Make a ‘Winter BLT’ With Chunky Tomato Sauce

Spring is here. The sunlight has shifted, spring blossoms are everywhere, and ripe, local tomatoes are…still a ways off. Nevertheless, the hope of warm weather and outdoor activities has tickled my BLT cravings. While I could make an average bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich with an OK slice of supermarket fruit, I know I’ll be looking for more flavor and less water. So instead of waiting for June, I’ll make a winter BLT with some chunky tomato sauce.

I’m not telling you to pour cold Prego on a sandwich and call it a day—give my weirdo sandwich ideas a little credit, please. No, there’s some more finesse involved in bringing forth robust tomato flavor without unintentionally imparting ketchup vibes. Follow my instructions and you’ll have a rich, salty, tangy BLT to satisfy your pre-peak tomato needs. 

I knew I wanted to coat some bread with tomato-y goodness. I started by testing thin tomato sauce from a can, and a super chunky pasta sauce from a jar. The thin stuff soaked too deeply into my bread, but it’s fine if that’s all you have. I ended up preferring the chunky sauce because it offered more flavor and it created a discernible tomato layer on the bread. To remove that “sauce from a jar” quality, I then decided to fry my tomato-y bread in leftover bacon fat (because fried bread is better than toast). 

My verdict: This winter BLT is fantastic. After frying, a subtle char develops on the tomato sauce, the flavor growing robust, with a gentle sweetness. I did miss the acidic pop of fresh tomatoes, but a squeeze of lemon juice over the sauce before assembling the sandwich helps with that.

My biggest tip for success (and this goes for any BLT): choose a spongy bread that with some integrity, like ciabatta, or even soft rye slices. I used basic soft wheat slices, and while the results were pleasing, the side in contact with the tomato sauce became quite soggy. (To be fair, this also happens with fresh tomato BLTs, so it’s not exactly a tragedy if you have no other options.)

Highly-rated frying pans to consider for all your bread frying needs:

How to make a winter BLT

1. Cook the bacon

I prefer to bake my bacon, but you can fry it in a pan or cook it using an air fryer. Do what’s comfortable. I put a few slices on a foil lined sheet pan and baked it at 350°F for 20 minutes. Once it’s cooked to your texture preference, cool the bacon and use some of the bacon drippings to lightly coat a frying pan.

2. Sauce the bread

Credit: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann

Snap the burner on to medium heat and add a slice of bread. It’ll lightly toast on that one side for about three minutes. Add a couple tablespoons of your favorite chunky tomato sauce to the side facing up. Smooth it out into an even layer. I used a fork, because I’m a professional.

3. Fry the tomato side

Credit: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann

Drip a little more bacon fat over the tomato-coated side. Flip the bread over in one swift motion, and fry the tomato side. It’ll sizzle because of the moisture and settle down after a minute. Fry this side for about three minutes. When you flip it over again, you should see some charred tomato spots. Cool the bread on a wire cooling rack for about five minutes before assembling your sandwich.

4. Build the sandwich

Now the fun part: assembly (and eating). I like to smother my BLT-destined sandwich bread in mayo, but since one side was already occupied with thick tomato jam I restricted the mayonnaise to the other slice. Stack on the bacon strips and crunchy lettuce, and press the tomato slathered bread on top (tomato-side down, naturally). 

I might even argue that eating a winter BLT is a bit easier than the traditional version because there aren’t slices of watery tomato sliding out of my sandwich. However, if you miss the texture of sliced, fresh tomatoes, use this trick in conjunction with them. Whether or not they’re bland won’t matter because the tomato sauce will act as a flavor safety net.