American
Classic BLT
Crisp bacon, ripe tomato, and cool lettuce stack on toast with mayonnaise. It is the sandwich to make when the tomatoes are actually good.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 12 min
- Total
- 22 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
Why you’ll love it
- The bacon has to be actually crisp or the sandwich goes limp.
- Toasting the bread keeps the tomato juice from soaking through.
- Salt on the tomato does more than extra mayonnaise.
- It uses one skillet and a toaster or a dry pan.
Ingredients
Ingredient amounts scale. Oven temperature and cook time do not. Salt, spices, and leaveners are a starting point after you scale. Taste and adjust.
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Instructions
- 1
Lay the bacon in a cold large skillet. Turn the heat to medium and cook, turning as the fat renders, until the bacon is crisp and the fat is rendered, about 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer it to a paper towel. Pour off the grease.
- 2
Toast the bread in a toaster, or toast it in the wiped skillet over medium heat until both sides are golden.
- 3
Spread mayonnaise on one side of each slice of toast.
- 4
Lay the tomato slices on a plate and season them with the salt and pepper.
- 5
Build each sandwich with lettuce, seasoned tomato, and 3 slices of bacon. Close with the second slice of toast, mayonnaise side in.
- 6
Cut in half and serve right away, while the toast is still crisp and the bacon is warm.
Pro tips
- Start the bacon in a cold pan so the fat renders before the meat burns.
- Salt the tomato, not the lettuce. Salt on lettuce wilts it.
- Do not build the sandwiches ahead. Toast goes soft under a wet tomato.
Easy substitutions
- Mayonnaise
- Mashed avocado on the toast.
- Sandwich bread
- Thick slices of toasted sourdough.
- Green leaf lettuce
- Romaine leaves.
Storage and reheating
Storage
This sandwich does not keep well once assembled. Store cooked bacon in the fridge for up to 3 days and build sandwiches fresh.
Reheating
Recrisp bacon in a skillet over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes, then rebuild the sandwich on fresh toast.
Nutrition
Estimates per serving, using standard ingredient averages and rounded to the nearest gram. This is not a lab analysis, and it shifts if you change brands or add sides.
- Calories
- 452
- Protein
- 18 g
- Carbs
- 32 g
- Fat
- 28 g
- Fiber
- 3 g
Moderate · Stovetop
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From the kitchen
Kitchen tools we love
Practical tools these recipes actually use. This is not a review roundup, and these are not paid placements. If affiliate links are added later, they will be labeled and disclosed.
A heavy 12-inch skillet
Most of the chicken and steak recipes are written for one pan that holds heat. Stainless or cast iron both work.
An air fryer with a real basket
The air-fryer recipes expect a single layer. A crowded basket steams instead of browning.
A half-sheet pan
Drumsticks, potatoes, sausage, and carrots all use one. A dark pan browns faster than a very shiny one.
A sharp chef’s knife
These recipes do not need a specialty blade. A sharp 8-inch knife is faster and safer than a dull one.
A large cutting board
Big enough that the onion and the raw chicken are not sharing the same puddle.
Dry cups and a liquid cup
Desserts in particular expect level dry measures and a separate cup for milk.
An instant-read thermometer
Use it for poultry, pork chops, and meatloaf. Color is a weak guide.
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