READ THIS: Important Safety Announcement! 

The most important step in this recipe happens before you even open your pack of bacon. Air frying bacon is very easy, but it can also be dangerous if you skip a simple yet important step. As the bacon air fries, it will render lots of fat. Without a buffer in the bottom of the basket, this fat will smoke as soon as it hits the hot base of the air fryer. That would make lots of smoke.  The solution? Add about 1 cup of water to the bottom of your air fryer basket. This water will catch the grease and will prevent smoke. 

How Long to Air Fry the Bacon 

The timing is straightforward. Cook the bacon for 5 minutes with the air fryer set to 350˚F, then flip the bacon strips and cook them for another 5 minutes, until perfectly crispy. That’s it! 

Make Fancy Tasty Bacon

For a special twist, sprinkle a little brown sugar and a drizzle of sriracha on each strip right after you flip them. The sugar will caramelize as it cooks. It’s amazing! 

Ideas for Using Crispy Bacon 

Here are some ideas for using the crispy bacon: 

Spinach Artichoke Dip with Bacon Bacon and Blue Cheese Guacamole Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Bacon and Pear Creamed Spinach with Bacon BLT with Arugula Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Chestnuts

As long as they don’t overlap in the air fryer basket, you may be able to cook more than 4 strips of bacon at a time. Add 1 cup of water to the bottom of your air fryer basket. This will prevent the rendered bacon fat from smoking. It’s kind of hard for me to imagine you will have leftover bacon—it only makes 4 strips. Just eat it! If you do have a strip or two of leftover bacon, refrigerate it for up to 3 days.  Did you love the recipe? Leave us some stars below!