baking bacon

[SeekingSimplicity]

Anyone bake their bacon instead of frying it? How do you do it? Do you do it in a casserole dish or a cast iron skillet?

[*********]

When we have bacon (and that's rare, but we do have it every once in a while), this is how I cook it:

 

I put the oven on, oh, I dunno, 375 to 400. Depends if I'm baking anything else or not.

 

I take my largest baking sheet, and line it with tin foil.

 

I lay the strips of bacon out on the foil, very close to each other.

 

Stick it in the oven.

 

I don't know how long I cook it for; I just keep an eye on it. I flip it over once, after the bottom side starts to brown. Then I just keep it in there, checking it every few minutes, until it's the doneness that we like.

 

After I take the bacon off, I just leave the baking sheet on the stove until it's cooled and all the fat has solidified. Then I can just peel off the tin foil and throw it all away.

 

I will NEVER go back to cooking it on the stovetop. In the oven is just SO much easier and cleaner for me.

[RJH]

:iagree:

[SeekingSimplicity]

Oh, that sounds so much less messy than frying! Does it come out crispy?

[*********]

Yep, nice and crispy.

 

Unless you take it out earlier. I'm sure you could get it chewy like some people like just by taking it out earlier, but we like ours crispy. Not 'it falls apart like powder in your mouth when you bite it' crispy, just, you know, medium crispy.

 

It that makes any sense, LOL. :lol:

 

I'm figuring you can just take it out whenever it's done enough for your family's taste, just like if you cooked it on the stovetop.

[SeekingSimplicity]

Thanks! I've got some in the oven... we'll see what happens. I've got one that likes floppy bacon, the others like it medium crispy, and I like it just shy of charcoal. LOL

[Gretchen in NJ]

When we have bacon (and that's rare, but we do have it every once in a while), this is how I cook it:

 

I put the oven on, oh, I dunno, 375 to 400. Depends if I'm baking anything else or not.

 

I take my largest baking sheet, and line it with tin foil.

 

I lay the strips of bacon out on the foil, very close to each other.

 

Stick it in the oven.

 

I don't know how long I cook it for; I just keep an eye on it. I flip it over once, after the bottom side starts to brown. Then I just keep it in there, checking it every few minutes, until it's the doneness that we like.

 

After I take the bacon off, I just leave the baking sheet on the stove until it's cooled and all the fat has solidified. Then I can just peel off the tin foil and throw it all away.

 

I will NEVER go back to cooking it on the stovetop. In the oven is just SO much easier and cleaner for me.

:iagree: It is much cleaner to do it this way. I use parchment paper instead of foil. I find that the bacon sometimes may stick to the foil. It tastes better when cooked on the parchment paper as well. Plus, I like to stay away from using foil as much as possible.

[SeekingSimplicity]

it turned out great! Really crispy, and the only mess was on the cookie sheet.

 

Gretchen, does the parchment paper catch all the grease like the foil?

[Alice]

I microwave it. Put several paper towels on a plate, put slices of bacon on and cover with several paper towels. It works best if it's just a few pieces, I think the most I've done is 6. Microwave for 90 seconds, check it and then add on 30-90 seconds (depending on how you like it, your microwave and the number of pieces you have.)

[seewah]

We always bake our bacon ... it is so yummy that way!

 

First I lay down parchment paper on cookie sheets. (If you don't have parchment paper, it is not a big deal to just wash the sheets quickly after the bacon comes out of the oven.) Then I lay my cooling racks on top of the parchment paper (the racks fit nicely right inside my cookie sheets). Next it is time to lay the bacon out on the racks. Bake in a 350 to 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through. Keep an eye on it because it can go from perfect to overdone very quickly! I love that all the grease drops to the bottom because the slices of bacon are elevated up on the cooling racks!

 

After the bacon is done baking, I leave it on the cooling racks for a few minutes. Then I place the bacon on a paper towel lined serving platter to soak up any excess grease. I also blot the top of the bacon.

 

My family LOVES bacon done this way. It never comes out floppy or rubbery ... just nice and crisp.

 

A nice twist on bacon is to make brown sugar bacon: before baking, LIGHTLY sprinkly each bacon slice with a bit of ground place pepper and a light dusting of brown sugar. Bake just as you would plain bacon ... but you might have to decrease or increase the cooking time a bit depending on your oven. Brown sugar bacon is SOOOOOOO yummy!

 

(Note: I also always buy the Oscar Meyer Center Cut Bacon that is 30% less fat than the regular bacon.)

Edited July 9, 2009 by seewah

[Remudamom]

What if you get lousy bacon with lots of fat? Still crispy? I make about a pound of bacon almost every morning. My kids hate the fat.

[astrid]

Anyone bake their bacon instead of frying it? How do you do it? Do you do it in a casserole dish or a cast iron skillet?

 

I just did this last night for BLT's. It's the ONLY way I cook bacon.

 

I just but a cooling rack (like for cookies) in a cookie sheet and lay the strips of bacon on the rack, bake at 400 degrees until it's crispy. Not only do the strips not shrivel up, but quite a lot of the fat drips off and is contained in the cookie sheet. The bacon turns out crispy and delicious!

 

Astrid

[OnTheBrink]

Anyone bake their bacon instead of frying it? How do you do it? Do you do it in a casserole dish or a cast iron skillet?

 

I put it on a broiler pan and stick it under the broiler for a few minutes. Or, if I have turkey bacon, I just nuke it for 1:30.

[rfhsmom]

Just make sure you don't put it under the broiler on a baking sheet!!!:lol: I did this one of the first times I fixed DH breakfast in bed and it caught on fire! That was bad enough, but the smoke from the fire set of the alarm in our apartment building which was connected somehow to automatically send the fire department. YIKES!!! The whole building evacuated, the fire department came in to find the fire, and I hid under my desk in tears!!!!!!!!!!! Thought you may enjoy this funny story this a.m.

[clementine]

Bacon baker here too! I first tried it about a year ago & now it's the only way we make it....although once in awhile my dh will do it on the grill.

 

No grease splatter all over and the house doesn't have that powerful bacon smell like it does when I use my counter top frying pan.

 

:)

[i.love.lucy]

A nice twist on bacon is to make brown sugar bacon: before baking, LIGHTLY sprinkly each bacon slice with a bit of ground place pepper and a light dusting of brown sugar. Bake just as you would plain bacon ... but you might have to decrease or increase the cooking time a bit depending on your oven. Brown sugar bacon is SOOOOOOO yummy!

 

 

You all HAVE to try this. One of the yummiest things I have ever eaten!!!:tongue_smilie:

 

Oven here too, but I also do mine (when plain, not br sugar) on my electric griddle. I can make almost the whole pkg at once, and then it leaves a little grease on the surface for when you make the pancakes. OH! :tongue_smilie::tongue_smilie:

[Tammy]

Does it?

[*********]

Mine doesn't make a mess. It just doesn't splatter in there the way it does on the stovetop.

[Tammy]

Now I want to run down to the store and get some bacon and try it in the oven, LOL!

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

I tried pan frying bacon and it turned out yucky:glare: Then we tried baking on a stainless steel baking sheet with a 1 inch lip and perfecto;) I will never pan fry again;)

[Desert Rat]

I prefer baking bacon. I put it on a cookie sheet. That cookie sheet is now "the bacon sheet" because cookies would never taste the same. LOL There's directions on the bacon package on how to bake, most of the time at least.

[Tap]

Yep, another baker here too :D

[gardening momma]

I'm going to post before I read all the responses :)

 

I turn the oven up to about 450. I use two 9x13x1 pans. They fit side by side in my oven, so I can take one out to turn the bacon while the other keeps cooking. I lightly spray the pans before I put the bacon on because the bacon always sticks a bit at first until a good amount of fat is cooked out. Then I just check it every few minutes, turning the bacon now and then.

 

I will NEVER go back to cooking it on the stovetop. In the oven is just SO much easier and cleaner for me.

I agree!

 

What if you get lousy bacon with lots of fat? Still crispy? I make about a pound of bacon almost every morning. My kids hate the fat.

Yes, still very crispy--just put the cooked bacon on a paper towel on a plate. (I only buy the cheap stuff).

Edited July 9, 2009 by gardening momma

[sweetfeet]

I bake it too. It doesn't splatter and shrink. It's perfect every time. I bake at 375* for 10 minutes, flip and do another 2-3. Now I'm hungry for breakfast.

[songbirdie]

The one time I tried this, there was so much grease splattered all over the inside of my oven, and it took a complete oven cleaning to get it off. I waited a few days to clean it, and it really wreaked every time I opened it to cook something else. How do you keep it from making such a mess inside the oven? :confused: That mess was really not worth it.

[muffinmom]

I bake mine at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes...but I never even bother turning it!

[vkay]

I spread it out on a cookie sheet- close together, but not touching.

 

Cook at 425 for about 15 minutes, longer if you want crispy.

 

I've never noticed the oven being any dirtier than normal after we do this. ?? Also, no bacon smell the next time I use the oven.

 

Just had some yesterday....yum.

[Gretchen in NJ]

it turned out great! Really crispy, and the only mess was on the cookie sheet.

 

Gretchen, does the parchment paper catch all the grease like the foil?

It does catch most of it most of the time. Sometimes though, I don't cut the parchment paper large enough.:blush:

[gardening momma]

The one time I tried this, there was so much grease splattered all over the inside of my oven, and it took a complete oven cleaning to get it off. I waited a few days to clean it, and it really wreaked every time I opened it to cook something else. How do you keep it from making such a mess inside the oven? :confused: That mess was really not worth it.

When it seems that there is an excessive amount of grease, you can drain some of it into a mug partway through. That will help with the splattering.

 

As far as the smell, maybe if you cook it at a higher temp, it will burn off the fat better when it hits the sides of the oven? I do mine anywhere from 425 to 450, which is higher than most people here have said. I just check it frequently.

[Gretchen in NJ]

What if you get lousy bacon with lots of fat? Still crispy? I make about a pound of bacon almost every morning. My kids hate the fat.

Yes, it is still crispy if you preheat your oven. I have been in a rush a few times and have put the bacon in a cold oven. It is not so crispy then. You do have to keep an eye on it. It can go from perfection to over done yuck in seconds.

 

Just make sure you don't put it under the broiler on a baking sheet!!!:lol: I did this one of the first times I fixed DH breakfast in bed and it caught on fire! That was bad enough, but the smoke from the fire set of the alarm in our apartment building which was connected somehow to automatically send the fire department. YIKES!!! The whole building evacuated, the fire department came in to find the fire, and I hid under my desk in tears!!!!!!!!!!! Thought you may enjoy this funny story this a.m.

:smilielol5::smilielol5:I did somthing like that when I tried to barbeque a turkey.:eek::smilielol5:

[Guest Katia]

I am one that also only bakes bacon in the oven (thank you Rachael Ray!). I use the broiler pan and give it a quick spray with Pam, lay the bacon strips very close together and pop it in a 425 degree oven for 20-25 mins. The grease goes down through the slots to the pan below, which I let cool and harden a bit and then wipe it into the trash. The bacon is crispy and flat. I put it on a double paper towel laid on a serving platter to soak up any remaining grease. And...I only ever use cheap bacon.

 

No mess in the oven to clean up and no mess on the stove or microwave to clean up. And my family think it tastes much better this way. It's the only way I do it now.