Crispy Oven Baked Bacon

5 from 9 votes

Jan 09, 2020, Updated Aug 10, 2022

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Have you ever wondered how to cook bacon that turns out perfectly every time? Oven baked bacon is the answer! This foolproof method is hands-down the best way to make crispy, mouthwatering bacon with less mess. Breakfast, lunch, or dinner, bacon is the star!

Bacon! It makes everything better, am I right? Throw it in your breakfast casserole, top a warm winter soup, or add it to your favorite dessert. There is nowhere bacon doesn’t belong. But who wants to stand over a pan dodging grease splatter and rotating multiple batches? Not me. Enter crispy oven baked bacon. It’s the easy, simple, hassle-free method for the cooking perfect bacon every time.

Why You’ll Love This Oven-Baked Bacon

Easy and convenient. All you need is bacon, an oven, and a baking sheet. No need to watch over the bacon, flip it, or deal with grease splatter. Just pop it in the oven and let it do its magic.
Consistent. No more guessing how long to cook the bacon, or dealing with unevenly cooked slices. The oven cooks the bacon evenly and uniformly, giving you the perfect crispiness and doneness every time.
Less greasy. The oven allows the excess fat to drip off the bacon, leaving you with crispier slices. I recommend using parchment paper (or aluminum foil) and a baking rack to reduce the amount of grease even more.
Adaptable. You can use any type of bacon you like, from regular to thick-cut, from smoked to flavored. You can also adjust the cooking time and temperature to suit your preference, whether you like your bacon soft, chewy, or crunchy.

Raw bacon getting ready to be cooked in the oven.

What You’ll Need

Bacon. Yep, that’s it! Grab any kind of bacon you like.

How to Cook Bacon in the Oven

Preheat the oven. First up, let’s preheat that oven to 400°F. For best results, let your oven sit at 400°F for 10 minutes so the bacon cooks more evenly.
Prepare the baking sheet. For easy cleanup, line your rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set an oven rack over it.
Arrange the bacon. Arrange your bacon in a single layer over the wire rack. It’s okay if the bacon slices touch since the bacon will shrink a bit as it cooks. Just make sure that your bacon doesn’t completely overlap.
Bake. Bake until the bacon is crisped to your liking. This will likely fall between 15 and 22 minutes. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t cook more than you want to. Once you’ve learned how to cook bacon in your oven, it’ll be the same every time.

Recipe Tips

Cook time. I bake my bacon for about 15 minutes if it’s a regular cut. For thick-cut bacon, it’ll take closer to 22 minutes. It’s important to remember that the thickness and your desired crispness will both play a part in your cook time. Definitely start checking on your bacon at the 15-minute mark.
Why I cook at 400 degrees. This has always been the temp that yields the quickest cook time and crispiest bacon in my house. Let your oven set for about 10 minutes once it reaches 400 degrees so you’ll lose less temperature when you open the oven door. This will help ensure a more even cook.
Amount to cook. You can cook as many slices of bacon that you can line up on your baking sheet without too much overlapping. This is usually around 10-12 slices for a standard backing sheet. Remember, that you can always throw in more than one bacon-filled pan at a time!
Flipping. Unlike with frying bacon, you don’t need to flip oven-baked bacon. In the oven, your bacon will be heated from both sides as opposed to the stove where all the heat escapes from above. For best results, I do recommend rotating the pan halfway through your cook time.
Draining. You’ll notice a lot less grease on the bacon by cooking it this way. Oven baked bacon allows most of the grease to drip off into the pan. This makes draining a much neater process! Simply transfer the cooked bacon to a paper towel lined plate and let them cool. If you’d like, you can always blot the tops to soak up any additional grease.
Cleanup. Cleanup is so easy with this cooking method! Once you’ve removed the bacon, let the pan sit until the bacon fat hardens. Then, just roll up the foil, and toss it in the garbage. No need to handle hot grease or clog your drain!

What to Serve With Oven-Baked Bacon

When it comes to bacon, there are no wrong answers with how to serve it. You can always go with the classic choice of pairing it with eggs, potatoes, and toast. Waffles, french toast sticks, or a frittata would also be great breakfast pairings. Or, get more creative and use the cooked bacon in a variety of dinner recipes. Some of my favorites are chicken bacon ranch pasta, roasted potatoes with bacon and cheese, or chicken bacon avocado salad. No matter which way you go, you can’t lose with crisp oven baked bacon!

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5 from 9 votes