BLT

Method

1. slice3 min
   serrated knife
   tomato into 1/4-inch rounds — thinner and they disintegrate under the bacon, thicker and the sandwich slides apart on the first bite
2. season10 min
   draining on a rack or paper
   tomato slices + salt, laid in one layer, until beads of liquid stand on the surface. Salt pulls the water out here, on the counter, instead of later, inside the bread — this is the whole soggy-sandwich problem solved
3. fry12 min
   cold skillet brought to medium, single layer
   bacon laid in the unheated pan, then the burner on. Starting cold lets the fat melt out before the muscle fibers seize, so the strips render flat and crisp rather than curling into hard buckles. Turn once at the halfway point; drain on paper
4. toast4 min
   medium-dark
   bread until firm and dry all the way through, not just colored at the edges. Toast is structural — a soft slice absorbs mayonnaise and tomato juice and tears. Let it cool a minute so trapped steam escapes instead of resoftening the crumb
5. top1 min
   all four toast faces + mayonnaise spread edge to edge — the fat film waterproofs the crumb and supplies the acid and richness that raw tomato and lean toast both lack
6. top2 min
   bottom slice + lettuce leaves + drained tomato + black pepper + bacon broken to fit the footprint + top slice. Lettuce goes under the tomato as a moisture barrier, and the bacon sits above it so its heat crisps rather than wilts the leaf
7. slice1 min
   diagonal, knife pressed not sawed
   each sandwich in half — the diagonal cut gives a wider bite face, so you get bacon, tomato and lettuce in the same mouthful, which is the entire point of the balance