The Two Cooking Tips From Bobby Flay To Make Bacon Strips 10x Better

There are lots of ways to enjoy bacon — wrapped around some shrimp, baked into a cheesy casserole, layered with lettuce and tomato in the perfect sandwich, to name a few. Really, you can't go wrong with any of them. But if there's anyone whose advice we trust to make a better batch, it's Bobby Flay. After all, the celebrity chef and Food Network star has earned his crown as the king of carnivores, between his flame-grilled beginnings and bevy of barbecue-themed cook books and television shows. So when he shares a tip about making meat, we listen. Lucky for us, Flay has not one, but two secrets to amping up our bacon game, which he shared in an episode of his cook-off competition show "BBQ Brawl."

The first? Ditch the frying pan, take out the baking sheet. Although Flay admits that it's not the way his mother used to make it, he prefers cooking bacon in the oven rather than frying it, since the latter usually results in unevenly crisped bits. Stovetop frying pans can cause grease to pool in certain spots and allow some slices to overlap each other, and it's definitely not uncommon to end up with a mix of soggy and charred bacon pieces. Instead, Flay recommends laying your strips out neatly and evenly on a baking sheet (atop a layer of parchment paper, that is) and popping them into the oven. The result? Beautifully — and evenly — baked bacon bites that each provide the ideal crunch.

Crispy, evenly cooked bacon? Check. Way less mess? Check there, too. Now comes the fun part. Bobby Flay's second piece of advice is to coat the bacon with a simple glaze. Something "sweet and spicy," the chef specifies, adding that "it can be something like a spicy honey, or it could be like a molasses with some chili peppers in it." The recipe he ends up whipping up in the segment is a brilliant mix of maple syrup and Dijon mustard. 

Now, the key to making the most of this little secret is to dry your bacon first, then brush on the glaze while the strips are still warm. As the pieces cool, the coating starts to harden, forming a glossy, flavorful shell akin to, as Flay describes it, "a piece of bacon candy." 

Although candied bacon is known for requiring some patience (and an attention span solid enough to keep your eye on the oven for quite some time), Flay's take is certainly a deviation from the norm — and something far easier (and quicker) to achieve. No, you don't have to sugar your bacon beforehand and have to watch it closely to prevent burning. If you're craving the harmonious balance of sweet, spicy, salty, and savory in one serving,  all you have to do is take Flay's advice and give your strips a quick coat — after they come out of the oven, that is. Better BLTs, coming right up.