Bake bacon at 200C (400F) for 15-20 minutes — up to 25 minutes for thick-cut — laid in a single layer on a parchment-lined tray, no flipping needed. In an air fryer, regular-cut bacon takes 8-10 minutes at 175C (350F). Like any whole cut of pork, bacon is safe at 63C (145F) internal, but a slice this thin sails past that long before it looks like breakfast — pull it when it is deep amber and crisping.
There is no tidier way to cook bacon than in the oven: one tray, no spatter, no standing guard over a hot skillet with a fork. Granny would have loved this method — she just never had the parchment paper. Here are the exact times at 400F for regular and thick-cut, the air fryer numbers, and what to do with the fat. (Hint: do not you dare pour it down the sink.)
| Cut | Oven at 200C (400F) | Air fryer at 175C (350F) | Done when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular cut — chewy, crisp edges | 15 min | 8 min | Amber, still bends in the middle |
| Regular cut — properly crisp | 20 min | 10 min | Deep amber all over, fat glassy |
| Thick-cut | Up to 25 min | Better done in the oven | Mahogany, fat fully rendered |
Bacon in the Oven at 400: The No-Flip Method
Heat the oven to 200C (fan 180C / gas 6) — that is the 400F Americans bake bacon at. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and lay the bacon in a single layer, with no slice touching its neighbour. Bake 15-20 minutes for regular cut, up to 25 for thick-cut. No flipping, no turning, no grease up your walls. The fat renders out flat under each slice and fries the underside for you, which is why the tray does a better job than you would with tongs. Ovens vary, so look in at 15 minutes — bacon goes from perfect to burnt in about the time it takes to butter toast. Lift the slices onto paper towels (kitchen roll, if you are on our side of the water) and let them sit a minute; they crisp further as they cool.
How Long to Cook Bacon in the Air Fryer
Regular-cut bacon takes 8-10 minutes in the air fryer at 175C (350F). Lay it in a single layer in the basket — cut the slices in half if they will not sit flat — and work in batches rather than piling it up, because stacked bacon steams instead of crisping. Check at 8 minutes if you like a bend in your bacon; 10 gets it crisp. Two cautions from an old hand: pour off the fat that collects underneath between batches or it will smoke, and leave thick-cut bacon to the oven, where the heat is gentler and the tray catches everything.
When Is Bacon Done? Colour Beats the Clock
Bacon is a whole cut of cured pork, so it is technically safe at 63C (145F) internal with a 3-minute rest — a figure it passes long before it looks anything like breakfast. It is also far too thin to probe with a thermometer, so this is the one page where I will tell you to cook by eye instead. Pull it when it is deep amber, with the white fat gone glassy and translucent. It stiffens and crisps as it cools, so take it out one shade lighter than you want it on the plate. If it shatters when you bite it, you went one shade too far — though some of us like it that way.
Save the Fat — Granny Always Did
Do not pour bacon fat down the sink; it sets in your pipes like candle wax, and besides, you are throwing away flavour. Let the tray cool a little, then pour the fat through a sieve into a clean jar. It keeps for a good few weeks in the fridge and fries eggs, potatoes and cabbage better than butter ever will. It is also the start of a proper pan gravy — see our page on <a href="how-to-make-gravy.html">how to make gravy</a> for what to do with those drippings.
Storing Cooked Bacon: The Two-Hour Rule
Cooked bacon must not sit out longer than 2 hours — only 1 hour if the room is above 32C (90F) — because between 4-60C (40-140F) bacteria multiply fast. That is the danger zone, and cured or not, bacon is not exempt from it. Once it has cooled, get it covered and into the fridge. For how long it keeps from there — raw and cooked, opened and unopened — we have a whole page on it: <a href="how-long-does-bacon-last-in-the-fridge.html">how long bacon lasts in the fridge</a>.
Questions we get asked
Do you need to flip bacon in the oven?
No. The hot tray cooks the underside while the oven heat does the top, and the rendered fat shallow-fries each slice right where it lies. Flipping only lets the heat out and the spatter onto your oven gloves. Lay it flat, shut the door, and leave it be until the 15-minute check.
Should I use parchment paper or foil for oven bacon?
Parchment. The bacon does not stick, the fat pools neatly for saving, and cleanup is lifting a sheet of paper off a nearly clean tray. Foil works, but bacon welds itself to it. A wire rack gets you a touch crisper, but then you are scrubbing rendered fat out of a rack — parchment gives you nine-tenths of the result for none of the washing-up.
What temperature do you cook bacon in the air fryer?
175C (350F), for 8-10 minutes for a regular cut. Any hotter and the fat dripping below starts to smoke before the bacon has crisped. Keep it to a single layer and check at 8 minutes.
Why is my bacon in the oven not crispy?
Usually the slices are overlapping — wherever bacon touches, it steams instead of fries. Give every slice its own patch of tray, let a regular cut go the full 20 minutes (thick-cut up to 25), and remember that bacon crisps as it cools: it should leave the oven deep amber and still bendable, then stiffen on the paper towels.
How long can cooked bacon sit out?
Two hours at the very most, and only 1 hour if the room is above 32C (90F). Between 4-60C (40-140F) is the danger zone where bacteria multiply fast, and being cured does not excuse bacon from it. After that window it belongs covered in the fridge — see our page on how long bacon lasts in the fridge for the full storage times.
What internal temperature should bacon reach?
As a whole cut of pork, bacon is safe at 63C (145F) with a 3-minute rest — but any bacon that looks cooked passed that mark long ago. It is too thin for a probe thermometer to be much use, so judge it by colour instead: deep amber, glassy fat, and crisping up as it cools.