Did you know you can use crispy prosciutto in lots of places you would use bacon or bacon bits? And getting it crisp is easier and faster than frying bacon.

Crispy prosciutto broken into pieces on plate.

Uses for Crispy Prosciutto

Crispy prosciutto is an extremely versatile ingredient. If you love bacon, but sometimes find yourself wishing for something a little easier to prepare, it makes a great substitute. Here are a few ideas to get started:

Add to scrambled eggs or alongside a great fried egg.
Sprinkle on soup for a finishing touch.
Include it when decking out your baked potato.
For a quick appetizer, make crunchy crostini slathered with creamy goat cheese topped with crispy prosciutto.
Throw together an elegantly casual meal with burrata and toasted country bread with beautiful lettuces, herbs and caramelized peaches, all sprinkled with crumbled crispy prosciutto.
Crumble over a mesclun salad with avocado and a Spanish fried egg.
Put it in your sandwiches! – Make a PLT: a prosciutto, lettuce and tomato sandwich, obviously! You could even crumble it in the mayo. Or how about slipping it into a burger. And what about in a grilled cheese sandwich.
Crumble and sprinkle it over pasta (like spaghetti aglio e olio, or broccoli pasta).

Shopping for Prosciutto

Here, I’ve used prosciutto di Parma from Italy. However, you could use other salt-cured hams, such as San Daniele from Italy, a jamon serrano from Spain, or a good local salt-cured ham.

You can buy pre-sliced packaged prosciutto, but I recommend getting it freshly sliced at the market counter, if you can. Ask for thinly sliced — but not too thin. I recommend asking for a test slice. You don’t want it so thin that it is difficult and time consuming to pry each piece away from the deli paper, or that tears apart in the process. Freshly sliced prosciutto is best consumed within a couple of days. Store in the fridge.

How to Make Crispy Prosciutto

Although you can fry prosciutto in a skillet, I’ve found that the best way to make crispy prosciutto is in the oven. It’s faster because you can fit more on a baking sheet at a time, it cooks more evenly, becomes more crisp, and there’s less work and attention required.

Tip: Keep a close eye on the prosciutto after the 8 minute mark, as it can overcook very easily.

Recipe

You can use crispy prosciutto in many of the same ways you would use bacon or bacon bits, plus more. And making it is easier than frying bacon.