Kitchen Tips How To Kitchen Tools and Techniques The Foolproof Way to Cook Bacon in the Microwave You can microwave bacon in less time than it takes to heat up your oven or skillet. By Melanie Fincher Melanie Fincher Melanie Fincher is a Birmingham, Alabama–based food writer who covers everything from cooking techniques to gadget reviews. She has nearly 7 years experience writing news and lifestyle content. Allrecipes' editorial guidelines Updated on January 9, 2024 If you're not used to cooking bacon in the microwave, it might sound like a terrible idea. But yes, you can cook bacon in the microwave in a matter of minutes, without any mess. When sandwiched between layers of paper towels, bacon cooked in the microwave comes out oh-so-crispy and delicious. Dotdash Meredith Food Studios Can You Microwave Bacon? It's been established that you can indeed cook bacon in the microwave, and there are several reasons why you might want to: Pros When bacon is cooked in layers of paper towels, all the fat is absorbed and there's little to no mess for you to clean up.It only takes minutes.Because the bacon is cooked for so much less time, and the fat is absorbed into the paper towels, the lingering grease smell is much less persistent. As with anything, this cooking method is not perfect: Cons It's not the most environmentally friendly option, as it requires a lot of paper towels. It's easy to overcook if you don't check on it frequently.You don't get to save any of the rendered bacon fat for future use. Bill Brady/Getty Images How Long to Microwave Bacon In general, it takes between 3 and 6 minutes to cook bacon in the microwave. This could vary depending on your microwave's wattage, how thick your bacon is, the type of bacon (turkey bacon will have a shorter cooking time), how much bacon you're cooking, and how crispy you want it to be. Bacon packages often include cooking instructions with times on how long to microwave. However, we recommend checking on your bacon after a few minutes to see how it's coming along. Because the microwave cooks the bacon so rapidly, it's very easy to overcook or even burn. How to Microwave Bacon Here's What You'll Need: Microwave-safe plate or dishPaper towelsBacon sanzoe 1. Line a Plate with Paper Towels Line a microwave-safe plate or dish with two paper towels. 2. Arrange Bacon on Paper Towels Arrange as many bacon slices as you can fit in a single layer on top of the paper towels, making sure none overlap. 3. Top with More Paper Towels Top with two more layers of paper towels. From the Editor If you have more bacon to cook, you can stack another layer of bacon on top of this layer of paper towels. Just be sure to add a final two layers of paper towels on top to prevent splatters. 4. Microwave Microwave on high for 3 to 4 minutes. Check the bacon. If it still looks translucent, continue to cook in 30-second bursts until it's as crispy as you like. With time, you'll be able to more accurately estimate how long it takes to cook bacon in your microwave. 5. Drain the Fat Carefully remove the plate from the microwave (using oven mitts or a towel), transfer the cooked bacon to a fresh layer of paper towel, and drain for about 2 minutes. You can pat with an additional towel to absorb excess grease. Related: The Easiest, No-Mess Way to Cook Bacon Can You Cook Bacon in an Air Fryer? Our 15 Best Bacon-Wrapped Chicken Recipes Browse our entire collection of Bacon Recipes. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit