Twisted bacon is soft and crispy while somehow staying juicy.
It’s a Tiktok trend and it’s super easy to make.
Twisted bacon makes the perfect combination of crispy crunchy bacon and soft bacon because the twist creates a tunnel – the inside of the twist is soft and tender and the outside edges end up being crisp. Somehow eating bacon that isn’t in it’s regular form factor makes it even more delicious. It’s perfect for a keto snack – in fact the original viral hack were via @house.of.keto and @lowcarbstateofmind
How to make twisted bacon
Making twisted bacon is seriously the easiest thing ever.
- Heat the oven. You’ll want a 350°F oven so heat up your oven while you’re twisting your bacon.
- Line a baking sheet. Line a rimmed baking sheet (super important, make sure it’s rimmed so the bacon fat doesn’t spill everywhere) with parchment paper. This is so the bacon doesn’t stick to the pan and it also makes it easy to clean up.
- Twist the bacon. Take a strip of bacon and hold one edge down with one hand and use your other hand to twist it up. Place it on the baking sheet and repeat.
- Bake. Pop the bacon into the oven and bake until crispy, flipping halfway.
- Enjoy. That’s it! Use a pair of tongs to remove the twists from the baking sheet onto a wire rack or paper towels to let some of the bacon fat drain off then enjoy.
Ingredients
All you need is a pack of bacon. I prefer thick cut but this will work with any bacon.
How to twist bacon
Grab ahold of your bacon with your hands, hold one side and use your other hand to twist until it twists.
Air fryer twisted bacon
If you have an air fryer, you can make air fryer twisted bacon. It’s exactly the same steps, just preheat your air fryer, place your bacon in the air fryer basket, and bake for about 8-10 minutes. Air fried bacon is really great! Check out more tips for air fryer bacon here.
Toaster oven twisted bacon
For those times when you only want a couple of bacon twists, don’t sleep on your toaster oven. Toaster ovens are perfect for making twisted bacon. They don’t take any time to preheat and they’ll give you crispy twisted bacon in no time. Twist your bacon the same as you normally would, then bake in the toaster oven at 350°F for 10 minutes, then flip and bake for another 10 minutes. It takes a little less time in the toaster oven because the element is so close to the bacon. If you need it a bit crisper, don’t be shy, just add a couple of extra minutes.
Twisted turkey bacon
If you’re seeing this and thinking, can I make twisted bacon with turkey bacon, the answer is yes! Turkey bacon twists up the same as regular bacon and ends up just as crispy and juicy.
Tips and tricks
- parchment paper – use parchment paper for easy clean up. You can use foil too if that’s what you have.
- rimmed baking sheet – this one is important, don’t use a flat baking sheet because you need the rim of the baking sheet to catch the bacon fat.
- you don’t need to space them out – usually when you’re making bacon you want to give them space to crisp up, with twisted bacon you can snuggle them all up next to each other.
- don’t pour bacon fat down the sink – important!! let the bacon fat solidify on the the parchment paper and save it for another use, or fold it up along with the parchment paper put it in the compost if your city does industrial composting.
Make it ahead
I often make twisted bacon for the week as meal prep. Nothing beats bacon that’s already cooked and ready to go. Just cook it, cool it, and store it in an air tight container in the fridge. To warm it up, you can do it in the microwave, on a paper towel covered with another paper towel and warm it up for 20-40 seconds. Or you can just pop it in your air fryer and heat it up at 400°F for 1-2 minutes.
What to eat with twisted bacon
Variations
- candied bacon: sprinkle on some brown sugar or brush with maple syrup, it will caramelize into a sweet glaze.
- spicy bacon: sprinkle on a bit of cayenne pepper for a bit of a kick
- sweet and spicy: combine sweet and heat with brown sugar and cayenne
- peppery bacon: add a generous amount of freshly ground black pepper
- garlic bacon: sprinkle on garlic powder for a garlicky twist
happy twisting!
PS – If you’re having a hard time twisting your bacon, roll it tightly around a chopstick then carefully slide it off. Perfect twists, everytime!
Ingredients
- 12 oz bacon 1 package, thin cut preferred, see notes
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Hold one end of the bacon with one hand and use your other hand to twist each strip of bacon tightly. Lay the twisted bacon down on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 20 minutes then flip and bake for another 20 minutes. Let the bacon drain on a wire rack for a minute or two then enjoy!
love this, great idea had never seen this before so thank you for the “how-to”!
Can u use turkey Bacon with this recipe
hi, yes, turkey bacon will work i think! you might need less time in the oven :)
Bacon-lish, is all I will say!
Can i make in advance?
hi linda,
yep, you absolutely can and then re-warm in a low oven :)
I’ll be trying this. I always cook bacon in the oven but this makes it look so much more special.
A note…never put bacon grease in your compost either. No fats or oils. It will kill it. If you aren’t going to save the bacon grease for other recipes(it can be used in cooking) then toss it in the trash.
Easy to do, and then i brushed on garlic parmesan wing sauce! Excellent!!
“I often make twisted bacon for the week as meal prep. Just cook it, cool it, and store it in an air tight container in the fridge.”
You’re joking – right?
Around here it would last two days max – if that long. ;-)
Honey mustard works, drizzle.
Great! it is amazing!