Bacon sizzling on the stove – I know the smell. It can rouse me from a sound sleep (although, who am I kidding – I’m the one cooking it). One whiff and my mind has run away with thoughts of crusty bagels with butter, scrambled eggs sprinkled with cheddar, and a steaming cup of black coffee.
But there is another kind of bacon smell. The one where you unwrap those last few pieces that were leftover from a couple of weeks ago, and you know when it hits your nostrils: it’s rank. Then the disappointment sets in – there will be no bacon this morning.
This scenario has happened countless times in our household. In fact, I can remember G and I as newlyweds hovered over leftover packages of bacon trying to determine if they were “bad.” Chances are if the pink has turned a shade of brown, and the enticing smell is “a little off,” then throw it out. But I’m happy to say that there is not a slice of bacon wasted in our house anymore. And it’s not because we have increased our serving sizes. It’s because of our freezer. We wrap those precious slices o’ fat in plastic wrap, and put them into a deep freeze. It’s a simple idea that many others probably have employed for years, but we’ve just discovered this past year. And our lives (or at least our meals) are better for it.
(This is what the slices look like in the freezer – squeezed in amongst the ice cream.)
Here’s how those oft forgotten slices transform some meals:
- Baked potatoes (the picture says it all)
- Pasta with sauteed bacon and onions
- Meatloaf
- Omelettles
- Pizza
- BLT
Check out more Works-For-Me Wednesday tips at We Are THAT Family.
that looks good. I’ll have to try that out.
I have some bacon in the fridge that we just used. I am going to try this out! Thanks!!
Freezing bacon works so well! I like to cut it in half first so I’m not trying to hack apart frozen blocks of bacon.
I love the smell of bacon but we just don’t cook it at home. I’ve found it’s a smell I can’t seem to get rid of.
Do you ever cook them first? We always cook the whole pkg of bacon and then freeze the extras cooked. That way you can just crumble it, pull some out and put it directly into a recipe w/o dirtying an extra pan. Works for me!
Thanks for this idea – we’ll have to try it.
Had bacon last night mixed with eggs, lactose milk and mixed vegtables, sort of an omlet…only problem is I eat almost as much as I put in the cassarole dish….I cook my bacon in the oven, less mess, no need to flip the bacon, when done I put the pan in the dishwasher….