Oh Bacon! You can fry it in a pan. Cook it on an electronic griddle. But, my favorite is baking bacon. It’s simple and less messy. Plus, it’s easy to drain the grease for future culinary adventures.

Baked Bacon

Prep time 1 minute, Cook time 18-23 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 pound of bacon (10-12 strips)
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil

Directions

Line baking sheet with aluminum foil. Add strips of bacon, making sure that the bacon strips are not overlapping. Drizzle olive oil over the bacon.

Put baking sheet in oven on middle rack. Turn on your oven to 400 degrees F. (That’s right. Don’t preheat your oven. Turn it on when the bacon is inside. The gentle rise in temperature allows for the optimal bacon baking process) Check bacon at the 18-minute point. Depending on thickness and desired crispness, it may take a few minutes longer to cook. Once done, remove from oven and place bacon on a paper towel lined-plate to absorb some of the excess fat. Serve and enjoy!

Once the bacon grease on the pan cools, I like to pour it into tupperware and reserve for future recipes. I just store it in the refrigerator and use as needed. Can you say bacon fat popcorn? Simply substitute the bacon fat for the olive oil.