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How to cook bacon completely hands-free with your choice of tender or crispy texture without standing over a hot stove or grill.
There is no escaping this…preparing the vast majority of meals at home requires creativity in the planning department, from the time it takes to purchasing the ingredients, preparing the meal, cooking and finally…cleaning up!
Time is…without a doubt…the biggest challenge to overcome when you’re giving up takeout and processed foods and instead opting to prepare your meals from scratch with whole foods.
So when I come across a technique that saves a few minutes at the stove so you can do something else in the meantime, I’ll share it if it’s something that might actually help you as well.
While I typically cook sugar-free bacon on the stovetop when I just need a few strips, my method goes hands-free when I plan on cooking a pound or more at a time.
Why not use the Oven Broiler?
My previous attempt at cooking a whole pack of bacon at once without frequently turning the slices was using the oven grill.
This worked fine, but I still had to remove the bacon from the oven and flip it at least once so the side exposed to the grill doesn’t burn.
It also required constant monitoring as the bacon curled up on the ends and burned fairly easily if you left it in the oven just a minute or two too long.
Another problem with frying bacon… the nutrient-rich bacon fat splatters all over the oven.
This leaves less for other dishes like this potato and bacon soup.
The fouling also increases the frequency of oven cleaning required.
Best oven setting for cooking bacon
My husband actually stumbled upon the best method for cooking bacon hands-free in the oven.
Use the pizza setting!
Only a guy would find out something like that, am I right? 😂
If you have a fairly new oven (ours is about 6 years old) you should have a setting for “pizza”.
This setting is similar to the “toast” function in a countertop convection oven, which I actually always use to “toast fish” for perfect results every time!
Pizza mode in a standard oven heats both the top and bottom elements at the same time, but not as hot as the grill.
So, when you pop a pan of uncooked bacon in the oven preheated to “pizza,” the entire batch will cook up either tender or crispy, depending on your family’s preference, in minutes.
Give it a try the next time you make bacon and let me know how it works for you!
How to cook bacon hands free
How to cook bacon hands-free with your choice of tender or crispy texture without standing over a hot stove or grill.
Ingredients
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3/4 – 1
Pound
bacon
preferably grazed
instructions
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Preheat the oven to “pizza” mode.
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Arrange bacon strips on a large stainless steel pan.
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When the oven is hot, place the pan on the top rack slightly above the center of the oven.
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Set the timer to 12 minutes.
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When the timer is up, remove the pan from the oven. It should be perfectly cooked to a tender texture.
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If you want crispy bacon, leave the pan in the oven after the timer is up, but turn the heat off. Allow the bacon to slowly crisp over the next 10 minutes before removing the pan from the oven.
nutritional information
How to cook bacon hands free
Amount Per Serving (2 strips)
calories 107
Calories from fat 72
% Daily Value*
Fat 8g12%
Saturated fat 2.7 g14%
Polyunsaturated fat 1.4 g
Monounsaturated fat 3.6 g
cholesterol 23mg8th%
sodium 387mg16%
potassium 115mg3%
protein 8g16%
iron 0.2mg1%
*Percent Daily Values ​​are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
