Wrapping stuff in bacon

[alwang]

I recently was inspired by a thread on eG to make some bacon-wrapped enoki, which, surprise suprise, were pretty tasty. However, the bacon didn't quite crisp up as much as I liked. The enoki were done in the oven, at around 400F. Anyone have any good general pointers on wrapping stuff with bacon? Broiler vs. oven vs. skillet? What kind of skillet, and what sort of technique? Two things that I've found important:

1) Obviously, if the food you're wrapping cooks quickly, you should pre-cook the bacon. I've been pre-cooking it sous vide, so that it stays soft, but the fat renders a bit.

2) I know it's tempting, but if you want the bacon to crisp up, you really shouldn't wrap in more than one layer.

[wattacetti]

Blow torch.

I also generally use really thin pancetta rather than bacon straight out.

[HungryC]

Believe it or not, the microwave is your friend in this matter. You want to cook out the water in the bacon, not the fat, so a sous-vide isn't much help. Water=soggy, fat=cripy/flavorful. Lay the bacon out on a plate or microwave bacon cooker and zap it for a minute or two (depends on the wattage of your machine). You want it flexible for wrapping, but showing some shrinkage/contraction. Without the microwave, you can par-cook in a heavy skillet, but use a bacon press to keep the slices nice & flat. (For some reason, they don't curl as much in the 'wave.)

[srhcb]

I fry bacon over medium heat, but I cook one side, which will go to the inside, at least twice as long as the other.

It takes a little practice guessing pre-cooking time, but using this method I can even use thick sliced bacon for wrapping.

SB

[alwang]

Believe it or not, the microwave is your friend in this matter.  You want to cook out the water in the bacon, not the fat, so a sous-vide isn't much help. 

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I forgot to mention I do dry the strips thoroughly with paper towels after pre-cooking them, but I like the sound of the microwave idea...

-al

[Anna N]

One trick I learned is to very gently stretch the bacon. This way it really thins out and you have a much better chance of it being crispy when cooked as a wrap. Just lay one end of the bacon strip down on the cutting board and gently run the back of a knife over it towards the other end to give it just a bit of a stretch.

[Kent Wang]

I also generally use really thin pancetta rather than bacon straight out.

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Agreed, the thinness helps tremendously. It's also easier to eat than a bunch of thick pieces of bacon.

Pancetta can be a bit hard to work with; I like to use prosciutto as it comes in bigger pieces.

[JAZ]

The thinner the bacon is cut, the crisper it gets. (I recently saw bacon labeled "microwave bacon" whose defining feature seemed to be that it was cut very thin -- maybe that's worth a try.)

[Qwerty]

You could also just pound them out with a mallet or something similar. I agree that pre-cooking a little bit would help out a lot.

[smangold]

Believe it or not, the microwave is your friend in this matter.  You want to cook out the water in the bacon, not the fat, so a sous-vide isn't much help.  Water=soggy, fat=cripy/flavorful.  Lay the bacon out on a plate or microwave bacon cooker and zap it for a minute or two (depends on the wattage of your machine).  You want it flexible for wrapping, but showing some shrinkage/contraction.  Without the microwave, you can par-cook in a heavy skillet, but use a bacon press to keep the slices nice & flat.  (For some reason, they don't curl as much in the 'wave.)

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I agree. I picked up this tip from an episode of America’s Test Kitchen. They zapped the bacon for a minute and a half then wrapped them around pork tenderloin medallions. I tried the recipe myself and loved it.

You cannot beat seared pork wrapped in crispy bacon.