Editing BLT (section)

==Ingredients and preparation==
[[File:Making a BLT sandwich with avocado and basil mayonnaise.jpg|thumb|A BLT sandwich preparation]]
While there are variations on the BLT, the essential ingredients are bacon, lettuce, and tomato, between two slices of bread (usually white), often toasted.<ref name=MSNBC/> The quantity and quality of the ingredients are matters of personal preference. The bacon can be well cooked or tender, but as it "carries" the other flavours,<ref name="seduced"/> chefs recommend using higher quality meat; in particular, chef [[Edward Lee (chef)|Edward Lee]] states "Your general supermarket bacon is not going to cut the mustard."<ref name=MSNBC>{{cite news|last=Bonne|first=Jon|title=Secrets to a perfect BLT sandwich|url=http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/14574021|access-date=3 February 2011|newspaper=[[MSNBC]]|date=12 September 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100911093614/http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/14574021|archive-date=11 September 2010}}</ref>

[[Iceberg lettuce]] is a common choice because it does not add too much flavour while adding crunch.<ref name=MSNBC/> Food writer [[Ed Levine]] has suggested that BLT does not require lettuce at all, as it is "superfluous",<ref>{{cite web|last=Levine|first=Ed|author-link=Ed Levine|title=Does a BLT need the L|url=http://newyork.seriouseats.com/2006/08/does-a-blt-need-the-l.html|website=[[Serious Eats]]|access-date=3 February 2011}}</ref> a suggestion that [[Jon Bonné]], lifestyle editor at MSNBC, described as "shocking". Michele Anna Jordan, author of ''[[The BLT Cookbook]]'', believes the tomato is the key ingredient and recommends the use of the [[beefsteak tomato]] as it has more flesh and fewer seeds.<ref name=MSNBC/> Similarly, chef and food writer [[J. Kenji Lopez-Alt]] believes that a BLT is not a bacon sandwich with additional ingredients, but rather, a tomato sandwich seasoned with bacon. For that reason, Lopez-Alt argues that the BLT is a seasonal sandwich best made with high-quality summer tomatoes.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lopez-Alt |first1=J. Kenji |title=The Food Lab's BLT Manifesto |url=https://www.seriouseats.com/2016/08/blt-manifesto-how-to-make-best-bacon-lettuce-tomato-sandwich.html |website=Serious Eats |access-date=27 September 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Lopez-Alt |first1=J. Kenji |title=A BLT is Not a Bacon Sandwich. It is a Tomato Sandwich |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BfZn9HHKI0 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/5BfZn9HHKI0| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|website=YouTube.com |date=17 August 2020 |access-date=27 September 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

The sandwich is sometimes served with dressings, like mayonnaise.<ref name="MSNBC" /> The bread can be of any variety, white or wholemeal, toasted or not, depending on personal preference.<ref name="seduced">{{cite book|title=Seduced by Bacon: Recipes & Lore about America's Favorite Indulgence|year=2006|publisher=Globe Pequot|isbn=1-59228-851-0|pages=80–81|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YJe81WSufP4C&pg=PT94|author=Pruess, Joanna|author2=Lape, Bob|author3=Cole, Liesa}}</ref>

===Variations===
[[File:Bacon, lettuce, tomato, and avocado.jpg|thumb|BLT with avocado]]
The sandwich has a high sodium and fat content, and has been specifically targeted by UK café chains in an effort to reduce salt and fat.<ref>{{cite news|title=Cafe chains promise to reduce salt and fat|url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/health/cafe-chains-promise-to-reduce-salt-and-fat-14217109.html|access-date=11 February 2011|newspaper=Belfast Telegraph|date=7 March 2009}}</ref> Due to this, low-fat mayonnaise is a common substitute along with low salt bread and less fatty bacon. A more visible solution is to use [[turkey bacon]] in lieu of normal bacon.<ref name="prevent">{{cite book|last=Bricklin |first=Mark |title=Prevention Magazine's Nutrition Advisor: The Ultimate Guide to the Health-Boosting and Health-Harming Factors in Your Diet |year=1994 |publisher=Rodale |isbn=0-87596-225-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iPFokL0MuswC&q=BLT+bacon&pg=PA454 |page=454}}</ref> One of the variations on the BLT is the [[club sandwich]], a two-layered sandwich in which one layer is a BLT. The other layer can be almost any sort of sliced meat, normally chicken or turkey.<ref>{{cite book|last=Civitello|first=Linda|title=Cuisine and culture: a history of food and people|year=2007|publisher=John Wiley and Sons|isbn=978-0-471-74172-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MBRBjBTEBHYC&q=BLT+club+differences&pg=PA180|page=180}}</ref>