Bacon’s universal appeal is hardly controversial, but its preparation can be a kitchen nightmare. It might sound exactly like what you’d like to eat for breakfast, one moment, but when you factor in how frustrating it can be to put together, that quickly goes out the window.
That’s because bacon prep can leave your kitchen looking like a miniature crime scenes, with grease splatters decorating every surface of your kitchen. And then there’s cleanup, which means cutting through thick globs of fat and even potentially burning yourself. That’s why we’ve got some other suggestions for you.
And no, none of them involve having to whip out a frying pan and subject to yourself to potential indignities. Check out suggestions for making the most delicious bacon of your life with some super simple tips that you’ll wonder why you hadn’t learned before now.
Making bacon is always worth the effort, but I found a way to make the breakfast hall of famer without making a huge, greasy mess on the stovetop. My trick to avoiding a greasy stove and messy pans? It’s not the microwave or air fryer, although the air fryer ain’t a bad idea.
The oven is my new favorite way to make this savory meat. I dodge the mess it makes on the stovetop, and if you line your baking sheet with aluminum foil, all you have to do is trash it once the bacon is done. No mess, no stress.
Below, you’ll find the simple steps needed to cook perfect bacon in the oven. When it’s done, I’ve outlined nine genius ways to use leftover bacon fat.
How to cook perfect bacon in the oven
Here are my tips for cooking perfectly crisp bacon in the oven. Spoiler alert: There aren’t many steps, and none of them take very long.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. I would avoid air fryer mode if your oven has it since the fast-moving air is more likely to blow grease around the inside. We’re aiming for a mess-free scenario.
Line a baking tray with aluminum foil, or use a nonstick sheet pan for a more eco-friendly approach. If you’re going the foil route, make sure the edges ride up the sides of the tray so the grease doesn’t spill over the sides and down onto the tray.
If you’re using nonstick bakeware, I prefer a ceramic sheet pan or tray but Teflon works well, too.
Read more: Nonstick Cookware Guide: Teflon, Ceramic and More Explained
Arrange bacon on the tray. The strips shouldn’t overlap, but it’s fine if they touch since they’ll shrink down significantly while cooking. If you prefer super crispy bacon with a bit less grease, you can arrange the slices on a wire rack above the tray for the fat to drip down below.
Cook for eight to 10 minutes. Be sure to keep one eye on the bacon as some ovens run hotter than others. If you like your bacon crispy and well done, give it another few minutes. Remember, bacon does a lot of its crisping after it comes out and cools.
Read more: Make Your Next Burger in an Air Fryer and Thank Me Later
Drain the bacon on a sheet or two of paper towels. After a few minutes, you’re ready to serve those crispy strips with eggs, in a BLT or crumbled to fancy up boxed mac and cheese.
The best part? After cooking bacon in the oven, all you’re left with is a small ball of foil to heave effortlessly into the trash.
A few countertop ovens for cooking bacon
For bacon, I love using a smaller countertop convection model. A large oven works just as well but takes longer to preheat and, dang it, we want bacon now.
The Ninja Double Oven and Breville’s Smart Oven Air are two multifunction ovens that work well. Both are large enough that bacon grease won’t splatter on the ceiling, but are small and powerful enough to preheat quickly and cook bacon to a crisp in under 10 minutes. (We’ve also got tips for how to clean your cast iron skillet and how to make boxed mac and cheese taste so much better.)
Can you make bacon in an air fryer?
Absolutely. Easy air fryers are perfect for making bacon in a very similar manner to oven bacon. Here’s a step-by-step guide to making bacon in an air fryer.
FAQs
Why should I avoid the oven’s air fryer mode when cooking bacon?
In order to air fry the bacon in the oven, a lot of hot air moves very quickly through where the meat is cooking. While this wouldn’t normally be a problem, bacon is greasy (it’s part of the reason we’re avoiding cooking it over the stovetop in the first place). The fast-moving air produced in air fryer mode is a good way to spatter that grease all over the place inside your oven.
How long should I cook my bacon in the oven?
You should cook your bacon for 8 to 10 minutes for best results, but if you want the crispiest bacon, you could leave your strips in for a couple more minutes.
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