Are you tired of the mess and splatter that comes with cooking bacon on the stove top? Look no further than the oven!
Not only does baking bacon in the oven result in perfectly cooked strips every time, but it also eliminates the need for constant flipping and monitoring.
Plus, with the right techniques, you can cook bacon in the oven without any messy splatter.
In this article, we’ll share tips and tricks for achieving crispy, evenly cooked bacon without the hassle of stove top cooking.
Say goodbye to greasy stovetops and hello to easy clean up with oven-cooked bacon.
How To Cook Bacon In Oven Without Splatter?
To start, preheat your oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with tin foil or parchment paper for easy clean up.
Next, lay out the desired number of bacon slices on the lined baking sheet. For extra-crisp bacon, place a wire rack on top of the baking sheet and lay the bacon strips on top of the rack.
Bake in the oven for 18-20 minutes or until it’s cooked to your level of crispiness. It will cook perfectly on both sides, no need to flip it!
Alternative oven temperatures include:
• 375°F for 20 minutes
• 425°F for 15 minutes
• 450°F for 12 minutes.
For even cooking, bacon cooked in the oven cooks more evenly than stove top pan fried bacon. The oven heat circulates around the bacon cooking it evenly. On the stove tops, hot spots are created which cook certain parts of the bacon faster than others, resulting in burnt edges and soft chewy areas.
Oven cooked bacon doesn’t splatter like it does on the stove top. Oven bacon sizzles on the sheet pan until it’s perfectly cooked.
If you don’t have a wire rack, no problem. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or foil and crumple up some more foil to lay the bacon on that to hold it up out of the grease.
Your baking time may differ depending on your oven temperature and desired level of crispiness. It’s important to test this method a couple of times to find the right time/temperature that works for you.
To prevent oven splatters, lay a layer of foil over the bacon; this will keep grease from spitting all over the oven. Remove the foil for the last few minutes of cooking for “final crisping.”
Cleanup is a breeze with oven-cooked bacon. Just let the bacon grease cool in the pan, then roll up the aluminum foil or parchment paper and toss it.
Why Cook Bacon In The Oven?
Cooking bacon in the oven has many advantages over traditional stove top methods. One of the biggest advantages is that it doesn’t splatter, making clean up a breeze. Additionally, oven cooked bacon is less likely to burn or have soft chewy areas due to the even heat distribution in the oven.
Another benefit of cooking bacon in the oven is that it’s a hands-off method. You don’t need to stand over a hot stove, flipping and monitoring the bacon. Simply lay it out on a baking sheet and let the oven do the work.
Lastly, cooking bacon in the oven is great for cooking large batches of bacon at once. This makes it perfect for feeding a crowd or meal prepping for the week ahead.
Choosing The Right Pan And Rack
When it comes to choosing the right pan and rack for oven-cooked bacon, there are a few things to keep in mind.
First, it’s important to use a rimmed baking sheet to prevent any grease from spilling over into the oven. This will also help contain any splatters that may occur during cooking.
Next, consider using a wire rack on top of the baking sheet. This will allow the bacon to cook evenly on both sides and prevent it from sitting in its own grease, resulting in a crispier texture. Look for an oven-safe cooling rack that is sturdy and doesn’t easily stick.
If you don’t have a wire rack, you can still achieve crispy bacon by lining the baking sheet with foil or parchment paper and crumpling up more foil to create a makeshift rack for the bacon to sit on.
Preparing The Bacon For Oven Cooking
Before you can cook bacon in the oven, it’s important to prepare it properly. Start by selecting the desired number of bacon slices and lay them out on a lined baking sheet. For extra-crispy bacon, place a wire rack on top of the baking sheet and lay the bacon strips on top of the rack. This allows the grease to drip away from the bacon as it cooks, resulting in a crispier texture.
It’s important to make sure that the bacon slices don’t overlap too much, as this can cause uneven cooking. If you’re cooking a large batch of bacon, you may need to use multiple baking sheets to ensure that there’s enough space between each slice.
If you don’t have a wire rack, you can still cook bacon in the oven by lining the baking sheet with parchment paper or foil and using crumpled foil to hold the bacon up out of the grease.
Once your bacon is arranged on the baking sheet, you’re ready to cook it in the oven. Bake at 400°F for 18-20 minutes or until it’s cooked to your desired level of crispiness. You can also try alternative oven temperatures such as 375°F for 20 minutes, 425°F for 15 minutes, or 450°F for 12 minutes.
To prevent splatters in the oven, cover the bacon with a layer of foil during cooking. Remove the foil for the last few minutes of cooking to allow for final crisping.
Cleanup is easy with oven-cooked bacon. Simply let the bacon grease cool in the pan, then roll up the aluminum foil or parchment paper and toss it. With this method, you can enjoy perfectly cooked bacon without any of the mess or hassle of stove top cooking.
The Perfect Temperature And Timing
The perfect temperature for cooking bacon in the oven is 400°F. This temperature allows the bacon to cook evenly and become crispy without burning. However, alternative oven temperatures include 375°F for 20 minutes, 425°F for 15 minutes, and 450°F for 12 minutes. It’s important to note that baking time may differ depending on your oven temperature and desired level of crispiness.
To achieve the perfect bacon, lay out the desired number of bacon slices on a lined baking sheet. For extra-crisp bacon, place a wire rack on top of the baking sheet and lay the bacon strips on top of the rack. Bake in the oven for 18-20 minutes or until it’s cooked to your level of crispiness. It will cook perfectly on both sides, no need to flip it!
If you don’t have a wire rack, no problem. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or foil and crumple up some more foil to lay the bacon on that to hold it up out of the grease. To prevent oven splatters, lay a layer of foil over the bacon; this will keep grease from spitting all over the oven. Remove the foil for the last few minutes of cooking for “final crisping.”
How To Avoid Splatter In The Oven
Cooking in the oven can be a messy experience, especially when it comes to splatters. When cooking foods like casseroles, pasta bakes, or roasting joints of meat, the high temperatures in the oven cause any liquid or fat in the food to evaporate. This creates airborne grease droplets that settle on the walls, racks, and heating elements inside your oven. If not cleaned properly, these droplets will become hard and difficult to remove.
To prevent splatters in the oven, it’s best to cook foods in enclosed containers. A casserole dish with a lid works well, or you could wrap baking trays with a layer of aluminum foil. By containing the cooking foods, there will be no opportunity for splatter to reach the surfaces of the inner oven, therefore preventing the need for the oven to be cleaned.
Another way to prevent splatters is to line the rack below the one you’re using with aluminum foil. The foil catches any drips and prevents them from cooking onto the bottom of the oven. Set the lower rack several inches below the rack in use and make sure the foil is at least 1 1/2 inches from the oven walls on all sides. This keeps the oven functioning properly.
If you’re using cooking oil, adding a little salt to it can help prevent splatters when cooking in a pan with a small amount of oil. However, when cooking bacon in the oven, there’s no need to worry about splatters if you follow the steps above. Oven-cooked bacon sizzles on the sheet pan until it’s perfectly cooked without making a mess.
Tips For Crispy, Evenly Cooked Bacon
If you want to achieve perfectly crispy and evenly cooked bacon in the oven, here are some tips to follow:
1. Use a rimmed baking sheet to prevent bacon grease from dripping everywhere.
2. Line the baking sheet with tin foil or parchment paper for easy clean up.
3. For extra-crisp bacon, place a wire rack on top of the baking sheet and lay the bacon strips on top of the rack.
4. Cook the bacon in a preheated oven at 400°F for 18-20 minutes, or until it reaches your desired level of crispiness.
5. If you don’t have a wire rack, crumple up some foil to hold the bacon up out of the grease.
6. To prevent oven splatters, lay a layer of foil over the bacon; remove it for the last few minutes of cooking for final crisping.
7. Your baking time may differ depending on your oven temperature and desired level of crispiness. It’s important to test this method a couple of times to find the right time/temperature that works for you.
By following these tips, you can achieve perfectly crispy and evenly cooked bacon without any splatter in the oven. Plus, cleanup is a breeze with this method!
