Oven Bacon + How to Save Bacon Fat

Prepare perfect bacon every single time with this Oven Bacon Recipe. You can expect to enjoy crisp and flavorful bacon without the mess or stress.

Ever since I started cooking bacon in the oven years back, it’s pretty much the way I cook it 90% of the time. It’s way easier, without any splatter or mess, and so quick when cooking for a group. If you’ve never tried oven bacon, I highly recommend it! It’ll change your life.

What Is Oven Bacon?

Oven bacon is traditional bacon cooked differently. While people traditionally put bacon slices in a skillet and prepare it on the stove until browned, there is an easier, stress-free way to prepare delicious, crispy bacon.

If you follow this Oven Bacon Recipe, you never have to worry about bacon grease splattering all over the stovetop or getting on you and your clothes while you are trying to cook!

Instead, you can put your slices on a baking sheet, then pop them in the oven. Allow them to cook while you prepare other ingredients to go with the breakfast meat, such as eggs and pancakes.

Ingredients Needed to Make This Oven Bacon Recipe 

To prepare Crispy Oven Bacon, the only ingredient needed is bacon. You can purchase your favorite brand and style of bacon to use when following the instructions in this recipe. I highly recommend a brand that’s sugar-free and nitrate-free for best quality.

I like to use a 12 oz package of bacon because you don’t want to put too many bacon strips on the baking sheet at once. If you overlap too many pieces of bacon, they will not cook all the way through, which prevents the bacon from getting crispy.

Equipment to Use When Preparing the Crispy Oven Bacon

Before you prepare the bacon in the oven, make sure you have some essential equipment available to use. The equipment needed to prepare bacon in this way includes:

• Baking sheet: Choose a large baking sheet. You want to have plenty of space to spread out the strips of bacon without putting them too close together.
• Parchment paper: You can line your baking sheet with parchment paper before adding the slices of bacon to a rack to avoid a mess on your baking sheet. This also allows you to save the fat easily.
• Baking rack: You will place the baking rack over the baking sheet with the parchment paper. You then put the bacon on the baking rack to cook. This allows the bacon to cook evenly on all sides. Also, the extra grease will drop through the rack and directly onto the parchment paper so you can easily save it later.
• Fine mesh strainer: Make sure you have a fine-mesh strainer that you can use after preparing your bacon to save the bacon fat. It’ll strain out any bits that are in the great. You can then use the bacon fat to prepare various other recipes and make them way more delicious.

How Do You Make Bacon in the Oven?

Set your oven to the right temperature and wait for it to get hot. While you are waiting for your oven to preheat, place a sheet of parchment paper over a large baking sheet. Pull out a rack and set the rack on top of the baking sheet with the parchment paper. 

Remove your bacon from the package and begin placing slices on the rack. Do not overlap the bacon. You should have the strips placed in a single layer. Put the rack full of bacon in the oven and cook for up to 18 minutes. 

You can remove the bacon a bit sooner than that depending on how you like your bacon cooked. I usually like mine ultra crispy, so I tend to leave them in there on the longer side. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel, and lightly pat to remove excess oil before serving.

Some bacon slices are cut thinner than others and may cook faster for that reason. If you have thick-sliced bacon, you may need to cook it a bit longer to get that crispy, crunchy desired texture.

Which Temperature is Best For Making Bacon?

Set your oven to 400 degrees F. It is the ideal temperature for making crispy bacon in the oven. If you do not feel comfortable using a higher oven bacon temp, you can lower it to 350 degrees F. 

However, if you do choose to lower the temperature in the oven, you will need to cook your bacon a bit longer. Instead of taking 18 minutes to get the slices crispy, it may take 30-35 minutes to reach your preferred doneness.

How to Save the Bacon Fat

Saving bacon fat is a great idea because it tastes amazing and you can use it in many recipes. Plenty of people save the bacon fat to use when preparing eggs, roasting veggies, pan-frying meats, and other assorted dishes. To save the bacon fat, here are few simple steps you will need to take:

• Grab a heat-proof container and set it down on a flat surface, such as your kitchen or dining room table. Set your mesh strainer over the container. 
• Remove your baking sheet from the oven and carefully begin peeling the parchment paper off the baking sheet. 
• You will need to hold it on both sides to keep the bacon fat at the center of the parchment paper. 
• Tilt the parchment paper over to the strainer and begin pouring the bacon fat into the container through the mesh strainer. Allow the bacon fat to cool down. 
• Once it cools, you can transfer it to another airtight container that you can use for storage purposes. 

You can leave the bacon fat on the countertop for up to a week. If you would like to store it a bit longer, place it in the fridge. It will keep longer when refrigerated for up to three weeks.

What to Do With Bacon Grease

You can do SO many things with your bacon grease. If you are not sure what to do with bacon grease after saving it, here are some of my favorite ways to use it:

Prepare Roasted Vegetables

If you would like to roast some vegetables, use bacon grease as a base instead of any other oil. Toss your vegetables with bacon in a baking sheet then roast. Make sure to mix your veggies periodically while allowing them to cook and soak in the great taste of bacon grease. 

Cook Burgers in the Grease

Give your homemade burgers an added hint of that smoky taste that comes from bacon by preparing them in the grease. Add the grease to a frying pan before putting your burgers in the pan. I promise – the burgers will taste even better with this technique!

Prepare Your Eggs in the Grease

I love pan frying my eggs in the bacon grease. It will enhance the flavor of the eggs, and you can even do this with scrambled eggs or omelettes!

Add It to Homemade Stews

You can add a bit of bacon grease into a pot with other ingredients while preparing homemade stews. It offers a smoky, meaty flavor that goes great with the ingredients often used in stews, such as beef cubes, potatoes, and assorted vegetables.

What to Do With Your Cooked Oven Bacon

Serve your cooked bacon any way that you like. You can serve it with a side of pancakes, toast, eggs, or hash browns. Along with using it for breakfast, you can make BLT sandwiches with the bacon, or add it to homemade hamburgers and cheeseburgers. You can even crumble it into pieces before using it in various recipes. Add bacon also gives an extra crunch and an additional great taste to dishes.

Can You Cook Any Type of Bacon in the Oven?

You can cook any type of bacon you prefer to eat in the oven. It doesn’t matter if you like thick-cut, thin-cut, hardwood smoked, or even maple sugar bacon. You can also prepare different types of turkey bacon in the oven if you do not typically eat pork bacon.

How to Store the Bacon Leftovers

After cooking the bacon in the oven, you may have leftovers that you would like to save and use in different recipes. Place the bacon in a food storage container with a lid or a food storage bag with a seal. You can place your bacon in the fridge and keep it fresh for up to a week. Easily reheat it in the microwave or in a skillet, or use it as an ingredient in other dishes, such as pasta and casseroles.

Can You Freeze the Cooked Bacon?

Yes, you can definitely freeze your cooked bacon! If you would like to make large batches of bacon, you may want to use this oven-baked technique to make the process easier for you. 

Once you have prepared the bacon, allow it to cool down before attempting to store it. Once it is no longer hot, place in a single layer on a baking sheet, and set it in the freezer for two hours. Remove it from the freezer, transfer to a large freezer bag, and put it back in the freezer. You can freeze the cooked bacon for up to six months. 

Which oven bacon recipe do you use? I’d love to hear all about it in the comment section!

Here are some of he dishes that you can use this oven bacon recipe in…

• Bacon Jalapeño Mac and Cheese (Paleo, Dairy Free)
• Creamy Grape Salad with Pecans and Bacon (Dairy Free, Whole30, Paleo)
• Paleo Creamed Spinach with Bacon (Whole30, Keto)
• Bacon Ranch Deviled Eggs (Paleo, Whole30, Keto)
• Paleo Apple Bacon Pancakes
• Caramelized Onion and Bacon Dip (Paleo, Whole30, Keto)