Everyone loves a bacon roll but many people can be put off cooking this breakfast treat due to the challenging cleanup, as no one wants to spend their morning scrubbing away at a greasy pan on the stove.
However, Mary Hunt, a cooking expert and founder of Everyday Cheapskate, has shared that the best way to cook bacon is not on the stove, but simply using the oven.
Mary said: “Until I gave it a try, I assumed cooking bacon in the oven would be messier and more time-consuming than using my cast iron skillet on the stovetop.
“But I was so wrong. With the oven method, I can cook an entire pound of bacon without babysitting it. The bacon stays flat, there are no splatters and best of all? The smell doesn’t linger forever.”
It may sound simple, but cooking bacon in the oven is not only easier but will actually make bacon much tastier with a better texture as it will cook more evenly.
The fat on bacon tends to cook at a faster rate than the meat when in a frying pan, which can lead to the edges of bacon becoming bunted or too crispy while the middle can often be undercooked.
However, cooking in an oven will render out slowly, which allows the bacon to crisp evenly and this will also slowly cook natural sugars in the bacon to help enhance its flavour.
How to cook bacon in the oven
To begin, preheat the oven to 200C and then prepare a large and rimmed baking sheet with baking paper or tin foil.
Lay out the bacon tray in a single layer without overlapping any of the bacon strips.
If you wish, place a piece of baking paper on top of the bacon to absorb any additional grease which will help make clean-up even easier.
Bake the bacon the the preheated oven for around 18 minutes or until it is golden brown and cooked to your liking.
Once cooked, place the bacon on some towel towels to drain away any grease, then place on a buttery roll and your tasty bacon is ready.
Mary said: “Set the timer, and you’re done. The oven takes care of everything automatically. No flipping, no checking, and no splatters.
“The bacon bubbles and sizzles away, but here’s the best part—no splattering! Just perfectly cooked bacon every time, without the mess.”
