Why You Should Shelve the Skillet and Bake Your Bacon

If you're still frying your bacon, there's a better way.

Lindsay Funston

If you're cooking for a crowd, there's a better way to prepare bacon. Put the skillet down and instead preheat your oven. Ten minutes later you'll be ready to feed perfectly crisp slices to the masses.

"The bacon cooks more evenly without the hot spots which can occur in a skillet," says to Adam Sappington, co-owner of The Country Cat in Portland, Oregon, and co-author of Heartlandia with his wife, Jackie Sappington. Both restaurant and book serve as an homage to American heritage cuisine, and they swear by oven-baked bacon.

Look out for words like "liquid smoke" and "corn syrup," he says. Those affect flavor and lend to a weak product. Choose bacon that is cured for at least five days with a salt, sugar and spices. It should be smoked over hard wood, such as hickory, or a fruit wood, like apple. Avoid "natural flavorings," because who knows what that really is anyway. And try to smell the product. If you can identify flavors you like before you even cook it, then you're on the right track. 

"I really love the Denver Bacon Company bacon," Sappington said. "It has all the markings and flavor of true craftsmanship. Also, Burger's Smokehouse out of California, Missouri, is a true standby for me."

What are you waiting for. Preheat that oven, whip up some pancakes, and keep everyone's spirits (and cholesterol) high.

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Yields: 8 servings
Prep Time: 0 hours 0 mins
Cook Time: 0 hours 0 mins
2 lb. thick-cut bacon
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Use parchment paper to line baking trays with edges.
  3. Lay the bacon touching long ways, but not overlapping.
  4. Bake at 350 degrees until desired doneness. (For bacon that is set and partially crisp, but not too crisp, cook approximately 7 minutes.)
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