5 EASY Ways to Cook Bacon | What's the BEST Method?
Baked Bacon: Wire vs. Basic
Without Rack:
There are two primary ways to cook in convection: with a rack or without one. Cooking on a rack means a healthier and more lean product. Versus, just cooking on parchment paper which results in absorption of oil and fats. Although this will yield a better flavor in the final result. Cooking in convection is also a great way to cook a massive amount of bacon with little cleanup required.
What is convection? Convention cooking is an oven that has a fan which will circulate around your food and create an evenly heated oven. Cooking temperature will be 350 degrees, and this should take roughly 12 minutes. The end result is golden-brown evenly convection cooked bacon. It holds all the juice in this method since we cook it directly on the parchment paper.
Ingredients:
- Any bacon of your choice
Method:
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
- Place bacon down on tray with parchment paper or tin foil
- Space the bacon out for an even cook
- Place into oven to cook for 10 – 12 minutes
Wire Rack:
If you’re taking the “healthy” approach to cooking bacon, then raising it on a wire rack in convection is the route to go. This offers a crispier and less fatty finish. The rack will allow the convection fan to direct the air underneath to surround the bacon. If you want less mess, throw down a piece of parchment paper on your tray to catch drippings.
Chef’s Tip: Lay your slices across the rack from left to right so your pieces don’t fall through the cracks.
Advantage about cooking bacon in the oven is huge. You can cook for larger parties since you can fit more on a tray versus in a pan. But also keep in mind not to overcrowd your tray so all of your bacon gets cooked. So, this will go into the convection oven at 350 degrees for 12 minutes. Your final product will be crispier, less greasy, and lower calorie.
Ingredients:
- Any bacon of your choice
Method:
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
- Place bacon down on tray with parchment paper or tin foil
- Space the bacon out for an even cook
- Place into oven to cook for 10 – 12 minutes
Pan Seared:
Let’s the traditional approach to bacon, with the added spin of induction. We’ll cook this in a cast iron, on the Wolf induction the old school way. Induction heats our cast iron by contact. So, wherever you place it, it will heat it. Chef’s Tip: Make sure to preheat your pan at 40% because you don’t want to start in a cold pan. If you preheat your pan, this will ensure less sticking. Once preheated, you can turn your induction up to high and add your bacon. Depending on how thick your cuts of bacon are, this should take about three to five minutes on each side.
Chef’s Tip: If you want to avoid splatter on your cooktop, you can add a piece of parchment paper underneath of your pan to catch any mess.Induction is great in this sense since it won’t burn anything you put on top of it. Makes cleanup a breeze.
Once you start to see your bacon curl up on the edges, you’ll know it’s time for a flip. Cooking in a pan is great for a crispy and tender bacon.
Ingredients:
- Any bacon of your choice
Method:
- Preheat pan on medium heat
- Add about 3 – 4 pieces of bacon to your pan (or more if you have a bigger pan)
- Cook for 2 – 3 minutes on each side or until bacon curls up on edges
Microwave:
An unexpected way to cook your bacon, is in the microwave. It is the easiest option though when it comes to speed and cleanup. It also is convenient for cooking for one or two people.
We used the Wolf microwave drawer for this. Make sure you use a microwave safe plate, and place down a paper towel on the bottom so there’s no mess. Place the bacon down and then cover it with the paper towel too, so it doesn’t splatter while in our microwave. We’ll then cook it on high for about five minutes.
It's crispy, it's a little bit chewier than I thought it would be. But this is easy five-minute bacon in your microwave drawer.
Ingredients:
- Any bacon of your choice
Method:
- Place bacon on microwave safe plate with a paper towel on the bottom
- Wrap the bacon in the paper towel to prevent splatter
- Microwave on high for 5 minutes
Steamed Bacon:
One the healthiest ways to cook bacon, is by using your convection steam oven. We used some applewood smoked bacon in the Wolf convection steam oven to demonstrate this process. Your setup consists of a solid pan which collects all the drippings. Then on top of this pan, will be your perforated pan.
Chef’s Tip: If you find your bacon has an uneven texture; instead of pulling it off the slab, try rolling the bacon. This prevents stretching of your pieces and ensures uniformity.
We want to set our oven on convection steam at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes. The beauty of this is we will have high temperatures with the addition of steam to keep it crispy but also hold texture.
Ingredients:
- Any bacon of your choice
Method:
- Preheat your steam oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit
- Place bacon on the perforated tray
- Steam for 12 – 15 minutes
These are all ways to cook your bacon in just minutes. Depending on how much you’re cooking, what appliances you have, or what kind of end result you want, this will determine which way you cook your bacon.
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