Read The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook Online
Authors: The Editors at America's Test Kitchen
Tags: #Cooking
The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook (258 page)
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Most of us cook bacon by frying it in a pan, but controlling the temperature of a pan on the stovetop takes patience and constant attention, and even then it sometimes seems impossible to avoid getting raw and burnt spots. We’d heard that oven-fried bacon is just as good as fried bacon without the constant tending and the splattering fat, so we thought it was worth a try. The result? Cooking bacon in the oven was in fact just as good, and it even had a couple of advantages. The oven gives you a larger margin of error for perfectly cooked bacon than the frying pan. It also cooks the bacon strips more consistently, without raw or burnt spots. And the only tending needed is turning the pan halfway through cooking. Oven-frying does take a couple of minutes longer than pan-frying (10 to 12 minutes for 12 strips), but you get perfectly crisp, evenly cooked bacon with no hassle.
SERVES 4 TO 6
A large rimmed baking sheet is important here to contain the rendered bacon fat. If cooking more than one tray of bacon, switch their oven positions once about halfway through cooking. You can use thin- or thick-cut bacon here, though the cooking times will vary.
12 | slices bacon |
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Arrange bacon slices in rimmed baking sheet. Cook until fat begins to render, 5 to 6 minutes; rotate pan. Continue cooking until bacon is crisp and brown, 5 to 6 minutes for thin-cut bacon, 8 to 10 minutes for thick-cut bacon. Transfer bacon to paper towel–lined plate, drain, and serve.
BACON BY THE SLICE
Bacon is most often sold by the pound or half-pound, but since recipes often call for just a few slices of bacon, you’re bound to have some leftovers. And if you’re not planning on cooking the rest soon, you may want to freeze it. But since some recipes only call for a slice or two for flavoring, how can you freeze bacon so that you can use each slice as needed? We have found that the best way to keep smaller amounts of bacon on hand is to simply roll one or two slices up tightly, put the rolled bacon in a zipper-lock bag, and freeze it. Then you can pull out the desired number of slices as you need them.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Home fries can be tough to get right—they can turn out greasy, bland, and too spicy. We wanted perfectly seasoned potatoes with a crisp, deep golden brown crust and a tender, moist interior. First, we determined that medium-starch Yukon Gold potatoes worked best. We cooked them briefly in water before sautéing them in a heavy skillet. To get them really brown and crisp, we learned we needed to let them sit undisturbed in hot fat for a full four to five minutes before the first turn. Sautéed onion bumped up their flavor. A total of three or four more turns over another 10 to 15 minutes and seasoning with salt, pepper, and paprika gave us the delectable golden brown nuggets we wanted.
See “ROUGH DICING POTATOES FOR HOME FRIES” illustrations that follow recipe.
SERVES 2 TO 3
If doubling this recipe, instead of crowding the skillet, cook two batches of home fries separately. While making the second batch, keep the first batch hot and crisp by spreading the fries on a baking sheet placed in a 300-degree oven.
2¹⁄ | tablespoons vegetable oil |
1 | onion, chopped fine |
1 | pound Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into ¹⁄ |
1¹⁄ | teaspoons salt |
1 | tablespoon unsalted butter |
1 | teaspoon paprika |
Pepper |
1.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to small bowl; set aside.
2.
Meanwhile, place potatoes and 1 teaspoon salt in large saucepan, cover with ¹⁄
2
inch water, and bring to boil over high heat. As soon as water begins to boil, drain potatoes thoroughly in colander.
3.
Heat remaining 1¹⁄
2
tablespoons oil and butter in now-empty skillet over medium-high heat. Add potatoes and shake skillet to evenly distribute potatoes in single layer, making sure 1 side of each piece is touching skillet. Cook without stirring until potatoes are golden brown on bottom, about 4 to 5 minutes, then carefully turn potatoes, making sure potatoes remain in single layer. Repeat process until potatoes are tender and browned on most sides, turning 3 to 4 times, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in onion, paprika, remaining ¹⁄
4
teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste and serve.
1.
First, slice potato lengthwise into quarters.
2.
Next, make 2 stacks and cut each stack lengthwise into quarters.
3.
Finally, turn stacks 90 degrees and cut horizontally to complete dice.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
A side of freshly made hash browns seems to be a rare breakfast treat these days. We wanted to bring these thin, crisply sautéed potato cakes back to the breakfast table with a great recipe. High-starch russet potatoes worked best; they adhered well, browned beautifully, and had the most pronounced potato flavor. And we found there was no need to precook the potatoes—raw grated potatoes (squeezed of their moisture) held together while cooking and had a more tender interior as well as more potato flavor and an attractive, deeply browned crust. Cooked in a sizzling hot pan with melted butter, these were the very best that hash browns have to offer.
SERVES 4
We prefer hash browns prepared with potatoes that have been cut with the large shredding disk of a food processor, but a box grater can also be used. To prevent potatoes from turning brown, grate them just before cooking.
1 | pound russet potatoes, peeled and shredded |
¹⁄ | teaspoon salt |
Pepper | |
1 | tablespoon unsalted butter |
1.
Wrap shredded potatoes in clean kitchen towel and squeeze thoroughly of excess moisture. Toss potatoes with ¹⁄
4
teaspoon salt and pepper to taste.
2.
Meanwhile, melt ¹⁄
2
tablespoon butter in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat until it begins to brown, swirling to coat skillet. Scatter potatoes evenly over entire pan and press to flatten. Reduce heat to medium and cook until dark golden brown and crisp, 7 to 8 minutes.
3.
Slide hash browns onto large plate. Add remaining ¹⁄
2
tablespoon butter to skillet and melt, swirling to coat pan. Invert hash browns onto second plate and slide, browned side up, back into skillet. Continue to cook over medium heat until bottom is dark golden brown and crisp, 5 to 6 minutes longer.
4.
Fold hash brown cake in half; cook about 1 minute longer. Slide onto serving platter or cutting board, cut into wedges, and serve immediately.
After melting butter in step 3 and sliding potatoes back into skillet, top hash browns with 1 diced tomato, 1 ounce shredded cheddar cheese, and 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil. Proceed with recipe, folding potato cake in half and cooking until cheese melts.
After melting butter in step 2, divide potatoes into 4 equal portions and reduce cooking time to 5 minutes per side, turning them with spatula rather than inverting them using plate. Once potatoes are fully browned, top each with portion of 1 thin slice deli ham, quartered, 1 thinly sliced small tomato, and 1 ounce shredded Swiss cheese. Cover and continue to cook over medium heat until cheese melts, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve immediately.