How To Cook Bacon in Frying Pan
Here’s your complete step-by-step guide on how to cook bacon in frying pan. Learn when to turn over bacon strips, how to fix it when they curl up, and other expert tips from a former restaurant manager. Also, see guidance on best pan, best skillet, and how to store bacon. This is a part of our Sides, Pork, and Breakfast categories.
Making Bacon in a Pan
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Ingredients
- ½ lb bacon thick or regular cut bacon slices
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil optional
Instructions
- Heat up pan or skillet on burner to medium heat or a little lower.
- Cut bacon strips in half.
- When pan or skillet is hot, optionally add in some oil. Then, place the half strips of bacon until filled and cook for about 4-5 minutes½ lb bacon, 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
- Turn over bacon and press down (5-15 seconds) any curling parts using spatula or bacon press. Cook until done, about 4-5 minutes, with options to turn over again to complete cooking fully.
- Place bacon onto paper towels for grease absorption. Turn off burner and remove pan or skillet from burner.
- Serve bacon onto individual plates or serve all in a single serving platter, bowl, or plate.
Nutrition
Frying Pan Bacon on Stove: Step-by-Step
It’s easy frying pan bacon on the stove top. Just follow these easy steps and you’ll be ready to cook bacon on the stove in a pan or skillet. Then, you can readily serve it alongside scrambled eggs or sunny side up eggs also.
1. To start making bacon in a pan, cut its strips half. It makes frying it much easier. I buy thick slices so, regular slices cook faster.
2. Preheat the frying pan to medium heat. It takes about 2-3 minutes to preheat pan.
3. Staying at medium heat or a little lower, add in the bacon strips next to each other. Leave pan uncovered.
4. Cook each side for about 4-5 minutes (or sooner, if done). After that, only turn them over to fully finish cooking each side.
TIP: Use a spatula to press down any curled up areas. Hold down for about 5-10 seconds and release.
5. As each piece gets done (on both sides), place each one onto a paper towel. When all are done, remove pan from burner & turn it off.
Without cutting strips in half, Fit Foodie Finds shows another way “How to Cook Bacon on the Stove“.
Best Pan for Frying Bacon
While you can use any kind, there is a preferred best pan for cooking bacon. Technically, there is a best pan and a best skillet. For starters, they are not the coated types of pans or skillets. I’ll discuss briefly both types now. The Foods Guy also discusses “The Best Bacon Pans“.
Best Frying Pan for Bacon
The best pan for frying bacon is the stainless steel pan. Another good option is cooking bacon in cast iron pans. When you’re cooking bacon in stainless steel, you’ll get good, even results. Also, if you preheat it for 2-3 minutes first, frying bacon in stainless steel pan doesn’t stick as much, if at all. Finally, frying in stainless steel pans are best in at least a 3-ply pan.
Best Skillet for Bacon
The best skillet for frying bacon is going to be a cast iron skillet. However, stainless steel skillets are great too. For an exception, I avoid the coated skillets, even the ceramic ones. Also, when frying bacon in cast iron, just preheat it for about 3 minutes initially and that will reduce sticking as well as provide more even cooking.
Can You Cook Bacon in a Nonstick Pan?
You can cook bacon in a nonstick pan. However, I try to avoid them. I’m just not comfortable with the coatings added to cooking wares, mainly because of long term health findings. Also, they tend to deteriorate in a short period of time and no longer perform well. With that said, a regular stainless steel pan can have low or fully nonstick properties when preheated for 2-3 minutes first. After that, an optional addition of a quick oil spray or 1 Tbsp of oil added also helps to reduce or eliminate sticking.
How To Keep Bacon From Curling
There are 2 popular ways on how to keep bacon from curling I learned as a restaurant manager. and there is a 3rd way not known by many, even in restaurants. The 4th way I don’t use but Food Republic mentions a way to use the oven for “The Sheet Pan Hack that Prevents your Bacon from Curling“.
Method 1. Use a Spatula to Keep Bacon from Curling
Just use your spatula and press down curled areas for 5 to 15 seconds and release. Repeat if needed.
Method 2. Use a Bacon Press to Keep Bacon from Curling
Presses are typically rectangular but can also be round. Similar to spatula, just lay the press over the curled areas, press down & let go.
To speed up cooking time, press down and hold. Either way, remove the press when curling is fixed or remove when ready to flip the bacon over.
Method 3. Use a Pot to Keep Bacon from Curling.
This is handy if you don’t have a bacon press. Similar idea of a meat press, find a small pot, pan, or skillet, and lay it’s outer bottom side on top of curled areas to act like a meat press. You’ll need to hold it in place while pressing it down for several seconds.
In restaurants, for massive quantities, I used to use a large, rectangular stainless steel steam pan over rows of strips. I either pressed down or I added in some heavy items to weight it down.
Bacon Nutritional Values
A hearty serving of 2.7 ounces of bacon is about 315 calories 1 gram of protein, and 10 grams of carbs. See the more detailed nutritional values in recipe. Also, there are some benefits about cooking turkey bacon compared to pork. So, here’s a good article on “12 Types of Bacon and Their Nutritional Values“.
Breakfast Dishes with a Side of Bacon
Here are some breakfast main and side dishes that go perfectly with fried bacon strips. Some of the sides are more related meat ideas for those extra large breakfasts or many guests.
- fried eggs sunny side up
- fluffy scrambled eggs
- sausage patties
- sausage links
- leftover ham
- little smokies
- kielbasa
- hash browns
- tater tots
- sausage gravy poured over tops
- toast
- cinnamon toast
- toasted English muffins
- biscuits
- buttermilk pancakes
- fruits
- beverages like coffee, milk, orange juice
Storing Bacon and Shelf Life of Grease Drippings
Storing bacon is fine in the fridge or freezer. I find that I avoid storing raw bacon in the fridge longer than 3 days and I generally focus on cooking it within 1-2 days. For cooked bacon, it stores well for me for about 2-3 days max. Overall, bacon grease shelf life is up to 3 months in the fridge.
For the freezer, I store raw bacon no longer than 3 months and I ensure it’s double bagged in food bags or wrapped well in butcher paper. When planning to cook bacon, I find it thaws out easily (in plastic bags) overnight in the fridge.
When storing cooked bacon in the freezer, I’ll put it into a plastic food container so it won’t get crushed. However, I also sometimes crumple it up as bacon bits and then store it easily in double bagged food baggies. I never keep it past about 3 months frozen.
For bacon grease, I find the flavor shelf life is good up to 6 months but I tend to stay within 3 months, like the fridge. I always let it thaw in the fridge, which takes 1-2 days if it’s thick.
Recipes Using Bacon or Drippings
Whether it’s regular crumbled bits of bacon or drippings, here’s a few great tasting recipes you’ll enjoy using one of those ingredients.
- Sunny Side Up Eggs
- Ideas for Loaded Backed Potatoes
- Pan Fried Potato Slices
- Southern Cooked Cabbage
- Sugar Snap Peas on Stove
Conclusion of How To Cook Bacon in Frying Pan
You’ve now seen how to cook bacon in frying pan using stainless steel as the focus. You also know that it cooks very well in a cast iron skillet, as the other preferred cookware. You’ve learned that preheating the pan or skillet for 2-3 minutes helps significantly reduce sticking. And you’ve also seen how to handle curled up bacon by pressing it down a few seconds. Finally, you’ve learned it stores well in the fridge or freezer, raw or cooked. And, even saving the grease in the fridge works well for reusing it for other recipes.
Good tips on solving curling bacon!!!