to cook bacon?

Cooking bacon in the oven is believed to be the healthiest, but trust me when I say this, an oven does contain electromagnetic rays that it uses for heating your food – which is a big controversy. Being a nutritionist, I can wholeheartedly endorse that all cooking methods do involve some loss of nutrients. It is upto us whether we are going for taste or nutrients. Note that fitness enthusiasts consume boiled meat and food products with minimal seasoning. Why do you think they do this?

So I personally believe that boiling is the best way to go with most food products.

Boiling Hacks (Tips for boiling)

If you cook regularly, knowing when and how to boil is an essential part of your cooking regime. Boiling is a quick way to clean and disinfect food items. Not to mention that it retains original flavour while also eliminating the harmful microorganisms that may be inhabiting your food product.

Boiling is a moist-heat cooking method when the temperature of the liquid reaches 212F. The food product is completely submerged in water for even heat distribution. It is an explosive phase change between liquid state and a gas state.

It is one of the safest and most reliable methods for cooking till date, and a lot of health professionals recommend boiling water before using it. Here are some tips that will facilitate you in boiling any food product.

Use a food thermometer.

Well, this is the oldest trick in the book. When boiling any particular food product, you need to make sure that the temperature is neither too low nor too high. A quick and effective way to solve this problem is by using a food thermometer. A temperature of 212F is just right for you to boil any food product. But wait! Shouldn’t the temperature be different for different food products? Well, not really.

Since the technique in itself revolves around the use of water, and you are using that heat to boil your food product, it remains pretty much the same for all food items. Of course, there can be minor changes in the temperature range, but 212F is a benchmark.

Use salt for quick boiling

The reason you should use salt is because salt actually lowers the boiling point of water, which in turns speeds up your boiling process. It does add some salty taste to your dish, and most of the dishes use salt inevitably. So it is not really a problem unless you don’t like salt or have hypertension

Use pots reasonably

Boiling involves cooking in water, therefore you need to know when to use which pot. This actually saves you a lot of time because if you are just boiling an egg in 1 litre of water, you are just using more water than needed. Moreover, it will require more time to reach the boil.

When boiling, make sure that your pots can be covered – avoid using pans. Using deeper pots actually help to keep the food submerged properly and evenly distribute the heat. Afterall, it is the water that is cooking!

Other facts about boiling

On top of it being the best way to cook food, boiling actually concentrates the flavour of your food. It also allows you to cook a large amount of food with ease. Although some nutrients leach out in the water that is used in boiling, boiling does not affect the nutritional status of the food product. Just use the water that you boiled in along with the dish and you will not lose any nutrients while cooking!

Other FAQs about Bacon which you may be interested in.

Can you eat bacon 2 days after the use-by date?

How long can you keep bacon grease?

How long is bacon good for?

Conclusion

In this brief guide we have addressed the question, “How to boil bacon?” as well as other questions pertaining to the subject at hand like what is a healthier way to cook bacon and the tips for boiling.