How to Cook Bacon in the Oven

Cooking bacon in the oven is an easy way to make crispy, evenly cooked bacon, it frees up room on the stovetop, and eliminates grease splatters!

If you’re reading this post, I’m going to assume that you know and love bacon like I do.

The smell of freshly cooked bacon alongside some eggs and toast with a side of coffee is what breakfast dreams are made of.

The grease splatters that come with frying bacon on the stove though… well, the cat is a big fan of the splatters because he gets to practice being a living mop. I, on the other hand, could do without them.

That’s one of the many reasons that cooking bacon in the oven is my favorite way to prepare bacon!

What’s the best way to cook bacon?

If you ask me the best way to make bacon, I’m going to say cooking bacon in the oven. Every time.

We’re putting the bacon on an oven-safe wire rack sitting on top of a rimmed baking sheet covered in aluminum foil, closing the door and letting the oven do the work.

The pros of baking bacon

• No grease splatters from frying bacon on the stovetop
• The bacon grease drips off the rack into the aluminum foil – which means when the grease cools, you can just ball up the foil and throw it away. No bacon fat discard stress.
• Easy cleanup, because… well, see the bullet point above!
• The bacon slices bake more flat and crisp, so you don’t end up with curled edges and unevenly cooked bacon strips
• You can make a lot of bacon at once with this method, while on the stovetop you’re more limited to what fits in a skillet

How to make crispy bacon in the oven

1. Preheat oven to 400° F. Line one rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and place an oven-safe wire rack on top of the foil.
2. Place bacon strips on the wire rack, making sure they don’t overlap. Bake for 15 minutes until browned and crisp, or maybe even longer – thicker slices will need more time. You want them to be crisp, but not burned, and you don’t want the edges to be curled.6 strips bacon
3. When done baking, immediately place on a paper towel-lined plate to dry and cool completely. Pat the tops with another paper towel to soak up any excess grease.
4. Serve and enjoy!

Ways to use baked bacon

Of course you can always just chomp on some bacon as is, but here are some other ideas if you want to get creative:

• Chocolate-Dipped Bacon
• Maple Bacon Snickerdoodles
• Cornbread and Bacon Stuffing
• Easy Maple Bacon Donuts (No Yeast!)
• Maple Bacon Cupcakes
• Even your dog can enjoy your oven-baked bacon if you add it to their Peanut Butter and Bacon Dog Treats!

Tips for the perfect baked bacon

• Get high quality bacon. It’s the star of the show, so you want to make sure you enjoy the flavor!
• Use thick cut bacon. Thick cut bacon is, in my opinion, just more flavorful and satisfying! It has more crunch, and it’s not as delicate as thinner sliced bacon that tends to fall apart more easily.
• Add a maple glaze. About halfway through the baking time, brush a little maple syrup over the top of each slice of bacon, then put it back in to finish baking.

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