British bacon is cut differently or something - not sure, I just know that american bacon tastes like a different food to me (the few times I've had it). So they prob cook differently. But my experience with british bacon is that whether you need oil or not depends on how non-stick your pan is! I usually put a tiny bit in the pan 'to get it started' as he says - less than a teaspoon. But would use more if the pan was not non-stick.

Aha found thisexplanation:

http://www.britishbacon.com/comersus6f/store/comersus_wiltshire.asp

So our (uk) bacon is leaner - us bacon we call streaky bacon and only use for cooking (not eating on its own), its also cheaper.

I'm an "other." I only eat bacon when I am out for brunch. No bacon is allowed in the house since I do not have the patience to cook it right. So I just wait until Sunday and enjoy someone else's cooking.

In the oven, the clean-up is so much easier.

Lucky for me those so-called "factory farmers" are local AND family members so I buy grocery store bacon without complaint or guilt.

For me it depends on the type of bacon and what I'm using it for. If I want to cook something else in the fat (like butternut squash) I cook it in a skillet (no oil). For something quick like a BLT, microwave is easiest. For thick bacon and turkey bacon, toaster oven is the way to go.

By far the best method I've found yet is a rather strange one: A waffle iron.

The waffle iron gets hot enough to get the bacon nice and crunchy, and because of the grooves lets enough fat drain away that you can easily tell exactly how done it is, as opposed to when its in the pan and its more done that it appears. Plus you have heat coming from the top and bottom, so more even and quicker cooking.

Only problem I've had so far is finding an easy way to recover the fat from the iron.

I use a little lard in the pan so that the bacon doesn't stick. Now that we raise our own heritage pigs I don't think I could ever eat grocery store bacon again. The difference is amazing.

Oven!
Line cookie sheet with foil, single layer of bacon. Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes turning half way through cooking. Put on paper towel to blot off extra fat.
No splatters, kitchen won't smell like bacon all day and clean up is as easy as throwing away the foil.
mmm bacon.

English bacon is much more like Canadian - leaner with no streaks of fat running through it. We call American-style bacon "streaky" and it's rarely used - except for wrapping round sausages at Christmas. I always wondered why so many American recipes call for patting bacon dry - the difference in bacon cuts explains it!

I bake it in the oven on a raised rack inside a stoneware jelly roll pan. The stoneware pan won't warp at high heat, and the sides keep all the grease trapped nicely.

When it's cooled a bit, I dump the grease into my "Pig Fat" jar for future sauteing, and the rack goes right into the dishwasher.

I use the same method as moreterriers. The bacon comes out crispy and without a shiny coating of fat.

I like cooking bacon in the oven; it isn't nearly as messy and the fat renders out beautifully without getting black bits in it. We save all of our bacon fat and use it for making popcorn!

I always put a splash of water in the pan with the bacon to help the fat render out , and help it crisp up better.

I actually just recently discovered that cooking bacon in the oven is the best of both worlds - super crispy and hands off!

Straight up for sure, and then save the bacon grease for cooking other items, bacon makes everything better!

Microwave. Gets it super crispy - yum!
Bonus - it's super fast.
And I never mind if the kitchen smells like bacon all day. :)

JordanW, do you close the lid on the waffle iron, or leave it open?

I use two different methods, depending on how I'm using the bacon. For strips of bacon to have with breakfast or for BLTs, I prefer the oven. But I always line the sheet pan with parchment paper that is a little larger than the pan, with the edges turned up, to keep the grease from running underneath it. This helps tremendously with clean-up. Once, I didn't make the paper large enough, and the clean-up was miserable.

If I need diced bacon or bacon bits, I cut up the raw bacon, then put it all into my covered Corningware casserole dish, and microwave it. I cook it on high for 5 minutes at a time, stirring it between each 5-min interval. Careful!... the dish and the lid will get very hot! It usually takes about 4 or 5 trips into the microwave to cook the bacon to desired crispiness. There are a couple of benefits to this method: a) there is practically no odor in the house, and absolutely no smoke; b) the resulting bacon grease is delightfully clean, so that it can be used in other recipes without worrying about that "burnt" off-flavor that can sometimes result when you use a stove-top method; c) there is virtually no clean-up, because there's no splattering.

To me, there is only one way to cook bacon: in a cast iron skillet, over med-low heat. I save my bacon grease for future use and then simply wipe the skillet clean. Also, I buy fabulous, thick, double-smoked bacon from a local meatshop.

Usually UK rashers of bacon are leaner, so I do use a little oil - especially since I usually cook them in my stainless steel. (Still haven't got the hang of the cast iron.) For streaky bacon I usually fry it in my stainless one and do not use anything else.
for the record, I prefer streaky (US) bacon when I want "bacon."

Where is the "All of the Above" option in the poll?

I don't have a preferred method to cook it (it depends on what I'm doing with it!), which is good, because I don't have a preferred method of eating it. I love it all!

@Terri Wyatt

Yeah, I close the lid so that it cooks more evenly and I don't have to bother with it until it's done.

I'm with sillyputty. Same process. The only time I use the stovetop to cook bacon is to make lardons.

oven, no contest! cook it all at once, don't need to flip, no grease burns on hands. and i love how the strips stay nice and flat. pictures here if you like...

Mine is similar to JordanW but I use a George Foreman Grill it also drains away the grease so I can use it for eggs or save it for later. I close the lid and sometimes flip it. I have the smaller grill so I slice the bacon in half. Clean up is easy after I unplugged the grill and let it cool just a bit I wipe down the lid and grill with a dish rag that is moist after wringing out the hot water. I love that their is no splatter.

Same as Jamie, little oil and then in a frying pan.

We have a much different type of bacon to the US style though, it's got way more meat on. The US style bacon is known as streaky bacon over here. Sometimes I use it to finish off a salad, but rarely for anything else.

Oh and microwaving bacon is the devils spawn. Evil method. My mother used to do it. You simply cannot have bacon without crispy bits.