Today I am sharing a real kitchen basic! How to cook perfect bacon every time. I recently shared a deluxe grilled pimento cheese sandwich in a video that contained bacon and tomatoes. I had a viewer ask me the secret to getting perfect slices of bacon because she had problems getting them to be perfectly cooked when she did it in a skillet. So today I am sharing how I make perfect bacon every time. No skillet required. Only a few simple tips and tricks and you will be on your way to no longer being a bacon slave on Saturday morning!
I have memories of my mother frying bacon in a skillet on the stove when I was a child. Even memories of myself as a young married person wanting to make a delicious breakfast for my mate. The problem is that skillets are round and bacon is straight. Mostly bacon is bigger than the diameter of the skillet and the skillet has hot spots that make frying perfect slices nearly impossible.
Some will say, "use a griddle" or "I never have a problem cooking perfect bacon in a skillet". To them I say BRAVO! Great for you! I am not that lucky. I have the secret to perfectly cooked bacon every time and it was learned from years of working in hotel banquet kitchens. You see, I majored in hotel/restaurant management in college and that is what I have a degree in. I have worked many a banquet hall. In fact, I started working as a sophomore in high school at a local country club doing banquet set up and break down on the weekends. I still love a big hotel kitchen. Nothing quite like it.
I digress. When you go to a breakfast buffet or an Easter or Mother's day brunch buffet in a fancy facility. I.E., hotel or banquet hall. They are not frying their bacon in a skillet. They are not even frying their bacon on a flat top. No, they are cooking their bacon in the oven. This gives you perfect, flat, straight and handsomely curvy pieces of bacon that everyone loves. The picture perfect bacon if you will.
First you want to have a great sheet pan. I have half sheet pans with a rolled, enforced edge. I buy them from a number of places such as Amazon or online restaurant supply houses. Next secret is to use non stick aluminum foil. This is probably not what they are using in the hotel kitchen. They are using parchment paper and that is an apt substitute but trust me on this. Get yourself a roll of this nonstick foil and your life will be changed! I don't use a lot of foil, but when I cook bacon I do. The nonstick surface allows the bacon to move freely without getting stuck and forms into perfect curvy, flat pieces.
Next is to have a good quality bacon. If you have a local brand that is made in your state, go for that. Mine is called Neese's and it is available in North Carolina, South Carolina and parts of Virginia. Best bacon I have ever eaten. I believe they ship at certain times of the year. If you ever have the opportunity to give this a try, I highly recommend it! This bacon is evenly sliced and not too thin. It does not fall apart when you take it from the rasher like some commercial brands.
I lay my bacon out on the pan so that each piece is opposite the last. Think about flipping like it were a spoon so the bowl of the last is at the handle of the previous one. This will help you fit more on the pan. Also, don't crowd the pan if you can help it.
Pre heat your oven to 350 degrees and wait for it to be completely heated. Place both sheets of bacon in the oven. One on the bottom rack all the way to the left one on the top rack all the way to the right. Bake for 10 minutes then flip them. Put the bottom sheet on the top rack and the top sheet on the bottom rack and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until browned and crisp. Monitor closely to achieve your preferred doneness.
Then just remove from the oven. Stack on some paper towels and allow to drain. Then save the bacon nectar to a jar if desired. Clean up is easy and the bacon is perfect. What more could you ask?
I hope you give this method of cooking bacon in the oven a try sometime soon and I hope you love it!
Happy Eating.
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