Boiled Bacon
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Inspect the bacon for quality, trim, and wash it well.
Soak the bacon in cold water for 2 hours, changing the water once or twice.
If very salty, soak overnight.
Wash the bacon in fresh water and place it in a pot with enough cold water to cover it.
Boil and serve
Cover the pot and bring to a slow boil, then boil steadily until tender, skimming off the scum and fat as needed.
Turn the bacon several times while boiling and replenish evaporated water with boiling water.
When tender, drain, remove the skin, and serve.
If cooking greens with the bacon, leave some fat for seasoning.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Bacon
- The main ingredient, which becomes tender and flavorful as it simmers slowly in water.
- Cold water
- Cooking liquid that gently simmers the bacon, and soaking in it draws out excess salt.
The step that matters
Keep the boil slow and steady. A rolling boil toughens the meat and can dry out the surface, so a gentle simmer keeps the bacon tender. Keeping it covered in water also prevents uneven cooking.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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