There’s nothing better than tucking into crispy bacon, either in a sandwich or as part of a cooked breakfast.
Ensuring bacon is crisp and not too pale, soggy or greasy can be tricky which is why many people resort to cooking their bacon in the air fryer.
While this is good in theory, experts have warned that cooking bacon in the air fryer may not be the best idea.
A spokesperson from online butchers, Campbells Prime Meat shares why he doesn’t cook bacon in the air fryer.
He said: “When using an air fryer, exercise caution as bacon contains high levels of fat, which can lead to smoking or even flames in certain air fryer models.
“To prevent this, you can work in smaller batches and ensure to drain the grease regularly during cooking in an air fryer.”
He added: “However, this process can be inconvenient as it requires frequent monitoring and interruption, making other cooking methods like pan frying or oven baking more practical and hassle-free alternatives for cooking bacon.”
Instead, home cooks can cook their bacon either by pan-frying it or oven-cooking it. Here’s how to pan-fry and oven-cook your bacon for best results:
Pan-frying
Pan-frying is the most popular method for cooking bacon. The method involves putting a pan over medium heat and cooking it until it’s the preferred texture.
The experts at Skillcast said: “Pan frying yields bacon with a slightly soft texture in the middle and a crispy exterior.
“Cooking bacon with this method tends to give it a richer flavour due to the direct contact with the frying pan and the caramelisation process.”
Oven cooking
Cooking bacon in the oven is fairly simple as it involves simply arranging bacon strips on a baking tray lined with baking parchment and baking it in the oven at 200C for 15 to 20 minutes.
Cooking bacon in the oven is less messy and is better for cooking large batches of bacon.
The experts said: “Oven-cooked bacon tends to have a consistently crispy texture throughout, with a slight chewiness in the centre.
“It produces flat, evenly cooked strips of bacon due to the less direct heat distribution in the oven.”
