Bacon in the Air Fryer

Perfectly crispy bacon in the air fryer is the way to go y’all! If you love this keto friendly low carb food you can now make it super crispy without it laying in all that grease. Let us explain why cooking bacon in Ninja Foodi is our new favorite air fryer recipes. (affiliate links present)

How Long to Cook Bacon in Air Fryer

That depends on how crispy you want it to be and how thick your slices are. I personally don’t like thick versions, they don’t get crunchy enough. The thinner they are the less time it will take. The range is 12-15 minutes rotating a few times for best results.

OH MY this air fryer breakfast is going to be a major game changer for y’all too. I mean, the grease drains away and it is so crispy. You can cook a whole batch in no time at all for breakfast, or dice it into fresh bacon bits.

Use uncured, organic pork, “regular” pieces, turkey bacon, I haven’t cooked one that hasn’t turned out absolutely fantastic as well as sliced air fryer pork belly this way and it is the best.

Ninja Foodi Bacon Option

Salt pork can be sliced too and tastes very similar. Pork belly in the oven or in the air fryer is amazing too. You can cook all of these and add them to all sorts of recipes to make them even better. Adding it chopped up into brussel sprouts go from good to OH MY with some bits of pig in them. 😉

Cooking Tips

This is so much easier in my opinion because you don’t have to stand there and watch it. A BIGGER plus is there is NO splattering on your hands! You can even cook frozen bacon in air fryer this same way with a bit different cooking time

This is the brand and style I picked up at the store. I personally do not like thick slices because I like it to get really really crispy and that style stays softer. The BEST thick cut bacon I’ve ever eaten I actually got from ButcherBox (you can get it free here + $15 off your order too here). It is uncured with an amazing flavor.

If you can get uncured meat of any kind in the store I’d recommend it because there’s TONS of flavor.

Adding Eggs

You could cook both of these in the same pot y’all. You just put raw bacon in half the basket withair fryer eggs in silicone cups on the other. Place on the bottom layer with the meat on top in the basket you see here.

Just like crisping it in a pan it is necessary to make sure all edges get crispy. I think using a pair of tongs is easier than trying to flip it with a spatula. Air fryer baskets are typically not square and spatulas sometimes are awkward to fit in and grab anything.

How many slices of bacon can you air fry?

I started with 6 slices so they weren’t overlapping too too much. You can see how I set them in here. I didn’t lay them flat, rather plopped them in on to themselves. What’s the most important part of cooking bacon in air fryer? Moving it around every 5 minutes is key!

Can you candy bacon slices in air fryer?

Want to make it sweeter? Give air fryer candied bacon a whirl and see which is your favorite! This is definitely a kid fave if I want to be superwoman in the morning, or a great add in on a breakfast charcuterie board too. This is the only pressure cooker that air crisps too, use the lid that is attached for this one.

When using an air fryer, the basket has holes in the bottom which means it’s perfect for cooking fatty meats like this and air fryer pork chops.

FAQ

I figured I would try a few pieces and if it didn’t work I would just use a pan. OH boy I should’ve tried this so much earlier y’all! Thin slices are best, uncured, in one single layer get super crispy for breakfast. Works great!

1. Smoked bacon. Yes you can smoke your own bacon on the grill, or buy smoked bacon in the supermarket for added flavor.
2. Turkey bacon is usually much lower in fat than traditional pork cuts. Keep in mind it has a different taste and texture.
3. Canadian bacon
4. Pancetta

Using a Blackstone 22 griddle it’s about 10 minutes to very crispy (how we like it). For thicker cuts it takes a bit longer but so worth it. Air fried is a bit longer and I like to flip a few times to get each spot as crispy as possible so this is closer to 15 min.