Bacon is one of the most popular and consumed foods around the world. In average, the Americans eat about 17.9 lbs of bacon per year. That is a huge total amount, considering that each proportion of bacon weights just a few ounces.
Most of the people eat bacon for breakfast or as a quick meal, especially if they are in a hurry. That's probably one of the main reasons why it has such a high consumption rate.
There are different types of cooking methods for bacon. Even though some people like to eat it raw, it is recommended to cook it a little bit.
And, what is the best and the quickest way to cook bacon? Using a bacon cooker.
In this article, I will show you some options for you to find which is the best bacon cooker on the market today.
Table of Contents
- 1 What You Should Know About Bacon Cookers?
- 2 How We Selected Our Products
- 3 Best Bacon Cookers for Microwave and Oven Comparison
- 4 What are the Top Five Bacon Cookers in the Market Today?
- 5 Final Thoughts
- 6 How you Should Cook Bacon
- 7 How to Microwave Bacon
- 8 Cooking Time
- 9 How to Make Crispy Microwave Bacon
- 10 Should you Use the Paper Towel Method?
- 11 Important Features to Consider
What You Should Know About Bacon Cookers?
If you are you planning to purchase a bacon cooker, it is important that you know how to find the best. It is also imperative to note that finding the best bacon cooker could be a challenge because of the many brands available in the market.
Shopping for the best bacon cooker or microwave bacon cooker will need one to conduct a thorough research before settling for a specific brand. Before purchasing any bacon cooker, you will need to establish that the product will suit all your bacon-cooking needs.
This article seeks to highlight the best bacon cooker and best microwave bacon cooker with the aim of helping shoppers to select the best brand in the market.
This article highlights each brand’s features, size, pricing, benefits, and limitations with the sole aim of helping consumers decide whether to purchase the products.
How We Selected Our Products
There are two types of microwave back cookers on the market, so we decided to feature the best models from both types.
One type is the model which has a rack onto which the bacon is draped, lifted off the tray and the other one is simply a plastic tray with raised ridges.
All manufacturer’s main purpose is to design a product which will quickly crisps up the bacon without any mess.
There is a lot of discussion online which people dismiss the purpose of microwaved bacon as they think it losses flavor and texture.
We took into consideration several online communities, Amazon Reviews and several other resources, which documented their results when using bacon cookers.
We decided to make a list with the best models, which we think are worth considering as your next purchase.
Best Bacon Cookers for Microwave and Oven Comparison
| Name | Editor's Rating | Price Range | Key Feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | $$$ | Multi-Purpose Grill | ||
 | (Editor's Choice) | $ | Cook up to 12 Slices at Once | |
 | $$ | Cook up to 14 Slices at Once | ||
 | (Runner-Up) | $$$ | Multi-Purpose Grill | |
 | $ | Simplicity | ||
 | $ | Catches Drippings | ||
 | $ | Bacon & Egg Cooker at Once | ||
 | $$ | Up to 6 Slices in less than 3 min |
What are the Top Five Bacon Cookers in the Market Today?
Our market-wide research helped us come up with a viable set of specs that define some of the best bacon cookers. We were also able to establish that the products below are the top five bacon cookers in the market today.
This 3-in -1 multi-grill from Hamilton is a perfect equipment for those who enjoy steak and eggs from local hotel and food outlets.
Acquiring the multi-grill from Hamilton will make it easy for you to enjoy your favorite steak and eggs bacon from the comfort of your home. The 3-in-1 multi-grill is convenient to use, since it features an indoor grill, griddle, and a bacon cooker.
This product is also a good choice because it is versatile. You can use the multi-grill to prepare foods such as fish, juicy burgers, and panini for either lunch or dinner.
When it is open, the multi-grill provides you with an amazing 200 square inch cooking surface that is not sticky. This is enough space for you to cook a family meal and grill various foods simultaneously. The equipment features an automated temperature control system that will ensure that you can cook your food at your personalized heat settings.
Operating the Hamilton Beach 3-in-1 Multi-grill is easy and after cooking, you can remove the cooking plates and clean them easily.
Things We Liked
Things We Didn't Like
This amazing bacon microwave cooker from Presto will easily win your trust as it provides value for your money. When using this bacon microwave, you will enjoy your time in the kitchen because you can quickly fix yourself a delicious, crisp, and delicious bacon.
With its amazing features, you can be sure that Presto Bacon Microwave Cooker is one of the best bacon cookers you will come around.
This cooker is user-friendly as it is simple to load and serve the bacon cooked. Presto Bacon Microwave Cooker will provide you with a new experience in cooking your bacon.
When using this cooker, you can prepare healthy bacon that is tenderer compared to when using a pan to fry it. You will also be able to remove portions of cooked bacon from the cooker by simply lifting them using the edge of a knife.
You can use the cooker to cook up to 12 slices of bacon simultaneously without producing spats that will make your kitchen dirty.
With the Presto bacon microwave cooker, cleaning is easy and quick. You will enjoy the cleaning experience that comes with this equipment as you can easily wipe it after use for safe storage. The cooker’s cooking plates are dishwasher friendly and can be washed while fully immersed.
Things We Liked
Things We Didn't Like
The third model in this list is the Emson Wave Microwave Bacon Cooker.
This is the latest bacon cooker from Emson. As a new model, you can expect Emson Bacon Wave to bring a fresh experience into bacon cooking and a touch of class into your kitchen.
When using the Bacon Wave cooker, you can be sure that your slices of bacon will not be greasy although they will still have the taste of frying pan bacon.
Cooking using the Emson Bacon Wave is healthy as it ensures that your bacon is not greasy, which reduces the bacon’s cholesterol and fat content. This is because the cooker has the capacity to isolate your bacon from unwanted grease. This will ensure that you get to enjoy healthy bacon each day and enjoy leading a healthy lifestyle.
The Emson Bacon Wave comes with the stacking feature. This helps you prepare more bacon, allowing you to host several friends at your place.
This cooker provides a quick way of preparing bacon. All you need to do is place your bacon in it and set your cooking time as 1 minute per slice. After the setup, your bacon will be ready within 28 minutes.
Things We Liked
Things We Didn't Like
The George Foreman GR3060B Multi Grill provides you with a quick way of cooking tasty meals for yourself and your loved ones.
The grill features a 4-serving area that you can use for cooking bacon, burgers, and chicken for your family. This helps you to prepare more food within a short time.
It features an advanced non-sticky tough coating. This makes the George Foreman GR3060B Grill double durable compared to its predecessors.
It comes with removable grill plates. The removable plates make cleaning the cooker easy. Its grill plates are also dishwasher safe. This will allow you to use your ordinary dishwasher to wash the grill plates.
This particular product allows a 35 percent faster heating when plugged in compared to previous models. This will allow you to cook your bacon within ten minutes.
Things We Liked
Things We Didn't Like
This Simple Microwave Bacon cooker provides you with a unique cooking experience.
Unlike other microwave bacon cookers that cook your food in oil or fat, this model cooks your bacon by holding it in the 'air'.
Well, actually you use three simple handle bars to place your bacon sheets.
This is one of the simplest microwave bacon cookers you will come around. All you need to do is ensure your bacon hangs over the bars, use a sheet of roller towel to cover the bacon, and place it in the microwave.
It is flexible and allows you to cook numerous slices of bacon. Depending on your preference, you can cook different strips of bacon with 35 percent less fat.
The bacon cooker also comes with a convenient tray. This makes it easy for you to prepare your bacon and organize your cooking area.
Things We Liked
Things We Didn't Like
Worth Mentioning Products
Easy to clean oven bacon pan, which catches drippings, is built on a strong, durable aluminum base and comes with a nonstick coated steel rack.
Joie Microwave Bacon and Egg Cooker - Best Combo Cooker
One other item worth mentioning in this list is the Joie Microwave Bacon and Egg Cooker. You can cook bacon and eggs at the same time on microwave, in just a few minutes by using this appliance.
Bacon tray is designed to catch grease and is removable. The egg cooker portion has convenient handles for you to easily remove the cooked eggs.
A quick and easy solution for those who want to cook up to 6 slices of bacon in less than 3 minutes.
Its design makes the fat drain away and has integrated drain spout for easy pour and removal of grease. Dishwasher safe and a clear, transparent lid to view the doneness of the food.
Final Thoughts
Above is a list of the best bacon cookers that you will find in the market today. We hope that the list will make it less confusing for you to pick the best microwave bacon cooker.
It is important that you consider all the various factors that could affect a cooker’s efficiency when shopping to ensure that you find the best cooker. You should prefer a cooker that produces healthy, tender bacon and ensures your cooking oil is not wasted.
Among the five reviewed cookers, we feel that Presto Bacon Microwave Cooker has an edge over the rest and can be considered best microwave bacon cooker. This is because it is easy to use, relatively affordable, and can cook 12 slices of bacon simultaneously. The cooker’s cooking plates are also easy to clean and are dishwasher friendly.
As a runner-up, we decided to go with the George Foreman 4-Serving Multi-Purpose Grill. It is relatively affordable when compared with its competitors, comes with a removable plate grill for easy cleaning and can cook up to 4 servings at once.
How you Should Cook Bacon
If you have ever tried cooking bacon on a skillet, you should have noticed that making it perfectly crispy is more time consuming than you though.
Cast iron is generally considered the best type of pan for almost any frying. But, even though cast iron is great at heat distribution, you still need to watch and maintain a low temperature when frying bacon. Since bacon strips are very thin, you should cook them on a low and slow method, allowing the fat of the bacon to render and eventually crisp, without turning into a rubbery texture.
There are a lot of other type of pans out there, such as square pans, grill pans etc. but we have had the best results with oven cooked bacon strips.
Just lay down the strips in a baking sheet and pop them into the oven. Let them cook for around 15 to 20 minutes, without having to do anything. This is the best possible cooking method if you don’t have a microwave bacon cooker or toaster oven.
How to Microwave Bacon
Since using microwave to cook your bacon is the fastest and the best solution, here are a few things to know.
You could simply put the bacon strips on a microwave safe plate, sandwiched between paper towels but in some cases, it will result in a rubbery texture and the bacon will have a few paper towel stuck to it.
Depending on what microwave cooker you choose, you can cook from four to twelve slices of bacon at the same time. You should take into consideration that substantial shrinkage will happen to the slices during the cooking, so you can always put a few more extra slices. Just don’t overlap them with each other as it will cause uneven cooking.
Cooking Time
Here’s what you should know about cooking time.
Most microwave ovens have the capability of producing 600 watts to 1200 watts, with a few models producing higher voltage. Higher voltage always means faster and more evenly cooking. Most bacon cooker suggest to use a 1000 watt voltage oven.
As for cooking time, they suggest to cook for 1 minute per slice. Since the wattage of each microwave is different, it is a little difficult to follow the exact cooking time.
If you have a lower wattage microwave oven, you should add around 10 to 15 seconds extra per slice and for higher wattage microwaves, you should subtract 10 to 15 seconds per slice.
Also, the cooking time depends on what type of bacon you are cooking. For example, turkey bacon slices are produced by chopping turkey with oil added during the compression process. They don’t have high fat layers, like pork bacon do, so it will take less time to cook.
How to Make Crispy Microwave Bacon
Making crispy bacon is the ultimate goal for anyone who is cooking them. It should take a few tries to learn how to properly make them crispy but once you do, you will get great results every time.
When you first try to make them, you should either end up with crisped bacon, rubbery texture or bacon jerky which are probably going to put your teeth to test.
One little trick we suggest you to try if you are a beginner is to undercook the bacon. For example, one simple approach you can follow is to first cook the around 3 minutes for four bacon strips. After that, turn the strips on the other side and turn on the microwave for another 30 seconds. After 30 secs, check the bacon if they have turned crispy enough. If not, then let them cook for another 30 seconds, until they are as crispy as you like. Also, have in mind that if the fatty sections of the bacon are golden brown, they will eventually turn crisp as they cool.
Should you Use the Paper Towel Method?
As I mentioned in the upper section, there are people who use paper towels to cover the bacon, especially if your bacon cooker has a lid. While you may think this will make a difference, it is actually necessary at all.
We suggest you to use paper towels to cover the bacon, so it absorbs the grease splatter. Most of models we featured in this guide are tested and designed to capture any rendered bacon fat.
Important Features to Consider
During our research, we decided that there are a few features you should consider when picking a microwave bacon cookers:
Dimensions & Size: Before purchasing a microwave bacon cooker, you should take into consideration the inner dimensions, so you ensure that it will fit to your oven. Most of the rack style cookers are large enough for fitting any size microwave. As for the tray style models, they can come in square or rectangle shapes, depending on their design, so it might not fit perfectly on any microwave model.
Gutter Design: Since the bacon cookers are designed to drain as much fat as possible, you should look for a design which keeps the bacon elevated enough for the fat to freely sit on the bottom, without touching each other. The rack style models are the most efficient on fat capturing but there are also a few other models which do a great job on capturing the fat even though they have other design style.
Build Quality: You probably won't have any issues with durability and built quality of most microwave bacon cookers since most of them are made of plastic and are microwave safe. You won't do any heavy duty work on them, but still considering if it is sturdy enough will surely make it last longer.
BPA-Free Plastic Type: Since your bacon strips will have direct contact with the plastic, you should ensure that the model you are picking is made of BPA-Free plastics. Just read the product label, since most of them state on the label what they are made from.
Storage: Since you are not going to use them all the time, you should think of ease of storage and where are you going to store them when you are not using. Most models are compact enough to store in your cabinet without doing any assembly while a few models you can dis-assemble a few parts and store anywhere.
Hello,
We were wondering if you have tried the WowBacon Microwave Cooker when compiling your review for the best microwave bacon cooker. If not, we would love for you to try our product for the chance to be a part of this lineup for your next review. Our website is wowbacon.com and we are also sold on Amazon under “WowBacon+ Microwave Bacon Cooker P5 – Improved Quality.” Let me know if this is a possibility!
Thank you,
Sonia Amirzadeh