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Cooking bacon in the oven is the best way to make a large batch of crispy, perfectly cooked bacon. It also prevents the messy grease splatter that comes from frying bacon on a stovetop. With these easy tips, you can learn how to bake bacon!
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Here are my simple and foolproof tips on how to cook bacon in the oven. If you have never baked bacon before, give it a try. You will be convinced that baking bacon is easier and tastier than pan-frying bacon.
Below I share my recipe tips for the best way to bake bacon, including what is the right temperature and time for cooking. Don’t miss the helpful tips at the end for storing bacon and how to store and use the bacon fat.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- The bacon cooks more evenly. Bacon cooks more evenly in the oven because it receives heat from all sides, unlike stovetop cooking, which often leaves edges crisp and centers undercooked.
- Oven baked bacon is more crispy. Oven-cooking bacon ensures even crispiness without burning, giving you the golden, irresistible bacon you love.
- Effortless and less time consuming. Oven-baking bacon is perfect for prepping a big batch, allowing you to cook up to 24 strips on two baking sheets in just 15-20 minutes. During this time, you can make fried eggs, hard-boiled eggs, omelet or to make a batch of healthy pancakes to complete your breakfast.
- There is no splatter. With the oven-baked bacon method, there’s no splatter—just sizzling bacon, with the foil catching the grease and keeping the oven clean.
- Easy clean-up. No messy cleanup. Line the pan with foil or parchment paper up the sides to catch the bacon grease, store the drippings, toss the foil, and enjoy easy dishwashing! Usually, if you use heavy duty aluminum foil, the pan hardly gets greasy.
How To Cook Bacon In the Oven
- Preheat oven to 400 F & line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Lay bacon strips in a single layer on the baking sheet & bake until the bacon is crispy, about 15 – 20 minutes depending on its thickness.
- Let the bacon slices cool on a paper towel-lined plate. Then, serve immediately, store in the fridge, or freeze in a freezer ziplock bag.
TIPS FROM NELI’S KITCHEN
Tips For Oven Cooked Bacon
- Use a large rimmed baking sheet. This will help you eliminate bacon fat drippings.
- Line the baking sheet with foil. I use heavy-duty foil to make cleanup a breeze.
- Cook at 400 F for the crispiest bacon. Depending on the thickness of the bacon, it can take between 15 – 25 minutes.
- You don’t need an oven baking rack. I have tried cooking bacon with a rack in the baking sheet and without one, and I have found no value in cooking with one. It takes longer for the bacon to bake, and it’s hard to clean the cooling rack. The bacon is equally crisp regardless of whether I use a baking wire rack or not.
- No flipping required. There is no flipping or constant monitoring required with this bacon recipe. Just stick the baking sheet in the oven and set the timer.
Recipes Using Bacon
A great way to use cooked bacon is not only for breakfast with fried eggs and avocado but also for salads, sandwiches, or soup toppings. Some of my favorite recipes that use cooked bacon are:
- Broccoli Salad
- Cobb Salad
- BLT Sandwich
- Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana
- Loaded Cauliflower Bake
- Loaded Broccoli and Potato Soup
How To Store It
You can store cooked bacon in a zip lock bag or airtight container in the fridge for about 7-10 days. When storing fresh bacon in the fridge, if bacon starts to change color or smell off, it’s safest to discard it.
How To Freeze Bacon
Place cooked and chilled leftover bacon in a gallon size freezer ziplock bag, and freeze it for later. You can freeze bacon for up to 6 months. I love to buy several packages of bacon when it’s on sale, and batch cook it in the oven. I fill a large ziplock bag with the cooked bacon and freeze it for later. It’s very convenient to have cooked bacon ready when you need it. Just pop it in the microwave or the convection oven for a few seconds to defrost.
FAQs for Cooking Bacon In the Oven
For the perfect crispy oven bacon, preheat the oven to 400 F, set the rack in the middle position of your oven, and cook the bacon at the same temperature the whole time. I find that this is the right temperature for perfect crispiness. If you bake it at 375 F, it will probably be a little bit chewy and you have to cook it longer. And if you cook it at 425 F, you tend to risk burning the edges. I highly recommend cooking the bacon at 400 F for best results.
Depending on the thickness of the bacon and the accuracy of your oven, cooking time for bacon can vary, but on average, a full baking pan of bacon will take between 15 – 25 minutes to cook at a temperature of 400 F.
Bake thin bacon for about 15 minutes, medium-thick bacon for about 20 minutes, and thick-cut bacon for about 25 minutes.
Several factors could prevent your bacon from getting crispy in the oven – low temperature, shorter cooking time, overcrowding the bacon in the baking sheet, and the quality and thickness of the bacon. To ensure crispy bacon in the oven, preheat oven to 400°F, cook for 15-20 minutes, arrange slices in a single layer without overlapping, and use high-quality bacon. These steps help promote even cooking at the correct temperature and cooking time.
No need to flip it while cooking! Simply place the bacon on a foil lined baking sheet, pop it in the oven, and set a timer. As it bakes, the bacon sizzles quietly without splattering and transforms into the crispy, golden-brown delight we all adore.
Once you have moved the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, it’s time to remove the bacon fat. Grab a clean mason jar or other glass, heat-safe container with a lid. Let the bacon grease cool off a little bit. Place a kitchen sieve over the glass jar, and pour the warm bacon grease into the jar. Make sure to use oven mitts to hold the hot baking sheet. I find that using a silicone spatula to scrape the sheet pan, helps to get most of the bacon grease off the sheet.
Pour the bacon grease into a jar, cover it with a lid and store it in the refrigerator. Even after the bacon fat in the jar has solidified, you can add more bacon fat on top and put it back in the fridge.
You can use the bacon fat for just about anything. It adds so much flavor and depth to roasted vegetables, stews and soups, and pretty much any meat.
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Oven Cooked Bacon Recipe
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Ingredients
- 12 slices bacon (1 package), thin or thick-cut bacon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Lay bacon strips in a single layer on the baking sheet. Because they will shrink as they cook, you can place the bacon slices close together, but don’t overlap them. Bake until the bacon is crispy, about 15 – 20 minutes depending on its thickness.
- Let the bacon slices cool on a paper towel-lined plate. Then, serve immediately, store in the fridge or freeze in a freezer ziplock bag.
Video
Notes
- Use a large rimmed baking sheet. This will help you eliminate bacon fat drippings.
- Line the baking sheet with foil. I use heavy-duty foil to make cleanup a breeze.
- Cook at 400 F for the crispiest bacon. Depending on the thickness of the bacon, it can take between 15 – 25 minutes.
- You don’t need an oven baking rack. I have tried cooking bacon with a rack in the baking sheet and without one, and I have found no value in cooking with one. It takes longer for the bacon to bake, and it’s hard to clean the rack. The bacon is equally crisp regardless of whether I use a baking wire rack or not.
- No flipping required. There is no flipping or constant monitoring required with this bacon recipe. Just stick the baking sheet in the oven and set the timer.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer: Nutritional values are estimates and may vary with ingredients, brands, and portion sizes. For accuracy, use your preferred nutrition calculator.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this recipe is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical or nutritional advice. I am not a doctor or a dietitian. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider for personalized guidance regarding your diet or health. For more details, please read my full disclosure page.
Bacon was just right. I love crispy bacon and this was crispy and delicious. The clean up was a breeze and pouring off the bacon fat was super easy.
Another advantage is a decrease in carcinogenic nitrosamines. These are formed when the nitrites are heated to 600 degrees or more which is what happens on a grddle or skillet on direct heat. Uncured meats still contain nitries and nitrates. They are just added as celery powder or juice instead of a chemical salt.
Thank you for such amazing tips! I always prefer cooking bacon in the oven using the oven racks. It is way much cleaner and bacon turns out crispy and perfectly cooked.
Delicious!!!
I am making this for my hubby for breakfast. I have never baked bacon in he oven before. I hate frying it so maybe this will work better. Wish me LUCK!!!!!
I use 2 cookie sheets. One on too of the other. Bacon flat on the covered one. No need for tin foil as cleaning is easy. My method ensures each piece cooks flat with no curling. I bake mine at 350 degrees.