# Bacon Weave



## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

Someone asked me how I weave bacon, so today I took some pics (lotta hand washing going on, lol) of the method I use.
A bacon weave is usually associated with wrapping it around some meat you are smoking, but it can be baked in the oven as well and used to make some fancy looking bacon burgers by cutting it to size after it has cooked. These weaves were for some fatties, so four strips wide did the trick. And as doing most anything with bacon, letting it warm up some after it has come out of the refrigerator helps you stretch it and then the bacon adhere to whatever you are wrapping it around.

Use a cutting board and lay the strips side by side, with one end being even with the near edge of the cutting board. Flip up every other strip back onto itself.


Lay a horizontal piece across the strips and flip the other strips back down.


The reason you are using a cutting board is so you can now drag it towards you and let it hang over the edge counter. Now take the _other_ strips and bring them towards you, letting them hang off of the edge of the cutting board. Bring them over so they are tight with the first horizontal strip you just layed in. It's warm bacon, it will stick to the board. Trust me 


Bring the dangling strips back up and bring the other strips back down so that now they are hanging. Repeat...


...until you have this.


Now you can transfer it to a sheet pan and bake it, or wrap it around a fatty, 
or even make a turtle burger with it 


(Disclaimer: We are working with dangling bacon here. Doing this while your pet is underfoot is probably not a good idea )


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## Zhizara (Aug 21, 2011)

*moaning and drooling*

Love your turtle burger!


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## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

Thanks. Who doesn't love bacon, lol.
That turtle burger is still a work in progress. The dang hot dogs cook too quick! I'll get it down one of these days though.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Aug 21, 2011)

No fair!!!  Off to the store.


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## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

PrincessFiona60 said:


> No fair!!! Off to the store.


 
I'd offer to send you some, but I've only got 6lbs and some assorted strips left


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## PrincessFiona60 (Aug 21, 2011)

pacanis said:


> I'd offer to send you some, but I've only got 6lbs and some assorted strips left



I know, not enough to share


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## Aunt Bea (Aug 21, 2011)

Pacanis you do an amazing job!

You should get a job on  Lady Gaga's wardrobe team!


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## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

Aunt Bea said:


> Pacanis you do an amazing job!
> 
> You should get a job on Lady Gaga's wardrobe team!


 
What, and be one of the few that knows if she is or isn't?! 



Thanks, Aunt Bea. It's very therapeutic


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## Aunt Bea (Aug 21, 2011)

pacanis said:


> What, and be one of the few that knows if she is or isn't?!
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks, Aunt Bea. It's very therapeutic



Nothin shakin but the bacon!  Can ya say bacon?


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## jabbur (Aug 21, 2011)

You might try subbing brats for the hot dogs.  They cook slower than hot dogs.  Looks really yummy though!


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## Luca Lazzari (Aug 21, 2011)

That turtle is wonderful, pacanis!!! I think I'll replace the "legs" with some sausages, and the "tail" and "head" with a different type of salsiccia.


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## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

jabbur said:


> You might try subbing brats for the hot dogs. They cook slower than hot dogs. Looks really yummy though!


 
Thanks for the idea, Jabbur. Brats might work. It was really a case of having a hard time crisping the bacon and not blackening the dogs. I even tried a foil tent over the hot dogs. Maybe something with a different kind of casing would work better. It's worth a shot.


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## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

Luca Lazzari said:


> That turtle is wonderful, pacanis!!! I think I'll replace the "legs" with some sausages, and the "tail" and "head" with a different type of salsiccia.


 
Thank You!
Here's a pic of it from our crazy "Peeps Challenge" back around Easter


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (Aug 21, 2011)

Didn't your mother ever tell you not to play with your food?


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## Dawgluver (Aug 21, 2011)

OMG.  Excellent tutorial, Pacanis!  I will eat with my eyes, as all that porky goodness will put my cholesterol over the edge.  Dang.  Bacon, food of the gods.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Aug 21, 2011)

Sir_Loin_of_Beef said:


> Didn't your mother ever tell you not to play with your food?



That's why we like it here, we are encouraged to play with our food.


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## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

Thank you very much, DL.
I'm sure you could weave turkey bacon if you had a mind to


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## Dawgluver (Aug 21, 2011)

pacanis said:
			
		

> Thank you very much, DL.
> I'm sure you could weave turkey bacon if you had a mind to



Turkey ain't no pig.  Extremely poor substitute.  I figure if and when I reach 80 or 90, all hell and bacon will break loose.


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## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

Dawgluver said:


> Turkey ain't no pig. Extremely poor substitute. I figure if and when I reach 80 or 90, all hell and bacon will break loose.


 
Ya got that right!
Heck I remember years ago, at deer camp, we were all responsible for one meal or food item. I brought my best friend with me for the first (and last) time and he brought SIZZLEAN! I can still hear everyone "commenting" while sitting around the tables that first breakfast... Within the hour someone was headed into town for large quantities of real BACON 
I have no idea what he was thinking, Just because _he_ liked it


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## Zhizara (Aug 21, 2011)

pacanis said:


> Thanks. Who doesn't love bacon, lol.
> That turtle burger is still a work in progress. The dang hot dogs cook too quick! I'll get it down one of these days though.



Can they be cooked separately and assembled just before serving?


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## Dawgluver (Aug 21, 2011)

pacanis said:
			
		

> Ya got that right!
> Heck I remember years ago, at deer camp, we were all responsible for one meal or food item. I brought my best friend with me for the first (and last) time and he brought SIZZLEAN! I can still hear everyone "commenting" while sitting around the tables that first breakfast... Within the hour someone was headed into town for large quantities of real BACON
> I have no idea what he was thinking, Just because he liked it



Hmm. I may try braiding celery, or thinly sliced zucchini. Oh, who am I kidding?  The pig RULES!  Turkey bacon is an oxymoron.  Turkey doesn"t even have bacon parts.


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## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

Zhizara said:


> Can they be cooked separately and assembled just before serving?


 
Well, the bacon does shrunk as it cooks and close up around the appendages, holding them in. And it would be harder to poke a fingerhole and insert the pieces. I have used a paring knife before though to get them started... yes, it could be done. You would really want or need a good presentation (IMO) to want to assemble it like that though.
But that's a good idea and probably the best way to go.


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## vitauta (Aug 21, 2011)

exactly when did the bacon weaving suddenly take a bizarre turn and become a sausage and bacon tortoise in your mind's eye, pac?  anyhow, it's pure genius, pac. you come up with some buck projects when you're on.  you and your turtle put a big goofy smile on my face, and brightened my day - thanks....


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## pacanis (Aug 21, 2011)

vitauta said:


> exactly when did the bacon weaving suddenly take a bizarre turn and become a sausage and bacon tortoise in your mind's eye, pac? anyhow, it's pure genius, pac. you come up with some buck projects when you're on. you and your turtle put a big goofy smile on my face, and brightened my day - thanks....


 
Boy I _wish_ I could come up with brilliant ideas like that 
I think one of my doggie friends sent me a picture of one, so of course I had to try it... numerous times


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## vitauta (Aug 22, 2011)

pacanis said:


> Boy I _wish_ I could come up with brilliant ideas like that
> I think one of my doggie friends sent me a picture of one, so of course I had to try it... numerous times



did you eat bacon-back turtle yet? you and the patchwork tortoise were great sunday entertainment, pac.  say, those good looking bacon slices weren't from your sale were they?  maybe for your next bacon weave, you could fashion a summer diving raft?  using the hot dogs as logs under the raft's woven platform?  not as cute as a turtle of course....


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## pacanis (Aug 22, 2011)

No way those uniform slices were from that sale bacon, lol. That stuff is worth *every bit* of $2/lb  It tastes fine though. And makes a _lot_ of bacon grease. I need some more grease for the fridge, I'm running low. Heck, I couldn't even get the sale bacon to wrap around an ABT without tearing. I ended up making a mad dash to the store and the bacon I got was on sale, too! $4/lb for Sugardale and you can see how uniform they are. I bought four packages, used two and will buy some more before the sale ends 

We need a fun with bacon challenge. You've got some good ideas there


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## Andy M. (Aug 22, 2011)

Pac, I wonder if changing the shape of the fatty so it's smaller (not as fat) so it would cook faster may help with the burned legs.


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## Kayelle (Aug 22, 2011)

Hey Pac.......how bout using frozen dogs for your turtle burger?


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## pacanis (Aug 23, 2011)

Andy M. said:


> Pac, I wonder if changing the shape of the fatty so it's smaller (not as fat) so it would cook faster may help with the burned legs.


 
A thinner burger wouldn't help the bacon cook faster. That's where the problem lies. Plus... it needs to be somewhat thick in order to accept the legs, head and tail and still maintain proportions to the red-eared slider


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## pacanis (Aug 23, 2011)

Kayelle said:


> Hey Pac.......how bout using frozen dogs for your turtle burger?


 
Good suggestion. Frozen dogs or sausages, plus a small foil thimble tent just might do it.
I'll try this my next one.


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## Andy M. (Aug 23, 2011)

pacanis said:


> Good suggestion. Frozen dogs or sausages, plus a small foil thimble tent just might do it.
> I'll try this my next one.




Yes, frozen hot dogs and a little foil wrapper for each hot dog.  Great idea.


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## pacanis (Sep 9, 2011)

Hey, Frank. Thanks for the karma on this! I just noticed and couldn't find a way to leave you a profile comment...
Appreciate it!


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