Wrap a metal baking sheet with foil. Bacon is a greasy food, so there's no need to spray the foil with cooking spray. If you like crispier bacon, place a foil-wrapped cooling rack on the baking sheet. In this case, glass and ceramic pans can also be used.
It's a good idea to line the pan with parchment or tin foil first, which Kitchn also notes makes for super-easy cleanup — all — or nearly all of the grease — will stay on top of the paper, so all you have to do is remove the cooked bacon, roll up the paper, reserve the drippings, and dispose of the paper, and you ...
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Lay the bacon slices on the baking sheet. Cook the bacon for 10 to 20 minutes or until it's as crispy as you'd like.
Do you need oil for cooking bacon on the stove? No, you don't. Your bacon might stick to the pan initially, but it's quite a fatty cut of meat and will release its own juice to cook in pretty quickly.
Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil (up the edges), and then lightly spray foil with non-stick baking spray. Lay strips of uncooked bacon onto the foil in a single layer, leaving a bit of space between each slice. IMPORTANT: Place baking sheet into oven, and THEN turn the oven on to 400°F. THAT'S RIGHT!
Cooking bacon in the oven gives you perfectly crispy slices without any flipping or fussing, and the cleanup is superspeedy. It's also the best way to make bacon for a crowd. You can cook the bacon directly on aluminum foil-lined baking sheets or on a wire rack set on top of the baking sheets.
If you line your baking sheet with foil, the grease gathers in the bottom of the pan for easy clean up. We like to add a sheet of parchment paper on top of the foil, which keeps the bacon from sticking and helps it cook more evenly.
Lay the bacon strips in the cold skillet, then place the pan on the stovetop over medium heat. You don't need to add any oil because the fat will render and help the bacon release from the pan as it cooks. Pan-fry the bacon until the strips are crisp and deeply brown, flipping as needed.
Why Does Cooking Bacon in Water Work? The addition of water keeps the initial cooking temperature low and gentle, so the meat retains its moisture and stays tender as the fat renders. Plus, since the water helps render the fat, there will be significantly less splatter as your bacon finishes in the pan.
To cook: Bacon can be fried, dry fried or grilled. To fry, heat 1 tbsp of oil in a frying pan until hot, add the bacon and cook streaky or back rashers for 1–2 minutes on each side and steaks for 3–4 minutes on each side.
Arrange bacon strips on tray, overlapping as little as possible. Top with a second sheet of parchment paper; place a second baking sheet on top. Bake bacon until it's as crisp as you like it, 25 to 30 minutes for thin-cut, or 30 to 35 minutes for thick-cut.
Oven baked bacon is easier to make, healthier, and produces better results than fried bacon (Air Fryer Bacon is another great method). Baked bacon is one of those rare culinary situations where the method that yields a superior result (baked bacon) is actually easier than the conventional method (pan frying).
When bacon is added to a hot pan with no fat, the bacon caramelizes, which results in a sticky mess. The fat must slowly render off the bacon, creating a non-stick frying surface.
Stovetop: Nonstick Skillet
Outcome: In about the same amount of time as it took to cook bacon in a cast iron skillet, the nonstick skillet produced super crispy, consistent, flat bacon strips. Pros: If you like your bacon crispy as a cracker and you value visual consistency, this is the method for you.
A baking sheet or parchment paper? The best way to cook bacon in the oven is on parchment paper because it allows for an easy cleanup. Once you're done and it's cooled down, simply roll all that grease up into the center of the parchment paper and throw it away!
It's actually explained by chemistry. When bacon is heated, it undergoes the Maillard Reaction, which causes food to brown and gives it its flavor. With bacon, the reaction causes sugars to react with amino acids, that when combined with bacon fat, creates unique aroma compounds that together make your mouth water.
Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil, making sure the pan is completely covered. Check that the foil extends up the sides of the pan so it captures all the bacon grease and cleanup is easier. Arrange the bacon strips on the prepared baking sheet, or on the rack if you're using one.
Instructions on How to Cook Bacon in the Oven
Preheat the oven to 400°F/204°C and line a large baking pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil. If you do not have parchment paper or aluminum foil, spray the baking pan lightly with a non-stick cooking spray.
The Trick To Baking Bacon Perfectly
If you want to cook crispy bacon in oven, the main trick to the recipe is to use an oven-safe cooling rack — instead of placing the bacon directly on the sheet pan. This means it doesn't sit in the grease as it cooks and the fat drips down, which gets you that perfect crispness.
The best pan for stovetop bacon is a cast iron skillet. As with fried chicken, cast iron has a symbiotic relationship with bacon. The cast iron cooks the bacon with minimal to no sticking and has an easy cleanup (at least, it's easy if your cast iron is well-seasoned).
If you choose to use a pan, we recommend stainless steel. These pans cook bacon wonderfully and they are simple to clean.