The easiest way to cook crispy bacon is in a convection oven on aluminum foil for easy cleanup of the bacon grease. Use standard or thick-cut bacon to make great crispy baked bacon for breakfast or other uses.
🥓Ingredients
Bacon—thin or thick sliced bacon
Required equipment:
½ size sheet pan or similar large pan with an edge
Heavy duty wide aluminum foil
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Featured Comment by Rosalina:
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"This is, hands down, the best way to cook bacon. Thanks for sharing a really helpful post on how to bake bacon the right way!"
No standing at the stovetop flipping bacon, trying to get it flat, and getting splatter burns on your hands. The convection oven will circulate the air to cook faster and crispier, but a standard conventional oven may be used.
Baking bacon for two or a crowd could not be easier with these easy step-by-step photo instructions, and clean up is simple with the aluminum boil.
👨🍳How to Oven Bake Bacon—Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 400° convection bake or 425° conventional. Line an 18-inch × 13-inch rimmed sheet pan with aluminum foil.
2. Place bacon close together but not touching. 8-10 pieces, about ½ pound, will usually fit.
3. Bake to a crispy brown—about 20 minutes. Time will vary with the thickness of the bacon and your taste.
4. Drain on paper towels and pat off any fat.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
⏰How long to bake bacon in the oven
18-20 minutes for medium-thick bacon in a 400° convection or 425° conventional oven. It will vary by the thickness and type of the bacon, exact oven temperature, and your desired browning level—cook to the crispiness you want and never by time, so always check it a few times early.
Thinner bacon will cook faster, while thick-cut bacon will take a few extra minutes to achieve perfect results. Some brands of bacon are cured differently, and time may vary.
If you use 350° with thick-cut bacon, it may take 25 minutes or more.
🤔Tips to make it right every time.
Use a baking sheet, like a sheet pan covered with aluminum foil. Heavy-duty foil is recommended, and non-stick aluminum foil may be used if you have sticking issues.
You may use a rack or broiler pan to allow the fat to drain, but the bacon fat renders well without them, and they will add to clean up.
Use almost any bacon, even turkey bacon. I suggest a thick-cut bacon, and I do like applewood smoked bacon.
Some bacon will stick more than others, significantly bacon that is thinner sliced, has a higher sugar content, or turkey bacon. Use parchment paper to prevent the sticking, which you may use on top of the foil for easy cleanup.
Use a conventional or convection oven. Although a preheated convection oven is best, you can even start in a cold oven. Use the convection bake, not the convection roast setting.
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🌡️What oven temperature to use
400° convection cooks both thicker and thinner bacon well. But I have used as low as 350° up to 450° in conjunction with baking other dishes simultaneously.
Convection is recommended for crispier bacon that will cook more evenly. So use it if you have it, if not, use 425°. Baking without convection or at different temperatures will only have minor effects on your results.
The bacon can go into a cold oven, but it adds time.
👨🍳Breakfast Recipes
Check out these other great breakfast recipes. Try How To Sausage in the Oven to cook breakfast sausage patties the easy way. Serve with Baked Blueberry Pancakes, Carrot Cake Baked Pancakes, Small Cinnamon Coffee Cake, or Small French Toast Casserole.
❄️Storage of leftovers
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for 4-5 days. Reheat in a microwave wrapped in a paper towel. Cooked bacon can also be frozen for up to a month per the USDA.
❓FAQs
No, it is not needed.
While you can cook turkey bacon in the oven like pork bacon, it is thinner and much leaner. So, it will tend to stick without parchment paper. Cooking time will be 8 to 12 minutes—pay close attention.
You can cook bacon in the microwave. It is much more involved than just hitting the start button. You will need to cook on high for a while, then decrease the power to finish. Total cooking time is about the same with more fuss.
Multiple studies have shown the results of baking bacon are better than microwave or stovetop cooking.
The bacon fat can be strained and refrigerated in a glass container with a lid for 3-6 months. Great for frying an egg or using it to add more flavor to sauteed or roasted vegetables and other places where you want to add a hint of bacon.
The fat can turn bad quickly if unstrained as the food particles decay.
📖The Recipe Card with Step-by-Step Instructions
How to Cook Bacon in a Convection Oven
Ingredients
- 8-10 slices bacon - thick sliced preferred
- aluminum foil - to cover tray
- parchment paper - if needed
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400° convection bake or 425° conventional. Line an 18-inch × 13-inch rimmed sheet pan with aluminum foil.
- Place bacon close together but not touching. 8-10 pieces, about ½ pound, will usually fit.
- Bake to a crispy brown—about 20 minutes. Time will vary with the thickness of the bacon and your taste. Thinner bacon will cook faster, and thick-cut bacon may take a few minutes more, so check a few times early.
- Drain on paper towels and pat off any fat.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
- A half-pound of bacon or a bit more will usually fit an 18-inch × 13-inch sheet pan.
- You do not have to preheat the oven. It just takes a bit longer.
- Use the convection bake, NOT the convection roast setting. You may also cook in a conventional oven without convection. Even toaster ovens work.
- I have done this with oven temperatures from 350° to 425°. With or without convention. Just adjust the time.
- Thinner bacon cooks faster. Very thick bacon will take a few minutes longer.
- Thinner bacon and bacon with more sugar will tend to stick. Use a layer of parchment paper if you are unsure or have a problem.
- Turkey bacon will cook fast, usually 8-12 minutes but check early. It also tends to stick, so parchment paper is recommended.
- No flipping or rack is needed, although some people will use them.
- It is done when it looks cooked to your taste.
- I generally do two sheet pans at a time in a convection oven. I rotate them front to back and switch the top to bottom at 10 minutes.
- Cooked bacon is good refrigerated for 4-5 days and frozen for one month.
- Reheat bacon in a microwave covered with a paper towel for about 8-10 seconds per piece. If frozen, thaw first.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Editor's Note: Originally published October 8, 2011, it was updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Larry Penner says
There is little benefit to convection over use. I bake in a conventional oven for 15 minutes at 400 and the bacon is perfect
Karen says
This is the only way I make bacon now! Thank you for sharing this recipe it’s so good!
Nana Donna 2 6 says
I saw an earlier post about this from you a year or so ago and it's the only way I cook my bacon now. I always despised doing this on the stove due to the grease splatter and the cleanup of the stove/area afterwards. I love being able to put it in the oven and then get the rest of the meal items ready (like toast, lettuce, tomatoes, mayo). I did discover tonight, however, that you really do need to make sure you cook the sheet-pan of bacon IN THE MIDDLE as it cooks more evenly and doesn't burn as easily. Cleanup is super easy in addition to saving the bacon grease. Thanks for posting this again!
Terry says
This also works well on a gas grill. Use the indirect heating method and a sheet of foil with sides folded up. I do turn my bacon over about half way. 400 degrees same amount of time as the oven. Thanks for a great site. Definitely my go to.
EveM says
I spray a rack both sides and line my pan with foil. Lay the bacon (regular) on the rack at 400 for 20 minutes. The bacon is crispy and cleanup..well there isn't any really. The foil is thrown away, the pan is still clean, and I briefly wash the rack, since it was sprayed and any bits will come right off. Will never go back to frying..If you need the grease for other reasons just pour from the foil...
In the oven allows you time to do other things while the bacon is baking.It's great!
Linda Jones says
I used the instructions to cooking this bacon and it was wonderful. Nice and crispy is what I like. This is the only way my husband will eat it now.
Rosalina Villarruel says
This is, hands down, the best way to cook bacon. Thanks for sharing a really helpful post on how to bake bacon the right way!
Web says
Do you need to preheat the oven? A lot of people swear by starting with a cold oven, and then setting the oven to 400 F at the same time you put the bacon in. With this method, the bacon fat renders slowly and can result in evenly cooked bacon excellence. However, some ovens heat up much faster than others, so when you don t preheat it s more difficult for us to tell you how long to cook bacon in the oven since we re not at your house using your oven and eating your bacon. Try both methods next weekend and let us know which you prefer!
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Web,
Welcome to the blog.
I don't think it matters. I have done both and to me, the texture is the same.
The amount of time it takes to get to a specific temperature does vary A LOT. I have two ovens, both high-end things. One will preheat to 400 in 5 minutes if it uses rapid mode and 10 otherwise. The second take closer to 15 minutes but will brown bake cooks better.
I almost always use Black Label thick cut. I turn on oven #1 and spread the bacon on a tray. And is close to 400 when I put the trays in. But the cooking time still varies by 2-3 minutes. So even the "same" bacon cooks somewhat differently - it is a natural product.
I sometimes forget to flip the oven on and it will take 3-4 minutes longer is my sense of the timing for the faster oven. But the same even cooking and results overall, just a few minutes longer.
So either is fine. As with all meat cooking, you cook to the final endpoint you want and not by time.
Dan
KimarieSings says
I made 6 slices of extra thick bacon in my counter top convection oven. Aluminum foil @ 400 deg for 20 minutes and I will NEVER go back to a frying pan again. Every slice was evenly cooked and crisp. No huge mess as far as splatters. Thank you for posting your method. It works wonderfully.
DrDan says
Hi Kimarie,
Welcome to the blog.
It is so simple and glad it worked for you well in the countertop oven.
Thanks for the note.
Dan