Air Fryer Bacon
No breakfast is complete without a slice of bacon, in my book. Instead of frying, why not go for easy air fryer bacon?
Making bacon in the air fryer means you don’t need to fuss over getting all of the breakfast components on the table. The work is done for you to get crispy, evenly cooked bacon each and every time. The air fryer saves my bacon—literally!
Why You’ll Love Air Fryer Bacon
- It’s hands off. You won’t need to stand over a stove, getting splattered with bacon grease, while this cooks! Just pop it in and get going on the rest of your breakfast.
- Make a whole batch at once. No pan crowding here! You can make enough for the whole family in one go.
- Perfectly crisp, flat slices are great for more than breakfast. You can use them to make easy BLTs or chop for your favorite dishes.
Ingredients for this recipe
This is just an overview. For full measurements and step-by-step instructions, scroll down to the printable recipe card. It’s all there waiting for you!
Use your favorite bacon, whether that’s thin or thick-cut bacon, applewood smoked, or peppered.
Keep in mind that the thickness of your bacon will affect how long your bacon needs to cook, as will your personal preference on crunch factor. In my house, we have both super crispy bacon fans and chewy bacon fans, so I just pull out half the bacon a little earlier.
How To Cook Bacon in Air Fryer
Step 1: What We Are Doing
Arrange the bacon slices in the air fryer basket. There’s no need to line the basket beforehand. If your air fryer is small or you want to cook a lot of slices, you may need to work in batches. It’s OK if the slices overlap just slightly, but try to keep the bacon in a single layer if possible.
Step 2: What We Are Doing
Slide the basket in place and cook for 8-10 minutes.
Step 3: What We Are Doing
Halfway through the cooking time, flip the bacon over. This ensures it gets perfectly crisp, and it’s a good opportunity to scoot over any slices that had been overlapped.
Step 4: What We Are Doing
When the bacon is cooked to your liking, use tongs to transfer it to a paper-towel lined plate to drain excess grease before serving. Enjoy!
Pro tip: Don’t forget to clean the air fryer after cooking to remove the collected bacon grease. Wipe up as much as you can with a paper towel; don’t pour grease down the drain!
Serving suggestions
Bacon goes with just about anything at breakfast, from fried eggs to sourdough pancakes. Use it to replace the Canadian bacon in eggs Benedict, or crumble it into bacon pancakes.
This is sure to become your favorite way to cook bacon. A breakfast staple, made easier!
Air Fryer Bacon
Ingredients
- 12 ounces sliced bacon
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400°F for 3 minutes.
- Arrange bacon slices in the air fryer basket. Keep the bacon in a single layer if you can, but slight overlapping is OK.
- Slide the basket into the air fryer and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until desired crispness. Halfway through cooking, flip the slices for perfect crispness.
- Transfer cooked bacon to a paper-towel lined plate to drain excess grease before serving, and enjoy!
Notes
- Use more or less bacon as desired.
- For thick-cut bacon, add more time. For thin bacon, check at 6 minutes.
Megan Myers has been sharing her favorite recipes online for 20 years. She has worked for companies like Whole Foods Market, Texas Co-Op Power, and Good Catch Foods. Her favorite breakfast food is waffles with plenty of maple syrup.