Baked Bacon in the Oven (2024)

Today, we are mastering a life skill: Baked Bacon. Cooking bacon by baking it in the oven is hands-down the best way to make crispy bacon with less mess. You’ll proudly call yourself a bacon perfectionist!

Baked Bacon is the Best Bacon

The secret to perfect fried bacon is that it isn’t fried; it’s baked.

• Even Cooking. An oven-safe rack allows the heat to circulate evenly around the bacon, a key component of bacon excellence.
• Hands-Free. No standing at the stove to babysit your bacon. It cooks in the oven unattended.
• Safer. Oven bacon won’t splatter you with hot grease while you fry it.
• Restaurant-Worthy. Ever wonder how your favorite brunch, burger or BLT spot achieves those flat, thick, and magically crisp bacon slices? I’d wager my last piece that the bacon is baked. It’s the method most restaurants use.
• Bigger Batches. Cooking for a crowd? Bake two sheet pans at once.
• Easy Clean Up. Let the grease harden on the foil, then discard it. Simple!
• Healthier than Fried. The grease from the bacon drips off and is collected below the rack, which means it stays off your bacon and out of your body. I also pat the bacon to remove some extra grease and keep it crisp.

Want your bacon even faster? Make Air Fryer Bacon!

How to Cook Perfect Bacon in the Oven

The ONLY Ingredient

• High-Quality Bacon.This might sound obvious, but I can’t overstate its importance: the better quality of bacon you buy, the better your final baked bacon will taste. I promise it’s worth it!

How Long to Bake Bacon

How long bacon should be cooked in the oven will vary based upon the thickness of your bacon and your desired crispness.

• For Thin-Cut Bacon. Regular, thin-cut bacon will typically bake in 12 minutes at 400 degrees F. If you want it extra crispy, you can let it bake a little longer, but keep a close eye on it.
• For Thick-Cut Bacon. Thicker bacon will take 14 to 20 minutes, depending upon your thickness and how crisp you would like it to be.

The time the bacon takes to cook will also vary by how many slices you are making at once.

If your sheet pan is very crowded, you may need to extend the baking time by a few minutes.

Storing Oven Bacon

• To Store.Cooked bacon will last in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days. If it starts to smell funny or change appearance, throw it out.
• To Reheat. Recrisp your bacon slices on a baking sheet in the oven at 350 degrees F.
• To Freeze. Store baked bacon slices in an airtight freezer-safe storage container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Remove and thaw slices as desired.

How to Use Baked Bacon

Now that you’ve mastered the life skill of how to make oven baked bacon, it’s time to use it!

• Use It in Any Recipe That Calls for Cooked/Crumbled Bacon. In addition to the most obvious end (gobbling the slices directly from the plate), baking bacon in the oven is an ideal method any time you have a recipe that calls for adding cooked, crumbled bacon, or if you want to make a standard recipe a little more decadent. These Roasted Brussels Sprouts are delicious with a little bacon sprinkle, to name but one example.
• Loaded Potatoes. A classic Baked Potato, Air Fryer Baked Potato, or Crockpot Potato Soup are all better with bacon.
• Salads. Crumbled bacon makes salads scrumptious and extra appealing. Try BLT Chopped Salad, 7 Layer Salad, Cobb Salad, or add it to Apple Walnut Salad.
• Top Pizzas. Dice it and use it to top Naan Pizza, Ricotta Pizza, and Brussels Sprouts Bacon Pizza.
• Sandwiches and Burgers. A slice of crisp bacon is always a good choice on Air Fryer Grilled Cheese, Turkey Burgers, and more!

• Rimmed Baking Sheet. Your oven baked bacon BFF.
• Aluminum Foil. Adding a layer of this to your baking sheet makes cooking bacon in the oven a breeze to clean up.
• Oven-Safe Baking Rack. A key component in our crispy baked bacon.

Tips for Perfect Baked Bacon

• Use Good Quality Bacon! It’s literally everything. You often get the best options by purchasing it from the butcher counter at the grocery store. It’s usually only a dollar or two more than the pre-packaged stuff, but the taste is remarkably better.
• Go for Thick Cut Bacon. It’s easier to layer onto to sandwiches, makes more of an impact when sprinkled on salads, and is extra satisfying when munched on its own.
• Bake at 400 Degrees F. Some recipes recommend baking bacon at other temperatures or starting the bacon in a cold oven, but I found that a preheated 400 degrees F is the best temperature for baking bacon. It cooks the bacon evenly no matter its thickness and the bacon won’t splatter.
• Use a Rack for the Ultimate Crisp. A rack elevates the bacon so air can circulate evenly and grease can drip off. Washing the rack is a bit of a pain; we think it’s worth it, but if you prefer to bake bacon without a rack, place the strips directly on the aluminum foil or on a sheet of parchment.
• Save the Grease. Bacon drippings are gold! Collect the grease in a jar in the refrigerator, then use it to make the best ever Sautéed Brussels Sprouts and Sautéed Cabbage.