How to Fry Bacon or roll-type Sausage

• 12 0z. bacon or Jimmy Dean sausage roll (ground, seasoned pork sausage packaged in a roll)

Frying sausage works best in a large frying pan.  Frying bacon works best for me on a griddle, but my spouse is a great bacon cook and he uses a skillet.

The hot fat in cooking bacon or sausage can pop and the grease will burn your skin if it lands on you, so make sure your wrists and forearms are well covered (long sleeves or a cooking mit).

If you are cooking the sausage to add to a dish, spread it out in one huge patty in the bottom of a non-stick skillet before you turn the heat on.  If you are cooking the sausage to serve as patties, shape 8-10 patties out of the roll and place in the bottom of a large non-stick skillet before you turn on the heat.  If you are working with bacon, lay out strips that are barely touching in the skillet or on the griddle.  You can’t fit an entire package of bacon into a skillet or on a griddle at once, so try for half of the package.  Lay the meat out before you turn the heat on.

Now that you have arranged the meat, turn the heat to high.  Allow the sausage or bacon to cook on one side for 4 minutes.  Turn and cook 2 more minutes.  Turn and cook on the other side every 2 minutes until your bacon or sausage patties are crisp on the edges and cooked through (no pink inside patties, no soft fat remaining on bacon).  If you are cooking the huge sausage patty, break it into thirds or fourths before you turn it the first time to make handling the large pieces easier.  Each time you turn it, break each chunk in half.  When your sausage is cooked completely, break up the remaining chunks into bite-sized pieces or shred it into fine crumbles in the food processor.

When your bacon or sausage is cooked, remove each piece to a colander lined with paper towels to drain off excess grease.  Serve warm.

12 oz of bacon or sausage serves 4-6 people.