BLT Sandwich
The classic bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich: crisp oven bacon, salted ripe tomato and cold lettuce on toasted bread with mayo edge to edge.
36% of it needs you at the counter
- Hands-on
- 10 min
- Cooking
- 18 min
- Serves
- 2
- Calories
- 455
- Protein
- 17 g
- Per serving
- $2.33
Why this recipe works
A BLT is all about contrast: hot, crisp bacon, cold crunchy lettuce, juicy tomato and toast. It's at its best in late summer, but salting does a lot for an out-of-season tomato too.
- Baking the bacon on a sheet pan cooks every slice flat and evenly crisp, with no spatter and no flipping.
- Salting the tomato slices and blotting them draws out excess juice, which seasons the tomato and keeps the toast from going soggy.
- Toasted bread with mayonnaise spread right to the edges forms a barrier between the juicy fillings and the crumb.
Ingredients
You will need
- Rimmed baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Toaster
- Serrated knife
Method
Tap a step number to mark it done.
Bake the bacon
Heat the oven to 400°F. Lay the bacon in a single layer on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet and bake until browned and crisp, 16 to 20 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
Salt the tomato
While the bacon bakes, lay the tomato slices on a paper towel and sprinkle them with the salt and some pepper. After 10 minutes, blot the tops dry.
Toast the bread
Toast the bread until golden and crisp, then let it cool for a minute so it doesn't wilt the lettuce.
Build
Spread the mayonnaise over one side of each slice, right to the edges. On two slices, layer lettuce, tomato, 4 slices of bacon broken in half to fit, and a little more lettuce. Close, press lightly and cut in half.
Techniques in this recipe
Crowded: steams and turns grey Spaced out: browns and crisps Don't crowd the pan
Give food space in the pan or on the sheet pan so moisture can escape. Crowded food steams and turns grey; spaced-out food browns and crisps.
Read the full guide
Cook's notes
- Put the lettuce next to the bread and the tomato in the middle; the lettuce shields the toast from tomato juice.
- Check thin bacon at 12 minutes, because it goes from crisp to burnt quickly.
- Iceberg gives the most crunch. Whatever lettuce you use, dry it well after washing.
Nutrition per serving
455 calories
$2.33 estimated cost per serving
Where the calories come from
| Protein | 15% of calories | 17 g |
|---|---|---|
| Carbs | 28% of calories | 32 g |
| Fat | 57% of calories | 29 g |
| Fiber | 3 g | |
| Sodium | 1100 mg |
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for the listed ingredients and amounts; not lab-tested. Cost estimated from average US retail prices.
Questions people ask
What is the secret to a perfect BLT?
Crisp bacon, a ripe tomato that has been salted and blotted, and toasted bread with mayo spread edge to edge. Together they keep the sandwich crunchy instead of soggy.
What is the correct order to layer a BLT?
Mayo-covered toast, lettuce, tomato, bacon, a little more lettuce, then the top slice. Lettuce against the bread keeps the tomato juice off the toast.
What can I add to a BLT to make it better?
Sliced avocado, a fried egg or a few basil leaves. Pick one or two so the bacon still leads.
