America seems to have a love affair with sexy, luscious bacon, so let’s satisfy your every need and learn how to cook bacon in the oven—together.
We’ve also got cooking times and temps for your favorite kinds of bacon, great tips for the best cooked bacon, and more!
Imagine: The delightful smoky snap as you sink your teeth into a mile-high BLT… or the unmistakable aroma of sizzling, tender beef filet hugged by thick, juicy bacon strips on the grill.
Bacon is everywhere—elevating the humble breakfast egg or featured in beer-and-bacon flights at pubs around the country.
I grew up with bacon sizzling in a cast iron pan on my mom’s stovetop then in college, it became faster to lay strips on a microwave bacon cooker like this one. As I became more sophisticated in the kitchen, I wanted to get the best out of my bacon, and I learned about what dry oven heat can do for these tasty morsels.
Let’s talk about how to cook bacon in the oven!
How long to cook bacon in the oven
The cooking time will depend on the thickness of your bacon, your oven, your personal preference for doneness, and the type of pan that you use, so check on your bacon mid-cook every two minutes after the following bake times.
Here are some kitchen-tested cooking times and temperatures for your favorite types of bacon:
- Standard packaged bacon: 400F degrees for 15 to 25 minutes
- Center-cut bacon: 375F for 15 minutes
- Thick-cut bacon: 400F for 20 minutes
- Turkey bacon: 375F for about 15 minutes
- Pancetta (Italian bacon): If diced, 400F for 10 minutes to get crisp
- Duck bacon: 400F for 15 to 20 minutes
Flavors like black pepper, applewood, maple, or hickory, cured or uncured, generally don’t affect the cooking time.
How to cook bacon in the oven
When it comes to cooking bacon in the oven you have two options. You can either cook it on a baking rack or you can cook it directly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
The rack allows the bacon to stay elevated away from the grease, so it bakes in dry air instead of “boiling” in its own fat.
We rigged our own rack by using a baking sheet (a jelly roll pan has nice one-inch sides), some foil, and a grill rack:
Pro Tip: Never pour bacon grease down your sink or into any drain. It will harden and clog pipes. Collect bacon grease in a covered container (great for further cooking and baking) or scrape cooled pans directly into the trashcan.
Fun Fact: Wrapping food in a layer of fat (like bacon) to lock in moisture and add flavor is called Barding.
Cook bacon on a baking rack
Cooking bacon on a rack like this one is basically elevating the bacon off of the pan so that it is cooked evenly and it is not lying in its own grease while cooking.
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✅ When bacon is cooked on a pan with a rack, it will generally turn out crispier.
Cook bacon directly on a baking pan
The other option is to cook the bacon on a baking sheet directly. This option means that the bacon will be a bit greasy when it is done, but that is easily solved by draining and patting the cooked bacon with paper towels.
We actually cook bacon using this method quite often. However, we do use a silicone baking mat or parchment paper to help with cleanup.
✅ Bacon cooked directly on the pan may turn out more tender than crispy.
✔ More Bacon: Appetizers, Side Dishes, Bacon Crackers, Bacony Bacon
What does a rasher of bacon mean?
The term “rasher” can refer to one slice—or even several slices—of bacon (or ham) that are part of a serving or portion. It may have hailed from a Middle English verb, which translates “rashen” as “to cut.”
Tips for cooking perfect bacon in the oven
- Make sure that your baking pan has sides at least half an inch high to hold the rendered fat. This is important so that the pan contains the bacon grease.
- Bring your serving of bacon to room temperature before cooking. Bacon that has come to room temperature before baking will be more evenly cooked, with meat and fat cooking at around the same speed. It might be hard to wait, though.
- Start your bacon in a cold oven, then turn on the heat so it renders the fat slowly, which can help prevent tough bacon.
- Add five minutes to total cook time, if filling the entire pan without much space between slices.
- Leave space between slices of bacon when placing them on the pan so the heat circulates around each slice.
- Add five minutes to total cook time, if filling the entire pan without much space between slices.
- You can add flavor to punch up average bacon (if there is such a thing). Try sprinkling brown sugar or cracked black pepper on your bacon before cooking. For some sweet heat, spoon some honey onto each slice then a dash of cayenne. Barbecue bacon is a thing too—spoon on bbq sauce and turn on the oven to broil for 5 minutes for a caramelized bbq coating.
- Lining the baking pan in aluminum foil or parchment paper makes clean-up so much easier. Allow the bacon grease to cool and solidify and then carefully remove the foil from the pan and wrap it up to dispose in the trash. NEVER pour bacon grease down any drain.
- Save the grease in a covered container, like an empty pickle jar. Bacon grease is great for seasoning cast iron pans, greasing a pan for fried eggs, and adding to cornbread or pancake batter.
The bottom line
We hope these tips and steps help you cook perfect bacon in the oven!
How to Cook Bacon in the Oven
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Ingredients
- Raw sliced bacon
- Baking pan with one-inch sides
- Parchment paper
- Oven mitts
- Tongs
- Paper-towel lined plate
Instructions
- Remove your serving of bacon from the package so it comes to room temperature, about 10 minutes. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- Line a baking pan with parchment paper.
- Place room temp slices of bacon onto the parchment-lined pan with at least one inch between slices.
- Slide pan into the oven.
- Cook times and ovens may vary. See Notes for times and temps
- Using oven mitts, carefully remove the pan (which may be very full of hot grease) to the stovetop or a heat-safe surface and let it sit for two minutes.
- Remove cooked bacon with tongs to the paper-towel-lined plate.
- Handle with care; cooked bacon can be added to recipes right away or saved for later snacking.
Notes
- Standard packaged bacon: 400F degrees for 15 to 22 minutes
- Center-cut bacon: 375F for 15 minutes
- Thick-cut bacon: 400F for 20 to 25 minutes
- Turkey bacon: 375F for about 15 minutes
- Pancetta (Italian bacon): If diced, 400F for 10 minutes to get crisp
- Duck bacon: 400F for 15 to 20 minutes
Line your baking sheet with paper towels, absorbs the grease. Bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes, loosen bacon from towels and cook until done.
Hi, Cheryl. I’m not sure I’d trust that paper towels won’t catch fire. Parchment paper works great for nonstick cleanup, though.