Bacon! Is it man's perfect food? Is there anything that it can't make better? Is there anything left to discover about it? Indeed there is, and I'm about to share it with you.
Cooking bacon is simple enough: apply heat and watch it crinkle and brown as fat boils away and molecular magic is worked as caramelization and the Maillard reaction takes place. You can fry it in a pan, toast it wrapped around a stick, bake it in an oven, and then there's that modern miracle of civilianized military tech - the microwave, descendant of the radar technology that helped win the Battle of Britain.
There's a simple trick you can do with bacon in a microwave oven which, combined with the speed of cooking directly with electromagnetic energy, can enhance your overall bacon experience. Observe:
A microwave-safe cooking tray intended for bacon. Note the ridges that allow grease to drain away from the bacon as it cooks.
And here it is - a thinly-sliced mass of potential gustatory delight, vacuum-packed in finest plastic. (Substitute the brand of your choice - there are so many varieties and variations, that's worthy of a diary in itself - but no matter.)
Here it is - contemplate its baconess, just awaiting the touch of a knife to release it from its containment vessel. It says "Lower Sodium" so that means it's healthy, right? ;-)
Here's where it gets interesting. In the process of cooking, bacon slices in a frying pan have to be turned to cook evenly, and while doing so, they may become tangled together in a mass. While it still may be delicious, some find it less than aesthetically pleasing. It also makes apportioning them fairly among several diners a bit of a tricky proposition. Cooking bacon in an oven can avoid this - just lay the strips out in a pan and let the heat do its work. For large quantities of bacon, this may be the ideal strategy, but for a smaller serving of just a few strips, the speed and convenience of a microwave may be more to the point. Thus...
Here they are. Note the proportion of obvious fat to meat. That will change shortly. Note too that there is some overhang, and that these few slices still take up a fair amount of room. Clearly, there is room for improvement.
And now we come to it, the one trick that can enhance the bacon experience. It's so easy, a child could do it.
Et voila!
The secret revealed - twist the bacon before laying it out! One important benefit is immediately obvious - there's now room for an additional slice! And, however imperfectly, we have evoked the image of the double helix of life. Science!
How does it work in practice? Twisting the bacon doesn't affect cooking; the microwaves penetrate it easily. There may also be some advantage in that the twists capture the heat and the melting grease more effectively, allowing the flavors to permeate more thoroughly. Does it reduce splattering? Possibly - but further research will be needed to confirm that. And now, a look at cooking in progress.
Things appear to be going well; note that the bacon remains twisted even as it cooks down in size.
What is the ideal cooking time for bacon, and what should it look like? Cooking time in a microwave will depend on how many slices you are cooking up at one time, how powerful your oven is, and just how far you want your bacon cooked. If you've never done bacon in a microwave, start with 2-3 minutes for a first zap, and then add a minute at a time until you get the results you want. Be warned that you will probably get some grease splattering around inside the oven, but it should wipe off easily. Also, as the bacon approaches the crispy stage and becomes drier, it will cook faster - so keep an eye on it.
I prefer it at this stage myself - satisfyingly greasy, chewy, and oh so tasty. Further cooking in the microwave will cause it to brown - too much and you can end up with BCB's (Burnt Crunchy Bits) Some people prefer their bacon crispy, and it does make it easier to break up into bits for salads, as a garnish, etc. If you go all the way to crispy...
Bacon with a twist cooked down to crispiness gives you... Bacon Sticks!
This is where it gets interesting. They're still a bit crumbly - but a bit more resistant than flat strips would be. Could you use them for dipping into a sauce? Bacon sticks for a party food? Would twisting work with bacon cooked in a conventional oven in a pan? What if you add a few things to the raw bacon before twisting it - like bread crumbs or spices? How about cayenne pepper, etc. for something like Buffalo Wings style bacon? Could the twist technique be applied to Turkey bacon?
Clearly, there is more research to be done.
Enjoy!