Tonynet Explorer

I agree-- the oven is the way to go. And if you sprinkle brown sugar on the bacon before baking you get a lovely caramelized sugary coating. A sweet (and sticky) counterpoint to the salty crunch. Yum.

Sugar too. Mmm. Connie, I think I love you...

While I'll give you points on the oven, this burnt to a crisp bacon thing has to stop. Really. It's truly savage. You don't cook any other meat to a crisp right? Why? It tastes better. Exactly. We've moved past the caveman, smouldering, charred piece of meat cooking techniques. Come forward with us. For the love of God.

Chooky,your people over-cook every other piece of meat, so where's the moral high-ground? Besides, I'm not sure we should take food advice from a people who's culinary highlights include runny eggs with jam, black (blood) pudding, and canned baked beans for breakfast.

Hey Tony;

This message is strictly a personal one, posted on your website. It's Irene and Alberta. We are both living in the Chicago area now (in fact, I'm at Berta's, and we googled you, and there you are), and since 20 years have passed, we decided to find out how you're doing. If you want to catch up, you can email us at Irene's email...reading some of your stuff, it makes us remember what we all had in common, and what a good time we had.

Hey! I never mentioned the British. Don't go there with me. You're the one with a 007 fetish. Don't deny it. You think James Bond eats burnt bacon? No. That guy knows how to drink his martinis and cook his bacon. Although Q would be all over you oven cooking approach.

OMG Tony, this is awesome. I have a bacon press I use to try and keep the wiggly little slivers of pork goodness flat and crispy and minimze the fatty oil filled pockets... but I can only cook five strips of bacon at a time. Unacceptable!

Next weekend, I'm making bacon in the oven. I'm a little worried about the grease removal process to a frying pan, but we'll see how it goes. Usually I fry eggs 'basted' style in the leftover bacon grease. The yellows stay nicely soft for toast dipping, the whites are cooked and not slimy on top, and there is no risk of yolk breakage from clumsy flipping. Large and relatively quick quantities of perfect bacon is worth the risk though - I'll just make sure the egg poaching pan is ready to go in case I need a plan B for the chicken's contribution to breakfast.

mmmmmm. everythings better with bacon... but you've got to lay off the folks who eat baked beans with their breakfast. With all the culinary train wrecks to make fun of in the UK (spotted dick? brown sauce? the baked beans actually aren't that bad. (yeah, it's one of the better British habits I've imported along with PG Tips and HobNobs).

~Elphie

Help me with this, please. I like your hint about baking in the over; however, I'll be cooking for a rather large group. I will need to bake the bacon at my home the night before and the next morning carry the bacon to the breakfast meeting. (There is no cooking equipment there)
We do however have a microwave available. How do I re-heat the bacon after I've baked it the night before?

Really need your answer quickly.--Many thanks.

Help me with this, please. I like your hint about baking in the over; however, I'll be cooking for a rather large group. I will need to bake the bacon at my home the night before and the next morning carry the bacon to the breakfast meeting. (There is no cooking equipment there)
We do however have a microwave available. How do I re-heat the bacon after I've baked it the night before?

Really need your answer quickly.--Many thanks.

Help me with this, please. I like your hint about baking in the over; however, I'll be cooking for a rather large group. I will need to bake the bacon at my home the night before and the next morning carry the bacon to the breakfast meeting. (There is no cooking equipment there)
We do however have a microwave available. How do I re-heat the bacon after I've baked it the night before?

Really need your answer quickly.--Many thanks.

Sorry, Marcia, I don't have any experience at re-heating bacon; I mean, who has bacon left-over that they need to reheat? :)

All I can suggest is trying it at home first. Bake a sheet of bacon, let it cool, and then try reheating it in the microwave. I suspect it'll be fine.

Good luck!

Eggs......with.....Jam??? Since when? Who told you that? I think someone is pulling yer leg mate!!! =D

Man oh man... I cooked some fresh cut bacon (Not store bought) exactly the way you said and added some brown sugar; it is the best bacon I have ever had... Thank you!

mmmmmm!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE BACON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think that bacon is the best kinda food in the world i would eat it for every meal if it wasnt so fattening

Hell yeah bacon is so Deliciousness

Bacon makes me a wonderful person... without bacon i would be an angry person

I would have sex with bacon if it was up to me!

yeah, the oven is the only way to go!
i learned the technique while serving brunch on sundays at a five star hotel, do you really think that they are cooking 500 pieces of bacon on the stove top. of course not, the only way is in sheet pans and the oven!! glad to see this info is being passed out of the restaurant kitchens and to the home Bacon for all! now you can cook 100 slices of bacon at the same time in just a few minutes!!!

I LIKE FOOD!

Bacon should be cooked until the rind has 'crisped' a little - no more than that.

Soggy rind is disgusting, so is crispy bacon meat.

Cook it in a frying pan with no fat added - and most importantly, buy good quality bacon that hasn't been injected with water to bulk it up, otherwise it ends up 'steaming' itself.

Anyone tried 'turkey bacon' - its not as tasty, but its a far healthier option.

Bacon oh bacon and eggs bacon and eggs bacon and eggs bacon and eggs bacon and eggs

what can i cook with bacon im exsperimenting, i love bacon and everything with it but i have run out of ideas help?

I found this page from a Google search. Just made my first batch following your directions precisely and it worked perfectly! Thanks so much!

Glendale: glad it workd for you!

Your method worked deliciously. I have always been bad with bacon, accidentally burning it or not getting it crisp enough. I tried the oven method and made BLTs for my husband and he loved. Thanks!

Rose: Glad to hear this worked. Mmm BLT. I may need to make one tomorrow...

You guys are too funny!! I had a friend in college who told me the story of how when he was a child, his grandmom cooked up a pound of bacon and he ate it all himself. Got so sick he could not even take a peek at bacon again until I persuaded him to try this method. Friend is now all fixed and loves bacon once more. Moral of story: never eat 1 pound at 1 sitting. Spread the love out and leave the pigging to the pigs....Awesome cooking method! Thanks Tony!

i came across this website whilst doin my hw and r u guyz all americans? seriously u r obsessed with bacon!!! wanting 2 hav sex with it is just freaky... and is Tony supposed to be the 'mastermind' behind all this? (hope u dont find me rude but this is interestin...)

I tried the oven thing today for the first time. it's the only way to go, however I foolishly did the rack way and you are so right. Stuck to the rack and hard to scrub. BLTs, yum!

added benefit-i can cook bacon with the baby close by. bet ya didn't think of you bacon recipe as a child safety process!

Awwww, yeah! Bacon!
Anyways, thanks for teaching me a new, better way to cook bacon. Tried it, and tastes better. Thanks

you should cook bacon how you feel it should be cooked it dose not matter if you do it in the oven or in the pan what matters is the end result and if your pleased thats all that matters

Oven cooked bacon is excellent. And I agree that the 180 degree turn is crucial.

Anyone have a method for a grill?

Last summer on a boat, I cooked bacon on the grill using a similar method. I made a tray out of aluminum foil and cooked the strips-of-love on that. Worked great.

This version ROCKS!!! I've lost track of the burns from the splatters from the pan style not to mention all the curly 1/2 cooked bits. THANKS for sharing!!! mmmm bacon for brekkie, BLTs, bacon cheeseburgers, spinach and bacon salad &/or Quiche..yummmmmmmmm

Glad I could help.

Thank you so much for the perfect instructions! Worked like a charm.

I'm putting here my favorite bacon recipe that you might enjoy since you love bacon as much as it seems the rest of us do!

Enjoy!
Ruth

Bacon and Shell Macaroni Supper

8 slices thick bacon, cut up about 1" pieces
½ small onion, diced
1 ½ c small shell macaroni, cooked and drained
1 small can (8 oz) tomato sauce
Pepper to taste

All amounts of ingredients can be adjusted to taste.

Boil shell macaroni. Fry bacon, remove and set aside. Drain most of the bacon grease from pan and fry onions till clear. Add pepper. When Onions are done, add the bacon back and the macaroni to pan. Add tomato sauce, stir to coat.

The amount of pepper is to taste. It can get spicy hot real fast and I like it that way so mine is usually a little hot. This is usually put in a casserole and baked for about a half hour, but I eat it straight from the pan. The amounts above will feed 2 people with a little left over. I usually have the left overs for breakfast the next morning. The amounts above are not critical. If you are feeding more, use more bacon and macaroni. Only use the small shell macaroni as it holds the tomato sauce the best. Also, if you like more bacon, then use more bacon. If you like it more moist, use two cans of tomato sauce. If you increase the recipe or plan on baking it, then use two cans of tomato sauce.

My mom used to make this and as best as I can remember, this has the correct ingredients. Mom would use a whole pound of bacon, a whole small bag of shell macaroni and two cans of tomato sauce and this fed all 6 of us. She also baked it and it was crispy on the edges.

Thanks, Ruth! The recipe sounds great!

Please answer this as soon as possible. I need to cook a lot of bacon for a breakfast party, and I have never cooked it in the oven. Do you have to cover the bacon with foil when cooking it in the oven? Does grease splatter all over the oven if it is not covered? Thanks for a quick response.

B.Allen:

No need to cover it in the oven. It doesn't spatter all over.

Good luck!

My wife and I also love bacon so we tried this and it came out perfectly. Thank you, Tony! Scott & Debbie - Colorado

Thanks for the recipe. My mil cooked us bacon every morning for a week during a visit and she did it in the oven - it was great - but I never remembered to ask how she did it. I wanted to try it and found your site - THANKS!! We love BLT's and saturday morning big breakfasts but I have always hated making bacon - now I dont.

Also, I loved your commentary in the recipe and I thought you might like this video (if you havent seen it already) I thought of it while I was reading your recipe!

videosift.com/video/Bacon-1

Who knew such a simple way of preparing bacon could yield such wonderful results? I tried this method this morning for a large group and it was amazing! Highly recommended.

-J

Oh, what a shame to put bacon in the oven. :-P
Its supposed to be fried in a pan, with TONS of fat! :D This way it doesn't get to dry, and as we all know, fat = taste XD

Bensch,

Actually, bacon cooked in the oven does cook in its own fat. It doesn't get dry which is great, because I agree that fat=flavor!!

I've made bacon your way several times now and won't go back to the old pan fried way. It comes out perfectly cooked in the oven and doesn't shrink all up.

Made some this morning and my husband was saying how great the bacon is when it's done in the oven. I like the magic turning trick too. Thanks so much.

An even better way to cook bacon is to put it on a cooling rack and then put the cooling rack on a roasting pan and into the oven at 375 C for 15-20 min, depending on how thick your bacon is . It gets perfectly crispy on both sides and a lot of the fat drains away so it isn't as greasy.

Thanks, Zoey, for the tip. As I mentioned in the post, I tried cooking the bacon on the rack, but I found it to be messy (hard to clean the rack) and didn't provide better results. The bacon in the method I describe does get crispy and isn't greasy (well, any more greasy than bacon should be... yum.)

I can hear everyone's coronary arteries hardening as we speak.

My variation on this is to take prunes (dried plums) and wrap them in a half-strip of bacon, arrange them on a grill pan that has drip slots into a cooking pan, at (and this tends to vary, because I forget in between times) 425 degrees for 15 or 20 minutes. Because the bacon is wrapped on itself, it takes a little longer than laid out as strips, but mmmm, it's good! I've seen someone do the same but inject blue cheese into the prunes (excellent, but time-consuming). You could actually do this with other things, too -- I've had shrimp this way, on a grill, and it was excellent; I want to try garlic cloves -- but as far as dried fruit goes, prunes seem to retain more of their water so they don't get as dry as fast as, say, dried apricots (tho I've used those, too).

THANKS SOOO MUCH. We have a rather large eaters here and FRYING it takes forever! SO this helped cut down on my time with the cooking and the clean up!
THANKS AGAIN!
~Aleasha~

Great idea. However a bit of personal experience/warning. Due to the heat/humidity here this AM I tried this on a nat. gas outdoor grill. I was monitoring the temp and time--all was going quite well through the first turn. However after that the bacon cooked VERY fast and sadly I was left with little black sticks. . I need to test, but my hunch is (if using outdoor grill) go only 1 minute after turn and then prop cover and watch the rest of the way. I'll try again another day and report on success rate. ~~Baconless Bill

I've already told my husband if the day ever comes when the doctors suspect that my brain activity has ceased...wave a slice of bacon under my nose and if I don't respond, THEN you can have them pull the plug.

my husband enjoy eating bacon too, because he works night duty and bacon is easy to cook, it smell great.

I eat bacon for breakfast, bacon for lunch......and for dinner I have B A C O N!

may the bacon gods smile down on you!!! bacon is the best food ever!!! thanks for helping me make perfect bacon in my home!!!

How do you cook a large amount of bacon at one time?
Thanks,
Ken

tony you are a god in the swine world

I can cook bacon the same...but in the oven it is easier, no mess, and ten times faster. I can cook more bacon at one time now. Thanks for the great tip!!!!

Thank you for this recipe : ). I am making some in the oven this second! I googled this tonight and I am so glad I found your recipe and your site. I am going to go look around. Hope your Thanksgiving week is wonderful! God bless.

I like to bake it on wax paper instead of foil. That's how I'd seen it done in the restaurants I've worked at and it works great -- no stick.

The brown sugar idea was the bomb.

To the guy with the gas grill... you don't need to be turning the bacon. Rotate the pan, but don't turn the bacon.

Great tips... thanks!

I'm leaving my house right now and going to buy bacon. Having a brunch tomorrow for 7 people so I needed this tip! Thank you bacon lovers!

Oh yeah baby, this recipe is perfection in simplicity. Bacon was always impossible to get right, but with these tips it comes out perfect every time. Thick cut or regular cut, it works great! I like to grind black pepper on mine before baking. Also, the bacon won't likely be crispy during baking - the crucial part is when it is drying off on some paper towels. Thanks again!

I cooked two pounds of bacon (our normal servings in my large family) on two large jellyroll pans. It worked wonderfully! No more two-electric-griddles-and-spatters-all-over-the-kitchen for me! Thanks, oh thanks, for the method!

thank you for this recipe. i usually cook bacon in oven but i still could not get it quite right until i saw this. i made my bacon and it is the best i have ever had... crisp tender and melt in your mouth and the biscuits were delish under the bacon gravy.

Thanks so much! This came out great. I had heard about cooking bacon in the oven, so I googled and found this. The only problem we had is that our smoke/heat detector KEPT going off. It will usually go off any time the oven is set at 400 degrees or higher, but usually only when you open the door. I cooked a little over half pound, saw how good it came out, so decided to cook the rest. That's what led to the problem with the smoke detector (hot cookie sheet sitting on stove top). It was driving my husband crazy, but then again, he's not a big bacon eater, so who cares, LOL. Thanks again!

Dude, I'm muslim and even I LOVE BACON, but the way I see it, seriously if i'm going to hell because of bacon, well then so be it, cuz seriously, if my biggest offense is eating bacon, and thats the worse I'm doing, then seriously, if I still go to hell then none of it is worth it! I LOVE BACON too, I'll have a slice to toast you!

in bk!

@Muslimgurl: Here's to you and your bacon!

When my grandfather was dying, he had just slipped into a comma, his wife being a bit in denial decided to make him breakfast because he would be hungry when he woke up.... well, as the bacon started to sizzle, he started sniffing, the eyes started to twitch, but alas he died 2 hours later. My mom and I looked at each other and said "that's why we can't loose weight, we have the bacon gene!"

I had completely given up on making bacon because of the mess. Thank you for giving me back the pleasure of bacon!

I've bookmarked this page, and I look forward to trying this method. (I got here by Googling "cooking large quantities of bacon.") Bacon is sooooo messy to handle, including in trying repackage it after using say just 4 strips for breakfast. I'm paranoid about preventing bacterial contamination from raw bacon on my hands, etc. So I's rather just cook the whole package at once.

I'm not convinced bacon is "bad for you." (The book "Good Calories, Bad Calories" by Gary Taubes, while not firmly conclusive, is worth a read re persistence of "fat is bad," "cholesterol is bad" etc. memes.)

thanks, tony!
a girl friend of mine made bacon in the oven and it was absolutely perfect. i knew someone else loved bacon as much as we do and would post the best method for me, bwa haha!

i have to say that it's important to keep the bacon immersed in its own fat for even cooking. at my mum's house (serving brekkie to a crowd of course) and the things that are passing for cookie sheets these days do not have the sort of lip needed to dam the volume of bacon fat required here. (at least, the ones my mum buys don't.) i had to use the bottom of the broiler pan, which kind of comes up in the corners. the ends of the bacon slices in those corners were overdone, but everything else was perfect. i could have solved it by moving things mid-way; learn something new every day.

this is the only workable method to make bacon when serving, say, BLTs. or brunch. how else can you get everything to come out at the same time? and it's just such superior even cooking in general, i'm going to costco for more bacon and it will be bacon-palooza around here. after the BLTs and bacon-festooned salads, we'll go on to bacon-laced potato salad, bacon cheeseburgers, and these little appetizers that the pioneer woman makes with club crackers (also in the oven) - if you haven't tried them, you simply must.

best. bacon. post. ever. thank you!

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/12/flashback_1981_-_holiday_bacon_appetizers/

Oh my goodness. That was the most delicious thing EVER!!!! thank you so much!

You are a god of your own demain. Thanks a bunch!

If you're single and have a microwave, you can use this method to cook a bunch of bacon up front and then store it in the fridge until you're ready to eat some more.

After the bacon has initially cooled, place the bacon in freezer bags, wrapped in paper towel, and then place it in your fridge.

When you're ready to have some more bacon, nuke the desired amount of bacon in 10-15 second increments until it reaches the correct temperature.

Wow! this method is AMAZING! i was cooking in the pan and it turned out just ok (i mean it was still amazing because i love bacon..) but this way is absolutly the best! LOVE IT! thanks so much!

Hi,
I must be the only human that hates it, I do like Proscuto Italian cured slices (bacon) but thats it. My Mum mostly burns it so the smell/odour stays around for hours on end. Im taking up a religion that forbids the eating of Pig, but that would mean no HAM Which is Yummy stuff & not the best method to select a religion. Or Lobster BOOH!

ok, so i know this was posted like 6 years ago, but i just wanted to say thank you. my husband loves bacon, but i don't. (i know, i know, boo! hiss! i just like it. i don't LOVE it like he does) it was seeming impossible for me to cook bacon without burning down the house. then i found this recipe and i was able to make him a huge breakfast for all his friends. soldiers, mind you, so it was a lot of bacon. he was so glad that i figured out how to make bacon. thank you so much!!

p.s. i love *LOVE* bacon when its been sprinkled with brown sugar. yummy salty, sugary, cholesterol ladded treat! :)

Hey hey. I'd just about given up on bacon due to getting burned with grease splatter EVERY TIME I cooked it. Your oven technique saved me from this tragic mistake! I use a cast iron grill pan- the ridges keep the bacon up out of the grease and make it very crispy but not at all burnt. Sweet bacon, welcome back to my life!

Pure genius! Thanks, Tony. I'm following you online to see where and what you're eating. Safe travels!

who needs to bother cooking bacon when there's beggin' strips!! tastes so good dogs don't know its not bacon and when i'm insanely hungover every weekend, neither do i!!

Ball up the Aluminum Foil then unfold it before putting it in the pan. Then arrange the Bacon on top of the foil. It gives the bacon fat places to go instead of having the bacon resting in the grease. Another idea is to put one layer on the pan then put wire racks in the pan then put more foil over the wire racks. Poke a bunch of holes in the top layer of foil, then arrange your bacon atop the foil covered racks then bake for 15-20 minutes. Perfet Bacon Everytime because the grease drops thru the holes an onto the bottom layer of foil. Zero Cleanup since the Pan and Rack were protected by foil.

Does anyone know where I can find a group of bacon lovers :-)
GREAT POST - I've been wasting my time with the pan method for years. And the brown sugar is an outstanding touch.

Every once in awhile I need to cook large quantities of bacon. How do I do that again? So I Google, hoping that your link still pops to the top and, thank goodness, there you are. This time I've bookmarked the page. Thanks to you, I'm bringing to Thanksgiving a delicious dish of Brussels sprouts sauteed in bacon drippings then roasted, with bacon crumbles on top!

I'm old and know how to pan fry lots of bacon perfectly, but...what a mess, and time consuming, and messy clean up after. Thank you very much. I am thawing out bacon as I type and can't wait to try this. So simple.

I would love to F share this. I m a huge advocate for bacon w anything. I was thinking of ovening the bacon, but the 180 degree turn thing just completely had my mind turned.(180 degrees pun intended)
I guess its normal to cook anything rotated after a period of time. Grilling,microwave, but the oven for some reason I never really grasped. No wonder why the food always turns out crappy out of the oven. Thx for the tips, and keep bringin home the bacon........

wowza.....love button.....love love button....love love love button.....

Question: Since everyone is concerned with the environment and not wasting natural products (like aluminum) could parchment paper be used rather than foil? I would really appreciate an answer at my E-Mail address. Yes: stove-top cooked bacon can be splattery-messy, so the oven baked would help that. Also, I was interested to read that the oven-baking does not splatter. YES!!!

Question: Since everyone is concerned with the environment and not wasting natural products (like aluminum) could parchment paper be used rather than foil? I would really appreciate an answer at my E-Mail address. Yes: stove-top cooked bacon can be splattery-messy, so the oven baked would help that. Also, I was interested to read that the oven-baking does not splatter. YES!!!

I Just Made Some Bacon Like This......Never Have I Had My Bacon In The Oven Turn On So Perfect....Thanks!

I Just Made Some Bacon Like This......Never Have I Had My Bacon In The Oven Turn Out So Perfect....Thanks!