The Make-Or-Break Step You Can't Forget When Air Frying Bacon

Air fryers have revolutionized the cooking game since they arrived in the 2010s, but there is still so much to learn about the quick and easy appliance. While there are plenty of useful tips and tricks for perfecting your favorite air-fried meals, the longer air fryers are around, the more they seem to be capable of.

One thing that many people have had a difficult time accomplishing with their air fryers in the past was cooking bacon within them. Because of how quickly bacon fat burns while on a hot and dry surface, your air fryer is likely to start producing an excessive amount of smoke, something nobody wants when cooking breakfast in the morning.

While many believed the only way to stop this was by air-frying bacon at low heat for a longer time or simply making bacon on the stove instead, these are not the only ways to keep your smoke detector from throwing a tantrum. In fact, by simply adding some water to the bottom of your air fryer, you could save yourself from a massive headache in the kitchen when cooking up your savory snack.

You don't want to add too much water; roughly ¼ cup — or just enough to form a thin layer — to the bottom section of the tray before adding in your bacon. But this step is vital as it will both reduce the mess in your air fryer and prevent smoke from forming. If you were to not put water in, the bacon fat would land in and burn on the drip pan, creating smoke. Putting water into the air fryer results in the bacon fat being caught by the water, which prevents this sizzling. 

A similar method that has been proposed by some is to put a slice or two of bread at the bottom of your air fryer. In yet another example of bread being useful in unexpected ways, a piece of bread's ability to absorb the grease and fat produced by bacon allows the grain to act similarly to how water would at the bottom of your air fryer. All in all, it's impressive how much easier a bacon lover's life can be by adding merely ¼ cup of water–or even a piece of bread–to the bottom of your air fryer.