How to cook bacon in the oven? If you have ever made grilled or barbecued bacon from scratch before, you will know how difficult it is to get that nice crispy outside layer of fat to shine through while the insides are still raw and crisp. Here are some tips to help you make this easy recipe a success.
First things first – pre-heat your oven and get the oil warmed up. This should only take about 2 minutes in total. In case you’ve never cooked bacon on a skillet before, try using a cast iron pan with a wide-shaped bottom and heat it on medium until the bottom of the pan starts to smoke and the bottom is almost starting to burn, then flip and bake it on the cooling rack for the best result. If you want a crispy outer layer, don’t add any extra butter – the pan will do this itself!
If you baked your bacon on a foil pan, let it cool and then transfer it to a baking sheet. The baking sheet will absorb all the extra grease and prevent overcooking. If you’d like to avoid excess fat, use vegetable shortening as an alternative to butter. Just be careful when flipping the piece – it will roll up a bit and sometimes drop down a bit too. When this happens, remove the piece from the oven and re-bake it in a matter of seconds.
If you like a really crispy result, cover your piece of bacon with aluminum foil. Leave it to sit for a few minutes to allow the fat to solidify. This allows for crunchy bits of bacon on every bite. Don’t worry about getting it perfectly brown – the texture is still chewy. Once the fat is solidified, remove your foil pan from the oven and preheat your oven.
Using a food thermometer, check your bacon to ensure that it reaches your desired level of crispiness. You may need to experiment with different temperatures based on how your bacon comes out as this depends on how brown it is. Some people like their bacon until golden brown, others prefer a pale brown. Check your paper towels to ensure that they are not too dirty (if they are, that means you’re done cooking it) or too soft.
If baking bacon on a rack, leave the rack alone. Use a knife to remove the slices from the skewer. Avoid dropping any grease onto the floor. After removing the slices from the skewer, place them on a plate and cover with the foil you removed earlier.
In order to give the bacon that nice, crispy texture, you’ll need to let it sit in the rack for about a minute before removing it. Do not turn the racks. Let the slices sit and warm up to room temperature before turning the racks to burnish them. If you have a gas mark, turn your gas tank on full to start cooking in the kitchen. It’s important to keep your gas mark clean so the next time you use your gas line, it will not flare up and ruin your kitchen.
As soon as the slices are done cooking, use your spatula or the foil to flip them. Secure each slice with the foil. In order for the bacon to crisp up even more, cover one more layer of the foil with the uncooked bacon. Bring the slices to room temperature, once all the slices are cooked, allow them to cool and enjoy!
To remove the bacon from the oven, allow it to cool. Once cooled, wipe the slices with paper towels and place them in a large zip lock bag. Repeat this process with the remaining slices. Now that you have a delicious crispy piece of bacon in your hands, all you have to do is sprinkle a bit of flour on top and bake away! The resulting golden brown masterpiece will be loved by all and desired level of crispness is completely dependent on how much flour you use.
While this technique will work perfectly fine using a meat thermometer, we recommend using your non-stick frying pan because it will ensure even cooking. Another great thing about using a non-stick pan is that you can bake bacon in a skillet that has already been prepared. This makes it incredibly easy since there won’t be any preheat requirements on your part. Just bring the bacon to a safe temperature and cook on low for about six minutes. Once you hear the first sizzle, remove the pan and place it directly on a plate covered in aluminum foil for immediate cooking pleasure.
How to cook bacon in the oven is really very simple once you understand the steps. The key here is cooking it to a crisp golden brown. You’ll start checking the bottoms of the slices after about two minutes to ensure that they are done because brown doesn’t always equal crisp. In the next few minutes, you’ll also want to check to see if the bottom of your slice begins to brown before turning the piece over. By following these steps, you’ll be well on your way to great home cooking.