Awesome Appetizers: Bacon-Wrapped Water Chestnuts
Ah, the bacon-wrapped water chestnut. Actually, they’re soy sauce-soaked, then wrapped in bacon… broiled until crispy… but that title would be way too long. So easy, yet so tasty. Works well as a precursor to a fine meal, or as party food. I’ve been making these for a few years and they never fail to please.
Like most people, I love bacon. Dear readers probably know I am not a huge fan of pork, but bacon and sausage are the exceptions to the pork rule. I mean, who doesn’t like bacon??? OK, so it’s not very good for you, but it just tastes so good! Make yourself feel better about the bacon part by buying center-cut bacon. It’s supposedly a little better for you because it only has about 1,000 grams of fat per slice as opposed to 1,500. Anyway- the tasty bacon is complemented by the slightly crunchy water chestnuts, and the soy soak gives the chestnuts their own unique flavor.
Do yourself and your friends a favor- make these for your Fantasy Football Draft Party. Guaranteed to satisfy all.(Disclaimer: eating the soy-sauce-soaked, bacon-wrapped water chestnuts will not guarantee Drew Breese as a draft pick)
Enjoy!
Bacon-Wrapped Water Chestnuts
Prep Time: 10-15 minutes (plus 2 hours soaking time)
Cook Time: 8-10 minutes
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients:
- 1 small can whole water chestnuts, drained (should contain around 20 water chestnuts)
- Soy sauce (probably somewhere between ¾ and 1 Cup)
- 10-12 pieces of bacon
Equipment:
- Roasting pan
- Toothpicks
Directions:
- Place drained water chestnuts in a medium-sized bowl and cover with soy sauce; cover and allow to soak for 2 hours
- Cut bacon slices in half
- Once water chestnuts are done soaking, wrap half of a piece of bacon around each water chestnut; secure with a toothpick {see picture}
Water chestnut, wrapped in bacon, then lovingly secured with a toothpick
- Place oven shelf on the top rack; turn broiler on high
- Broil water chestnuts for 5 minutes on the first side, then turn over (using tongs) and broil for another 3-5 minutes on the other side or until bacon is cooked thoroughly
- Place water chestnuts on a paper towel to soak up excess oil before serving
- Serve warm
JOHN FACTOR: John is to the water chestnuts as Bill is to Sookie: they just can’t get enough.
Bacon-Wrapped Water Chestnuts Copyright Nicole McPhetridge 2010
So I tried to make these guessing how to do it – and they were not as good as yours. I made the mistake of cooking the bacon first, then trying to wrap. I know. And I thought I needed to cut the water chestnuts smaller for some reason.
Now, I know how to really do it
I’m sure they tasted good, though! But now you have an excuse to make them again soon. I was going to do the cheese/dates also but ran out of time, so I’ll do those in a couple of weeks.