Cooking Bacon in the Oven: The Key to Prevent Shrinkage
Cooking bacon in the oven is convenient and prevents it from shrinking—here’s how to do it right.
Ever wish there was a way to make bacon for your entire family at once, preferably without getting splattered by hot grease? I used to dread cooking the stuff until I learned how to cook bacon in the oven. It’s the key to keep it from shrinking, too.
Put Bacon in a Cold Oven
Bacon shrinks and curls up in response to extreme heat which makes the protein contract. To get flat, crispy strips of bacon, put the pan into the oven without preheating it first. By starting in a cold oven then turning on the heat, the bacon will gently reach oven-frying temperature without shrinking.
How to Make Bacon in the Oven
Bacon in the Oven
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Foil
- Rack for baking sheet (optional)
Ingredients
- 1 lb bacon
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with foil. For extra crispy bacon, put a rack over that.
- Arrange the bacon bacon strips so they're close but not touching.
- Place the pan of bacon into a cold oven and close the door. Turn the heat to 425°F (215° C) and cook it for 10-15 minutes, checking after 10. (Thicker bacon will take longer.)
- Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the extra grease.
Nutrition
Uses
This is my go-to method when I’m making my Jimmy Dean copycat hot breakfast bowls, too. With bacon on one rack and sausages on another it just speeds things up beautifully. Try it in these, too:
To clean up afterward, wait until the pans cool, pull the corners of the foil together, and discard the whole thing in the trash.
The real key is putting it into a cold oven to start. That gives the bacon time to warm as the oven heats, releasing the fat so you get that crispy texture you’re looking for. Whether you cook it at 425 or 400 after that is a matter of choice — it’ll cook faster at 425 but also goes from crispy to burned quickly if you get distracted.
And you’re welcome on the foil trick!