Joseph's Best Easy Bacon Recipe

This recipe is similar to the one I use from America's Test Kitchen. They also use the cold oven method but set the oven to 400º, rotating foil-lined pan halfway through cooking, cook time 10 to 15 minutes, depending on size of bacon slices and size of baking sheet. I have found using the convection setting my bacon is crispy in about 10 minutes. Another tip, if putting a little water on the slices before baking, they lay perfectly flat, no curling.

This is how I always cook my bacon now. It's absolutely foolproof and I get perfect bacon every time. NOTE: After I pull the bacon off, I use a spatula to help scrape the grease into a jar to save for cooking.

I think you'll find that your cooking time depends on how thick your bacon is, as well as how quickly your oven heats up. I used center cut regular bacon, and it took about 16-17 minutes. What was interesting to me is that the bacon didn't shrink up much, and turned out perfectly cooked with no mess in the oven. I left the bacon grease solidify a bit, rolled up the foil, and just pitched it in the trash. Once you get your timing down, this is a great way to cook bacon.

First I would like to clarify a misconception about Canadians and bacon: people think we eat "Canadian Bacon", which is actually either "back bacon" or glorified ham. Sure we eat that...occasionally, like anybody else, BUT we DO know what bacon is, and that is what we eat when we refer to bacon - the long glorious strips of salty, greasy fried bacon just like you Americans. And we LOVE it! I don't know why back bacon has become known as "Canadian Bacon", because it's just not the bacon we cook most and love! Now I would like to make 3 comments on my experience with this recipe: 1. Super easy, but depending on thickness of bacon, adjust time. My oven also has "hot spots" so i need to rotate the cookie sheets. 2. CAREFUL when taking out/moving cookie sheets, there may be a lot of grease. Once the grease spilled out and burst into flames in the bottom of the oven...made a huge mess that was hard to clean! 3. My oven takes WAY longer than the 14ish minutes it's supposed to take to heat up...just watch bacon, depending on thickness. Take out when a little under-done or 'just' done, don't over do it unless you like very crispy bacon. Cheers from your neighbors to the North!

Perfect bacon. This is the way the military "fries" bacon to serve in it's Mess halls. Learned this back in 1967 when I was in the Army's Cook's school. Time saving and perfect crisp bacon for the troops. My wife loves my bacon and all the meals I cook. Still use many of my Mom's recipes for one pot or skillet meals she taught me when in high school. Gerald

I have been cooking bacon in a preheated oven for some time, but it turned out like pan fried bacon: shriveled and greasy. Joseph's method turns out picture perfect bacon! It hardly shriveled at all, and had a wonderful texture. I don't know why a simple change makes such a difference, but why question it? The answer is BACON. Thanks, Joseph!!

This recipes is fantastic. I used to think, "Why would I need a recipe for bacon?" Then I tried it. WOW. The apotheosis of perfect, easy bacon. Do yourself a favor: Make the bacon.

What have I been doing to bacon my entire life??? Thank you for this amazing recipe! Will never go back to pan frying this delicious cut of pork. One FYI - tent the baking sheet with more foil...it may get messy inside your oven if you don't.

The only thing I did different was to put a cooling rack on a cookie sheet then put the bacon on the cooling rack, the bacon doesn't sit in grease while cooking. I used Oscar Meyer Center-cut Bacon it took about 12 minutes once the oven reached 425. What a super way to make bacon.

Sorry stove top, but you've burned my bacon for the last time. I'm all about the oven now.

I always bake my bacon starting in a cold oven. I heard it helps render more of the fat out. I should like excessive use of aluminum foil in this recipe, since my retirement is strongly tied to this commodity, but it is really not needed. Clean up is easy without it. I used to use a rack but quit because it was a pain to clean. I did not see a significant change in the final product.

I only bake bacon and am anxious to try Joseph's cold oven start. I cook up the whole pound no matter how much I need and store the rest in the frig or freezer. Pre-cooked bacon is so handy to have on hand and by doing your own you can use much better bacon than what the stores offer precooked.

This is the only way that I make bacon. You can also use parchment paper instead of foil. Try sprinkling on fresh ground pepper and brown sugar together. Heaven!

This works great. The only difference is that I use parchment paper on the bottom and the top.

I always use the broiler rack so I can keep the bacon fat for cooking in and seasoning. My oven does best at 375 degrees. No more splatter on the stove top for me.

Excellent way to cook a lot of bacon. Bacon was crispy and not overcooked. I used Oscar Meyer Center Cut Bacon. I timed it for 12 minutes and it needed more time. In my case 3 more minutes. Watch it carefully. You can tell the bacon is almost done when little bubbles appear. It will cook a little more when you remove it from the oven. I think cooking time will vary depending on the thickness of the bacon. Just remove bacon from pan and place on a paper towel. Blot grease off and it is ready to eat.

Tried this before reading Joseph's recipe and was not so impressed. Used Joseph's recipe except a little lower heat for thinner bacon and totally loved it. The best thing is how it doesn't shrink up and get all squirrelly. Thanks Joseph.

Simply put this is the way to cook bacon! Just tried it for the first time this morning – used thick cut apple smoked bacon and a large baking sheet lined with foil as per the instructions – wow! Best bacon - The strips stay large – did not shrivel – and the bacon was scrumptious – and super easy cleanup – in fact no cleanup – just bunched up the foil when cooled and threw it away. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe – I'm teaching my kids to do it this way too - great idea!

I hated making bacon because of all the grease splattering all over my cooktop. It always was such a mess to clean up afterwards. I have no idea why it doesn't splash all over the oven, when you bake it, but it doesn't. This is a simple and fantastic way to add bacon to your menu!

Never again will my arms get burned by splattering bacon grease! This was to die for and so easy! Thanks so much for sharing, Joseph :)

So simple, and starting with a cold oven makes absolute sense-slowly warming the cold bacon up to getting crisp and yummy! Thanks so much.

I have been baking my bacon for over a year now. It took me a few tries to get used to it. I was used to either microwaving it or frying it. I do spray the foil w/some cooking spray because for some reason even w/all the grease the bacon would stick and the foil would tear creating flipping issues. I do turn my bacon over half way through. 8 minutes each side. I have done both the pre-heated and not pre-heated method, and the not pre-heated works great. Saves on the electric bill and time! I like the way the bacon doesn't shrink and cooks to a perfect crispness and chewiness at the same time. I cook the whole pound, and then refrigerate the left overs for the next few days, just give it a 15 second zap in the microwave when I want it. It definitely to saves some time being able to cook the rest of the meal w/out having to constantly watch the bacon and have grease splatter everywhere from the frying pan on the stove top.

too high temp for too long!

Outstanding bacon -- perfect crispness and not too greasy. Used in a much-needed breakfast sandwich after a late night on Halloween.

A pound of regular-cut bacon takes two cookie sheets. I rotated the pans at the seven minute mark to get even cooking. The bacon was not finished cooking at 15 minutes so I rotated the pans again and cooked them for three more minutes. It took another four minutes after that. Although it is true that the bacon cooks perfectly and doesn't curl up like when cooked in a frying pan, it still seemed liked a lot of trouble. It required four layers of aluminum foil and I had to deal with the bacon multiple times during the 22 minutes it took to cook. If I do this again, I'll try adding some flavors like maple or brown sugar (or something savory) to make it more interesting. Update: I found that using thick cut bacon takes half of the space -- one large baking sheet can contain a whole pound of bacon.

I used turkey bacon and increased the cooking time by 3 minutes since I like it nice and crispy. Great recipe and a much easier way to cook bacon!

Tried this for the first time this morning....it's a winner already. I had to cook it for a couple more minutes and at the last I put the 'fan-bake' on and it crisped it beautifully. My Sunday mornings just got a whole lot easier! Thank you!!!!

I see no reason to put strips 1/2 inches apart. I Place mine close together to save space. Strips shrink and so far I have not noticed problems. Othewrwise, right on target thanks

So, my only problem with this is that we rarely eat bacon. When we do, I usually cook up 3-4# in the oven - I can only have a cold oven ONCE! :). I use my convection setting @ 385 and last time did 2 trays at once, rotating them once during the 14 or so minutes. I wrapped my baking sheet in foil. Then I used disposable grill trays upside down on the foil wrapped tray. I gave it a little squirt with Pam then draped the bacon over the grill tray. It cam out GREAT. On the last batch (there were 3#'s, 3 batches) I sprinkled a little brown sugar over the bacon. We had BLT's and a container of left over cooked bacon that needs just a quick warm in my cast iron pan! It will NOT survive my son.

I learned the method 30 years ago while in Culinary School. I use the foil but put the bacon on a rack and let the drippings fall off away from the bacon.

Great recipe bacon is really crispy with no mess. Just a hint I use newspaper with a paper towel on top for draining it really absorbs a lot of grease from the bacon

When I cook bacon in the oven I cook it on cooling racks so the grease drips in the pan. That way it's not sitting in all that grease.

I have been cooking bacon in the oven for as long as i can remember. I put the oven at 400 though and depending on the thickness of the bacon I cook it for 10 to 14 minutes.

I use parchment paper instead of foil. The typical roll is oversized enough to wrap nicely around a large baking sheet. Never had a leak and absorbs versus floats the fat. Thanks for the cold oven tip. MJB

The bacon turned out very tasty and crisp but I had to leave them in for 22 minutes to get them crispy the way we like them. At 14 minutes they still looked a bit undercooked. Either way, I liked using this method way more than making it in the frying pan and there was no mess to clean up!

No one has addressed the gas/electric oven question. My electric oven takes about 20 minutes to reach 400 degrees and I still need about 14 minutes for the bacon to reach the desired degree of doneness.

This recipe is great. Mine took a little longer to cook, but was perfectly crisp and evenly cooked. When I need to cook a lot of bacon - this is the only way I will make it from now on!

OMG! I'll never cook bacon on the stove top again. This way save me from getting burnt from grease popping out of the skillet usually on my arms or hands when I'm reaching in the skillet to turn the bacon over. This way is the Greatest! THANK U! Joseph

This is the only way I cook my bacon! Great method with one exception, I put the bacon on a wire cooling rack in my pan so the bacon isn't sitting in the grease, it drips down into the pan as it's baking.

So easy to do. I didn't have to stand over the oven. Just set a timer and went to cut my tomato and lettuce. I cook my bacon @350 for 28 minutes. DON'T PREHEAT the oven. Put the bacon in the cold oven. Now you will have a slow cook on the bacon. Then I added my own style things I did different is I turned the pan evry 7 minutes {all 4 sides} all sides get turned to the back of the oven. For a wonderful seasoning I brushed «Dean Jacobs roasted pecan flavored syurp»on the raw bacon before I put it in time the oven, then 14 minutes in. Take it out and brush it again and grind «OLDE THOMPSON Hot & Spicy seasoning». I also used a broiler pan instead of a cookie sheet. In the broiler grease just falls into the bottom pan. When I'm done cooking a pounds of baocon I let the pan rest for about 5 mins. Then drain the grease in the grease pan. I cook my bacon @ 350 degrees because I cooked private selection apple wood Thick Sliced center cut bacon.

Great Method!! especially when you're cooking a lot of bacon for a lot of people :) if you want really crispy, this is perfect, less crispy bacon lovers in your family? take some out a bit early or add more bacon a couple of mins later after starting. People sometimes forget the method can be just as important as the measure of ingredients. Oven bacon.. perfect every time!

Awesome recipe! I cook my bacon like this several times a week. Perfectly done with no mess!

even frying bacon in a pan on stove top, always use a cold pan.

You can teach an old dog new tricks!

We use a broiler pan, which allows the bacon grease to drip through and away from the bacon. Otherwise, good recipe.

Wow this works great.

Yes! I used to bake mine at 375, and not always from a cold oven start. I do use parchment paper under mine to limit the grease mess. This is even better!

My mother showed me how to cook bacon like this when I was just a teenager. Thick cut bacon does work best and I set the oven on 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, give or take a few minutes. I use foil on the baking sheet and after its cooled off, I crumple the foil and throw it in the trash. No mess and perfectly straight and crispy bacon everytime!

This is how I make my bacon also. So easy with no mess.

This is my favorite way to cook bacon, and the best part - easy cleanup! Ovens will vary, so keep an eye on the time and also keep in mind thicker bacon will take a few minutes longer. I often save the grease in a jar for other uses, like frying eggs. Otherwise, just fold up the foil and toss!

I just got this recipe this morning 6/12/15 and thought I would try it since I already had thick sliced bacon I the house. I followed the recipe exactly! It was perfect! The best thing I ever tried for bacon to come out just crispy enough and neat looking. The second best part was the easy clean up after bacon fat cooled, just wrap the foil a little and throw it away, no mess to clean up! I wish i had this method 40 years ago!!! I will never cook bacon any other way. Thank you!

I will never cook bacon any other way.

The BEST...the ONLY way to prepare bacon is this oven method. Goodbye grease-spattered stovetop, wall, clothing, and arms/hands. Let your oven take care of makin' bacon.

I will never cook bacon any other way. Thanks Joseph for the wonderful new way. I set my oven to 375° since it bakes a little hot and I also used regular sliced bacon.

Who would have thought that a recipe for bacon would have made a difference in your love for bacon, but it did! This was the best bacon ever...

I lay the bacon on a rack above the aluminum lined jelly roll pan, that way the bacon isn't laying in the grease and comes out much crispier and less greasy. I've been using this same recipe, start out cold and heat to 425 for at least 35 years. Thank you for written instructions I can share with children and grandchildren. I never write anything down. Can't even imagine anyone not having terrific results cooking their bacon. It's way too easy to mess up.

Perfect! Bacon is crispy and fat melts in your mouth. I used a slightly thicker, fattier cut of bacon so baked for 21 minutes.

This is the easiest way to make bacon! It truly is mess free as well! Came out so crispy and not curly, I will never go back to stove top again!

I can't believe I ever fooled with frying bacon after trying this recipe!! It took me a few attempts to get the timing right in my oven but now this is the absolute ONLY way that I will ever make bacon.

I have been baking my bacon and it saves a lot of time I do 350° for 20 minutes. Using parchment paper instead of foil keeps it from sticking. .

Great idea for cooking bacon. BUT it does depend on your oven. Mine was only up to 260 degrees after 14 minutes. I gave it another 8 and it still wasn't up to 425. I pulled the bacon though and it was still good. It just takes some ovens longer to heat up. I will try it again and maybe not start with the cold oven.

This beats standing there cooking the bacon with splatters of grease on me and the stove! The bacon came out great...crispy and in uniform flat strips with no bubbles of fat or curled up like on the stovetop. Right now, my oven is having temp issues that need to be addressed, so I did have to pull one batch out sooner as they were almost burning. Just go by your own oven. I did the last batch at 400 deg, and that temp seemed to work fine. I'll use that temp or lower in the future. The bacon stuck to the foil when my oven temp went higher. Thanks Joseph...great method for bacon prep that I'll be sure to use again!

AT 400 DEGREES IT TOOK 25 MINUTES TO COOK THOROUGHLY. TASTED GREAT THOUGH !

Simple and straightforward recipe but like many of the other reviewers, the cook time totally depends on how thick your bacon is. With the cold oven method and only 15 minutes, my bacon was nowhere near cooked thoroughly enough. So I took it out of the oven, flipped the pieces over and cook for an additional 20 minutes. Came out perfect! I also added a little brown sugar and black pepper on them before I initially put them in the oven. The bacon came out crispy, with a hint of sweetness and the kick of the pepper was great.

Delicious and so much easier to clean up

Cook mine this way all the time. If you cover the pan in reynolds wrap clean up is a breeze.

Love this process!!!

This was my first recipe as a new user! I had to increase the cook time to 20-25 minutes as it took forever for my oven to warm up, but it came out nice and crisp! Going to use it for BLT salad this evening!!!

I will make it again.

I use a large baking sheet pan and remove slices as they are done and add more slices until I have cooked 2 lbs. I drain on paper towels and then layer between clean paper towels, put in a zip loc bag and freeze. When I want a couple slices I remove them from the bag lay on a paper towel and microwave for 30 to 35 seconds. This way only one clean up and 2 lbs. of bacon ready to heat and eat.

Oh, yes. The easiest and best way to cook bacon, ever. I've been doing this for forty+ years. I even do this in a toaster oven when cooking a few slices just for one serving. Sometimes I will put a bit of the bacon fat in a skillet for fried eggs, yummy!

I love this tip! It’s a perfect way to free up the stove or skillet when cooking other items for breakfast.

This recipes is great but try brushing molasses in the middle of cooking. It is wonderful.

Perfect!!

My husband loves all things bacon but I cannot stand the way my house smells after frying it. This method makes us both happy!! Thanks Joseph for a great bacon save.

I crumple a sheet of foil for bottom of shallow large cookie pan, with sides, and place a long cookie cooling rack in it. I can do 10 slices of long bacon at a time. I did 20 slices. After cooling I placed in an upside down cheese holder with wax paper between each layer of bacon. Then put in freezer. Then when I fix myself an egg I heat one slice of bacon in a skillet or even the microwave with a cover over it. So much nicer than frying bacon every day and having to get rid of grease. I store the grease in a jar under my cabinet until full then dispose in garbage sack...still in the jar with a tight lid. pickle jars and jelly jars make good containers. I dont reuse the grease as not good fore arteries. Becky

This is the best way to prepare bacon. Only thing I do differently is to use cooking racks on my foil lined pans.

It’s a pretty easy way to make bacon. One thing. Don’t rely on the time suggested. It varies wildly, based on your bacon’s thickness and the crispness you desire. I use very thick (Wright’s) and it can easily take 16-17 minutes to get close to how I like mine.

Try sprinkling the bacon with brown sugar before baking.

I'll just stick with making it in the microwave. This method makes to much of a mess in the oven.

I have been cooking my bacon like this ever since I came across this recipe. No more shriveled up bacon. The perfect way to cook bacon.

I've been cooking bacon like this for 30+ years. No standing by the stove avoiding the hot spatter, no greasy stove top and counters to clean up and the best tasting bacon ever. For some reason oven baked bacon doesn't spatter like it does in a pan on the stove top, so no messy oven. If you haven't tried this easy method yet, what are you waiting for? You'll be happy you did!

Easy, yes, but accurate cook time, no. After the allotted 12-14 minutes, the bacon was still raw and I used regular thickness bacon, not thick bacon as he suggests. Would not make it this way again unless I'm making it for a big crowd and I would plan on doubling the cooking time.

Will do this again! So much easier and less to clean! Didn't use the foil, just put it directly on the pan and it still was not hard to clean!

What did I do wrong, My oven temp is accurate, but even after reaching 425 it took another 17 minutes. I used the middle rack, should I have used the bottom rack. I used Hormel Black label thick sliced which is not really that thick. Thanks for any help.

I agree with the comment that the heat was too high. I usually cook at 350. I also drain (when I drain) on draining racks. Using paper towel means you are soaking it in it's own grease. using a rack will allow it to crisp up better.

Wow I was skeptical but this turned out perfect. My new and only way to make bacon from now on. Thanks for sharing.

Love this! Perfect bacon, thank you!!

This recipe is SO EASY!! My oven takes a little longer than 14 minutes to get the bacon to the crispy state, more like 20 minutes. I use Heavy Duty aluminum foil because it's wider and fits the baking sheet better. I tried two sheets of regular foil but the grease seeps through the overlapping part and I end up having to wash the pan (which is what we're trying to avoid by using the foil) It's such a great way to cook bacon - no more grease splattering all over the stove, or on me! The house doesn't smell of bacon for days after baking it this way, and the bacon can cook on it's own while I work on whatever I'm making to go with it. Thank You Joseph for sharing this wonderful way to prepare BACON!!

Great

Probably the only person on the planet that thought the bacon was greasier than making it on the stove. Lifting a hot tray with grease swimming and trying not to drop the tray is a bit scary. Back to the stove top for me! Glad others liked this method as it is good to find cooking methods that are helpful to busy cooks.

This is a great way to prepare a large amount of bacon but I still prefer the pan cooking method.

I actually heated the oven to 380°. I covered a large cookie sheet with tinfoil. I placed the Baco tight but not overlapping and baked it for 20 minutes. I removed it from the oven and placed paper towel over it until it cooled and then I placed paper towel on another cookie sheet and placed the bacon on top and left it cool more. Then I transferred the bacon into Ziploc bags and put it in the freezer. Now when I make breakfast I simply take out a few strips of bacon and place them in the microwave for 30 seconds.

I learned to cook bacon this way 43 years ago at a restaurant that I used to work at. I have added another twist to save my house from smelling like bacon for hours though. These days I cook it out in my gas BBQ using it's oven. My backyard backs-up to a golf course so I do receive a large amount of requests for samples from all of the golfers that pass bye. I was thinking of setting up a little stand and sell BLT's.

Wow, this was a fabulous way to make BLT's in 30 minutes, (3 lbs of bacon for 4 teenagers and hubby!)) no standing over the burning flames of fire for an hour! The cold oven was definitely the key. I cooked a pound at a time, so they overlapped some and were still perfect Thank you!

My family size has increased and this recipe has helped me out a lot with cooking breakfast for my family in less than 15 minutes!

I've made it this way since I saw it done in a restaurant kitchen. It's soooooo much easier then messing w/ frying or broiling!!! An you get beautiful, flat, crispy bacon every time!! I stick mine in once the oven preheats to 400. An if whatever else I'm making is going to take awhile I'll cook it at 350 so it takes longer.

This works! A longer cooking time (depending on how your oven runs) will also yield great crispy bacon. I saw recently that Ina Garden makes her bacon this way too, but starts with a hot oven and a different temp.

Used a rack so that the bacon would not be in the grease. I drain the grease into a jar and place in refrigerator to use when I sauté kale, spinach, corn, etc. ---Linshine