Everyday Baking, Cooking, and Crafts

BACON, BACON, BACON -- BAKE YOUR BACON!

Don't Fry Your Bacon. Bake Your Bacon!

BACON; my family loves bacon. However, I don't like the mess that cooking bacon on the stovetop makes. Splatter everywhere, plus, there isn't a pan large enough to cook an entire package at one time. Also, bacon prepared on the stovetop will curl up and twist. And then there are the white, uncooked fatty ends. Yuck. How about standing there frequently turning it over and over. No, thank you.

Well, what if I told you about a way to free up some time to make bacon, drink a cup of coffee, and read your Bible while you're preparing the bacon? Well, when I was volunteering in the church kitchen, and we were cooking for over 300 guests, I learned a few tricks to speed up the process of preparing food. One of those tricks was making bacon in the oven. It's practically a hands-free method.

"What about spatter?", You ask. Yes, bacon is notorious for popping an splattering when being prepared by the stovetop method, but in the oven, it doesn't do that. The reason is that the heat is coming from all directions, it evenly distributes the heat. The bacon will render the fat, but it doesn't pop and splatter...as much. The oven will be free and clear of grease splatter. And if you're worried about a grease fire, rest assured there won't be any. The grease is contained in the pan and because it doesn't splatter there isn't any fuel to burn. Whether your oven is gas, convection, or electric, there is no reason to be concerned about a grease fire.

Finally, clean up is a breeze! Really, it could not be easier. If you wrap the sheet pan with foil and line with parchment paper, then the clean up is a snap. No greasy stovetop, no messy pans to clean and no grease to collect.

Let me guide you on how to bake a batch of bacon.

ONE:

You’ll want to use baking sheets with edges. This is a must to ensure the grease is contained. Clean-up will be a snap because you can quickly remove the foil from this style of the baking sheet when the bacon is done.

Line each baking sheet you will want to cover with foil completely. I use two large foil sheets, overlap them along the longest edges, and fold and crease them together to make a seam. This will ensure that the entire baking sheet is covered. Then add one layer of parchment paper on top of the foil to cover the bottom of the sheet pan. (See demonstrating photos)

Cookie Sheet Pan, Parchment Paper, Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil

Two pieces of foil are larger than the cookie sheet pan.

Place one sheet of foil on top of the other, fold to make a seam along the longest edges.

Now, place the large sheets of foil over the cookie sheet pan and crumple the sides tightly to the sheet pan.

It should look like this.

Place a piece of parchment paper on top of the foil-lined pan.

TWO:

Place each strip of bacon on the baking sheets close together, but do not overlap or they will stick together. I have read where some people put their bacon on rack place the pan to allow the grease to drip down. CRAZY. Part of the goodness of bacon is the fat rendering and cooking the bacon. Plus, it is hard to clean the racks as the bacon tends to stick. No, thank you! Also, since I’m heating up my oven I am going to bake a pound of bacon, so we’ll have plenty to eat and some to save for later.

Line up the bacon, but do not overlap.

THREE:

Bacon comes in different thicknesses. We prefer the thick cut, however, some people like the thin cut. No need to preheat, just set your oven temperature to 400°F and place all the sheets of bacon in the oven: Remember, ovens vary so times will vary. The first time you bake the bacon, stay close by.

WARNING NOTE!!!!!

Watch the bacon like a hawk for the last 5 minutes because it will go from "done" to "burnt to a crisp" in the time it takes to sneeze! Believe me, I’ve burned a batch or two by getting distracted. There is hardly anything worse to smell than burnt bacon, as well as setting off the smoke detectors.

BAKING TIMES:

THIN CUT: Set a timer for 15 minutes. Total cook time for the bacon is usually around 20 minutes.

THICK CUT: Set the timer for 30 for crispier, darker bacon — it varies from brand to brand. Keep your eagle eyes focused on the bacon around the end time of the baking process.

FOUR:

When the bacon is to the desired doneness that you prefer, remove it from the oven, transfer all the bacon to a paper towel lined surface or baking sheet to absorb any extra grease. You can serve the bacon immediately or pop it into a storage container and place it in your fridge to eat later.

EXTRA BACON: So, if you're making extra to have on hand for later, take it out of the oven a few minutes early. That way when zapping it in the microwave, later, it isn’t overcooked.

Seconds out of the oven. See the grease? Remove the bacon and place onto paper towels to absorb the grease.

FIVE:

Clean up is a SNAP! Wait until the pan has cooled completely, fold up the foil and throw away. The pan will be practically clean. I usually just rinse my pan for the sake of saying that it has been cleaned, but I have yet to have any grease escape and soil the pan. I provided a couple of pictures of my oven and pans after baking a huge batch. REALLY! This is how clean it was. For certain. No lie!

AFTER THE PAN IS COOL, Place a few paper towels over the grease and fold up the foil. Toss it out. EASY!!!

Look at the clean pan! No lie!

No grease in my oven! This is just after baking the bacon. I wish you could see the heat waves.

SIX:

EXTRA bacon is great. The photos demonstrate that I made a couple of bacon sliders. I zapped the bacon in the microwave for about 30 seconds and placed them on two Hawaiian rolls with mustard. I’m easy to please and didn’t have time to fix a BLT. I had a quick meal in less than a minute!