My Fearless Kitchen

Quick tips and easy recipes to chase the fear out of your kitchen.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

  • mfk_utensils
  • Recipes
      • Quick and Easy
      • Slow Cooker
      • Grill
      • Freezer Friendly
      • Dips & Snacks
      • Breakfast & Breads
      • Dessert Recipes
      • Main Dish Recipes
      • Side Dish Recipes
      • Soups & Salads
  • Kitchen Tips, Tricks, & More
  • About Farming & Food
    • About GMOs
    • Antibiotics
    • Meat
    • Pigs
    • Eggs
    • Poultry
  • Disclosure, Disclaimers, & Privacy Policy
Home » How to Cook Bacon in the Oven

How to Cook Bacon in the Oven

By Marybeth Feutz 11 Comments

You won’t believe how easy it is to cook bacon in the oven. Once you try it, you’ll never want to go back to messy stovetop bacon frying again!

How to Cook Bacon in the Oven from My Fearless Kitchen. You won't believe how easy it is to cook bacon in the oven. Once you try it, you'll never want to go back to messy stovetop bacon frying again!

How to Cook Bacon in the Oven

{Referral links are used in this post.}

I really don’t know why I waited so long to try this. Sure, I have seen that people are cooking bacon in their ovens. And I thought, “That’s the lazy way to cook bacon. I’m not going to cook bacon in the oven. I’m going to keep cooking bacon the right way. In my skillet. On top of my stove. Like a normal person.”

Guys.

That was so dumb.

I don’t think I will ever go back to frying bacon in a skillet. Ever again.

How to Cook Bacon in the Oven from My Fearless Kitchen. You won't believe how easy it is to cook bacon in the oven. Once you try it, you'll never want to go back to messy stovetop bacon frying again!

How Do You Make Crispy Bacon?

Cooking bacon in the oven is so easy. It’s much less messy. And it takes about the same amount of time! I think my favorite part about cooking bacon in the oven is that the bacon comes out nice and flat and perfectly crispy. There are a few small tricks, and I’m going to let you in on them right now.

Tip #1 – Get a good sheet pan.

And line it with aluminum foil. You are going to thank me when it’s time to clean up.

Then go ahead and fill up the sheet pan with bacon. Lay the bacon out flat, and try to not let it touch. (But you can put it so close together that it looks like it’s kissing. It will shrink as it cooks.) If it touches in the pan, it will probably stick together. It’s not the end of the world.

Tip #2 – Put the pan in a cold oven.

Then turn your oven on to 400 degrees F. Leave the bacon alone for 13-15 minutes.

This is where you will get to know your oven. Mine cooks hotter on the left and right side than it does in the middle. After 15 minutes, the 2 pieces of bacon on the left and right sides of my sheet pan were cooked. The rest of the bacon was not. So I took those pieces out and put the rest back in the oven.

How Long Does it Take to Bake Bacon in the Oven?

Tip #3 – Check the bacon often after 15 minutes.

Yours might only take 15 minutes to cook perfectly. Mine took almost 20 minutes to look like this. Those last 5  minutes are so important – bacon will go from not-quite-done to perfectly done to burnt in just a minute or two, so make sure you stay close during those last few minutes.

When the bacon is as cooked as you want it, take it off the sheet pan and let it drain on paper towels. If you leave the bacon sitting in the hot grease on the pan it will continue to cook and it will burn.

How to Cook Bacon in the Oven from My Fearless Kitchen. You won't believe how easy it is to cook bacon in the oven. Once you try it, you'll never want to go back to messy stovetop bacon frying again!

Tip #4 – Wait a few minutes before you clean up.

If you want to save your bacon grease, let it cool a little bit before you pour it off. Store it in an airtight container in your refrigerator. If you want to throw away your bacon grease, it’s easier to pour off the pan after it cools a bit. And, if you forget to come back after a few minutes and the bacon grease gets hard again? (Nope, definitely did not happen to me…) Well, then it’s super easy to lift up the aluminum foil – with the bacon grease – and throw it all away. Then just give your sheet pan a soapy water rub down, and it’s all cleaned up!

I know what you’re thinking. 20 minutes to cook bacon? That’s forever!

We almost always cook a whole pound of bacon at once around here. And when I do that, I’m standing at the stove for at least 20 minutes, frying 3-4 pieces of bacon at a time in a skillet. And unless I remember to use my splatter guard (which I almost always forget), I have a big splattery bacon grease mess to clean up when I’m done. And then I still have to make the rest of breakfast!

Pop the bacon in the oven. Work on pancakes or eggs or whatever else you want to eat with your bacon. Or just sit back and wait until the bacon is done and eat it plain.

Bacon in the oven comes out so beautifully flat, without messing around with a bacon press. It was so crispy and easy to crumble. It’s my new favorite thing.

Go ahead, give it a try. Don’t hold out like I did!

Enjoy!

3 Ways to Take the Fear Out of Your Kitchen

  • An Easy Way to Cut Corn Off the Cob
  • How to Clean Up a Broken Egg
  • What is Freezer Burn?

3 Recipes to Try

  • Sweet Maple Bacon Pasta Salad
  • Bacon-Ranch Cheeseburger Cups
  • Bacon & Tomato Grilled Cheese

Printable Recipe Card for How to Cook Bacon in the Oven

How to Cook Bacon in the Oven

Marybeth Feutz
You won't believe how easy it is to cook bacon in the oven. Once you try it, you'll never want to go back to messy stovetop bacon frying again!
5 from 2 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 25 mins
Course Side
Servings 1 pound bacon

Ingredients
  

  • 1 pound bacon

Instructions
 

  • Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil. Lay the bacon in a single layer on the foil. Try to keep the bacon from touching.
  • Put the bacon in a cold oven. Turn the oven on to 400 degrees F. Let the bacon cook for 12 minutes.
  • After 12 minutes, check the bacon every 1-2 minutes. Every oven cooks a little differently, so watch for hot spots (the bacon on one part of the pan will cook faster). The bacon can get overcooked very quickly, so it's important to watch it closely as it finishes cooking.
  • When the bacon is done, take it off the sheet pan and let it drain and cool on paper towels.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

weekend potluck  Southern Bite Meal Plan Monday

 

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Breakfast & Bread Recipes, Holiday Recipe Box, Kitchen Tips, Tricks, & More, Quick and Easy, Recipes Tagged With: bacon, food, how to, kitchen hack, kitchen tip, oven, recipe, tip

« What’s the Difference Between Beef and Pork Ribs?
Simple Marinated Ribeye Steak »

Comments

  1. Dani says

    04/25/2016 at 8:37 am

    5 stars
    This is the best way, we use parchment paper instead of aluminum foil. Definitely the best way to cook bacon! 🙂

  2. billy patscher jr says

    04/30/2016 at 4:42 pm

    i put my bacon on a rack so it don’t set in its own fat. i take a cookie sheet put the foil down get the rack put bacon on rack so the air could circualte around it ckeck the time cause it can go from raw to burnt we have a funny kind of oven thanks billy try it it works for me

  3. Tee says

    05/02/2016 at 7:56 am

    5 stars
    Like you, I spent years frying bacon the “right” way. I have this beautiful, old cast iron skillet that belonged to my mother, and I thought that frying bacon in it was the only way to do it. I spent far too long standing over the bacon, getting splattered with hot grease, and later having to wipe up all the grease splatter on the stove. The bacon also always curled up and was unevenly cooked or overcooked. Then I discovered cooking bacon in the oven! I was hesitant at first. I thought someone would take away my Official Cooking Card if it got out, but cooking bacon this way has been the best thing since sliced bread. It doesn’t take as long as people think; and the time it takes to cook the oven gives me time to fry a couple of eggs, make toast, and get all the other stuff done. Thanks for posting this!

  4. Marybeth Feutz says

    05/19/2016 at 2:46 pm

    Great technique. I thought about adding a rack, but I didn’t want one more thing to clean. I’ll try that next time!

  5. Marybeth Feutz says

    05/19/2016 at 2:47 pm

    I was afraid I would get my Official Cooking Card taken away, too! Next I’ll have to work up the courage to try cooking bacon in the microwave. I have some friends who rave about that, but I can’t quite wrap my mind about it just yet.

Trackbacks

  1. Easy Weekly Meal Plan #38 - My Fearless Kitchen says:
    09/22/2017 at 11:38 am

    […] How to Cook Bacon in the Oven […]

  2. Chicken Bacon Melts says:
    09/22/2017 at 12:32 pm

    […] How to Cook Bacon in the Oven […]

  3. Dilled Potato Salad - My Fearless Kitchen says:
    06/08/2018 at 10:34 am

    […] the potatoes are cooking, you can cook a few slices of bacon in the oven. That’s the way that I can get bacon perfectly crispy every single time. And it means you […]

  4. Where Does Bacon Come From? - My Fearless Kitchen says:
    06/13/2018 at 8:49 am

    […] How to Cook Bacon in the Oven […]

  5. Ham, Egg, and Cheese Muffins - My Fearless Kitchen says:
    06/19/2018 at 3:25 pm

    […] of grease splatter range, well, let’s just say that I have my hands full. (Now I cook bacon in the oven. It’s so much easier and less […]

  6. Bacon, Tomato, and Zucchini Pasta Salad - My Fearless Kitchen says:
    07/23/2018 at 11:08 am

    […] you’re waiting for the water to boil for your pasta, cook the bacon in the oven. It comes out flat, crisp, and perfect every […]

Comment Policy

I welcome comments and conversation. All comments are moderated, and may not appear immediately. As long as you are respectful and courteous, your comment will be approved.
(Read my comment policy for more details.)

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Hi! I'm Marybeth, the blogger behind My Fearless Kitchen! Jump in, and let me share what I'm learning about food, farming, quick kitchen tips, and easy recipes to chase the fear out of YOUR kitchen! Read more.
Follow Us On Pinterest

Popular Posts

Honey-BBQ Oven-Baked Ribs

Half-Sour Refrigerator Pickles

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
Comment Policy — Disclosures, Disclaimers, & Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 · My Fearless Kitchen

 

Loading Comments...
 

You must be logged in to post a comment.