How to Make a Perfect BLT

To make a BLT you need bread, bacon, lettuce, tomato, and mayo.  But if you want to make a perfect BLT? Well…I have ideas for you.

Last night I made BLTs for dinner and, as one does, immediately texted a photo of the sandwich to my friend. 

Her reply came quickly.

Text on image: Dang. Shredded lettuce.  Talk to me. 

Instead of texting her back with all my feels about what makes a perfect BLT, I wrote 1,000 words on the subject and sent her the link. (Friends *love it* when you do this.)

Let’s establish my starting point for BLTs: they’re all perfect. Some are just more perfect than others. And I think the ones I make are the most perfect. 

A few years ago, Kenji over at Serious Eats wrote a BLT Manifesto. My husband saw it, read it, and sent it to me with the note: This is the same way you make BLTs! 

My husband was correct with one exception…and we’ll get to that. 

The Bread

The bread for a BLT serves one purpose: it holds together the tomato and bacon so you can get it into your mouth. This is not the time for whole-grain bread. Or hearty bread. Or sourdough. All of those are lovely but they’re not what I want in a BLT. 

For a BLT, use white bread. Either homemade (my sandwich bread recipe is great for BLTs) or I buy a loaf. This summer I’ve been digging Arnold Country Buttermilk bread. It’s soft. It’s a good size and it has a very subtly sweet flavor. 

Confidential to my friend: I know you’re going to want to get all fancy and buy a loaf of challah or something else. Just buy a loaf of white bread! (grumble)

The Bacon

If you can get your hands on Nueske’s bacon, use it. Got a stash of Dakin bacon in the freezer? Excellent! Oh. You can only get your hands on supermarket bacon right now? That’s FINE. You really can’t go wrong here. (Unless you use turkey bacon.)

The Tomatoes

You know what I’m going to say: use ripe tomatoes for a BLT. The best ones come from your garden or a local farmer. When you slice the tomato, look at the center. If it’s red from the edge to center, it’s perfect for a BLT. If it’s white, don’t get it near your BLT.

The Lettuce

My opinion on the lettuce used on a BLT is strong and unwavering. Use iceberg. It’s crunchy. It’s cool. It’s the ideal BLT lettuce. 

The Mayo

Use mayo. Not “salad dressing”, like Miracle Whip. It’s not that I hate Miracle Whip (actually I kind of do) it’s that it’s too sweet for a BLT. 

As I type this, I can hear my friend asking, “How about homemade mayo? Or Kewpie? Or Dukes? Or…” (she’s extra like this). To her, I say, “Those are fine. But I use Hellmann’s”

The Extra Addition

I firmly believe that a BLT should be just that: Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato. Once you add other ingredients, it’s no longer a BLT. 

I have one exception to this rule. (These are my BLTs, I make the rules!)

Thinly Sliced Onion

A whisper of thinly sliced onion enhances the flavor of the tomato without overpowering it. The key here, of course, is slicing it very thin. How thin? You want to be able to see through it.

Oh and use raw onion. I like to use a simple yellow onion. Skip the pickled onion here. The vinegar tang isn’t what we’re going for. 

Putting it all together: The Perfect BLT

My opinions on a BLT don’t stop with the ingredients. Oh no, friend, the key to a great BLT is how you put those ingredients together. 

Grab a notepad, I have thoughts. 

Cooking the Bacon

I love crispy bacon. LOVE IT. But for a BLT, I cook the bacon a tad lighter than fully crisp. Why? Because this way it doesn’t shatter as you bite it. Now, you don’t want it flaccid either. If the bacon is soft, it pulls out of the sandwich at first bite. This…isn’t great. 

Cook it until it’s crisp enough. Put the bacon in a cold skillet, turn on the heat, and watch it. You’ll know when it’s done. I trust you.

Toasting the Bread

Remember when I said that Kenji and I made very similar BLTs with the exception of one thing? This is it. He toasts his bread in bacon grease. 

Now before you recoil at the idea of cooking bread in bacon grease, let me explain. 

Have you ever buttered bread and toasted it,  for, let’s say, a grilled cheese? The idea here is the same. You don’t soak the bread in grease. You lightly brush it on. The flavor it adds? Perfect. 

1. Cook the bacon.
2. Reserve some of the bacon grease. 
3. Brush it lightly onto both sides of the bread. 
4. Toast the bread on a griddle pan. You want the heat medium-low. If the heat is too high, the bread burns before it toasts

I like the bread lightly toasted. Dark enough that it has flavor and crunch but not so toasted that it gets dry. 

Slicing the Tomatoes

Slicing a ripe summer tomato can be a pain if you don’t use the right knife. This is because the skin of a tomato is a bit tough compared to the delicate flesh. Grab a serrated knife and this becomes easy-peasy. You want the slices about 1/4-inch thick. 

Shredding the Lettuce

My eagle-eyed friend (waves) noticed that I shredded my lettuce. Of course I did. Because this is the best way to prep lettuce for a BLT. Shredded lettuce, when placed on each slice of bread, helps to prevent the tomato from turning the bread into a sog-fest. 

And, like cooking the bacon crisp-but-not-too-crisp, it makes the sandwich a delight to eat. No big pieces of lettuce fall out on your plate. 

If you’ve never shredded lettuce before, here’s what to do. Cut a head of iceberg in half. Then cut the half in half again. Cut out the core. Then slice the lettuce as thin as you can with a Chef’s knife.

Mayo-ing the Bread

BLTs need mayo. To be more precise, each slice of bread on a BLT needs mayo. It adds flavor and it helps prevent soggy bread.

Go light with the mayo. Or heavy. You do you when it comes to mayo application. 

Add the lettuce. (Plus the onion  if using)

Put lettuce on each slice of bread. This acts as a bed for the juices of the tomato. Trust me; each side needs a little lettuce. 

Season the Tomato

Here’s where most people make a mistake: they don’t add salt and pepper to their BLT. I get this. Bacon is salty. So why add more salt? 

Because the tomato needs it.

Don’t go wild. Put your tomato slices on the sandwich. Sprinkle on some Kosher salt and a generous amount of freshly cracked black pepper. Done. 

(Friend! Don’t you skip this step. DO NOT SKIP THE SALT.)

Cut the Bacon

Don’t go putting whole pieces of bacon on your BLT. You’ve done all this work. Take a second and cut those slices in half. It makes the sandwich easier to eat. 

How much bacon do I put on a BLT? Usually two whole slices. 

Fin

That’s it. 

That’s how I make a perfect BLT. And now you can too. (And when you do, send pics.)