Monday, March 02, 2009

Silly kitchen gadget No. 41

I love bacon. And I'm not alone. I even know self-proclaimed "vegetarians" who cannot resist it. But I don't understand the proliferation of bacon-microwaving gadgets. Is it really that hard to put bacon in a pan, turn on the heat and cook it?
For me, part of bacon's charm lies in its crispiness, and the sound and aroma of it filling my kitchen: pop sizzzzzzzzle mmmmmmmmmmm.

Can you get that with this as-seen-on-TV Bacon Wave?

Or with the Cameron Cookware Mak'n Bacon? I think not.

But it doesn't end there. No, there's still the Presto Microwave Bacon Cooker. They don't know when to stop!

And let me tell you about not knowing when to stop. I went on a bacon binge a few years ago. I started cooking it in the oven, a pound at a time. Just spread it on racks over a cookie sheet. So tasty. I would take a couple of days to eat it.

Then I got a cholesterol reading. Whoops! Lucky for me, as soon as I quit with the bacon binging, the bad reading dropped like a rock.

So in addition to finding the concept of microwaved bacon off-putting, I have no desire to find any method that makes it easier to cook the stuff.

Not even the WowBacon microwave broiler can tempt me. Even though it's fully enclosed! And eco-friendly! And only costs $20!

And comes with a promotional video! Just in case you're wondering how it works.

No, I love bacon, but I also know my weakenesses. I'll stick to special-occasion bacon, prepared in the traditional way.

9 comments:

  1. ok, ok, you caught me! I do have the Mac'n Bacon which is good, but makes the bacon turn out folded, not in long strips. So I just lay out 4 pcs on a plate, wrap in papertowel and microwave for just less than 1 minute per strip. Yum!I only eat turkey bacon and HAVE to make it in the microwave where it's cooked to a DRY crisp like cardboard. Don't ask - that's the way my grandpa used to make it. My husband likes pork bacon cooked the old fashioned way, so it's 2 kinds of bacon on the weekends in our household.

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  2. Nice to have for the task, but not nice to store or clean! It would be fun to be like Samantha on "Bewitched", making a bacon maker appear and then disappear when done with a snap of the fingers. Love bacon but hate cleaning up the grease.

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  3. Ha! I haven't seen that one before. What a chore it would be to clean it!

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  4. A lifetime ago, when I got my first microwave, someone gave me a little tray-like Corningware pan that was supposed to be microwave-safe and also enable meat to brown. It came with a ridged insert for bacon. This functioned three ways at once: It meant that both the bottom pan and the ridged rack had to be cleaned, and if the paper towel on top of the bacon didn't keep stray spatters under control, the oven itself had to be wiped down. Then again, it didn't spatter too much, because microwaving bacon, at least then, sort of dehydrated it and made it tough. Like you, KittBo, I like the smell of bacon and don't find it terrible to clean the well-seasoned cast-iron skillet we use to fry it in.

    Claire @ http://culinary-colorago.blogspot.com

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  5. I microwave, but on a plate between sheets of papertowel. It works perfectly.

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  6. Ha ha ha! Those gadgets crack me up. I'm with you, Kitt, give it to me cooked the traditional way. I can still remember the way my grandma on my dad's side cooked bacon. To a nearly burnt crisp. It was the only bacon I didn't like. But that was the way grandpa liked it, so that was how she cooked it. I think I'm going to have to have some arugula with bacon on it right now. Thanks for getting the tummy grumbling. Todd -WORC

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  7. I have to admit I have the makn bacon one which I bought for a joke and its brilliant! As long as its really streaky and not british style.

    It cooks the bacon just right, and keeps it totally out of the fat. I wipe it round with the kitchen towel that was covering it then pop it in the dishwasher.

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  8. I have a microwave bacon cooker, and I won't cook bacon any other way. You said, "I think not," to the crispy goodness, and smells emanating from your kitchen.

    I am happy to report that both of these things happen when cooking bacon in the microwave. It gets cooked to crispy perfection, but the grease drains away, and the odor fills the kitchen. Best of all worlds.

    Baaaacooooon!

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  9. Jenny, two kinds of bacon is a lot of bacon! Turkey bacon isn't bad, though ...

    JGH, if I could twitch my nose and make stuff appear and disappear, bacon would be on the list. And love handles.

    Natashya, yeah, though I guess it's dishwasher safe.


    Claire, yeah, cleaning out the microwave isn't any less arduous than cleaning the pan.

    Betts, if I had to microwave, that's how Id do it.

    Todd, you're making me hungry now. Bacon arugula salad sounds mighty fine.

    Jenny, la la la la I can't hear you. :-)

    Amy, likewise! I need no enabling!

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