Can’t we just use the bacon sheet pan for the chicken?

Question

Dani H. · Answer

amazing

702551 · Answer

Like Lori I don't understand the cross contamination part. You would be putting raw chicken on a sheet pan that has been at the oven at 450F+. There are no living microbes on that sheet pan.

Even more puzzling is the part about flavor transfer. The bacon is added to the rest of the dish. Its flavor is an integral component. I could understand if there were directions to pour off excess bacon fat to not have it dominate but this appears to be unnecessarily using a second sheet pan.

The only justification I could see in using a second sheet pan is if some of the dinner table guests had dietary restrictions to avoid pork products. That way the cook can serve the bacon bits on the side. The photo illustration shows a liberal sprinkling of bacon on the chicken.

Lori T. · Answer

Just curious, for my own education.  What cross-contamination risk?  The bacon would be fully cooked, and the rendered fat would have been at 425F prior to adding the raw chicken and veggies.    Then it gets put back into the same hot oven and cooked until done.  And what does this have to do with the Five Guys menu?   Truthfully, parchment paper is not always a great idea for that  temperature either.  I know, everyone says it's safe to 450- but some brands are not labeled or recommended for that.  I love it for lining cake pans, and for use at lower temps of 350-375F, not so much for the higher temps though.

HALEY · Answer

No, it's not recommended due to cross-contamination risks and flavor transfer. For safety, use a separate pan. Check out the Five Guys Menu.

Lori T. · Answer

No snark was intended, ellemmbee.  It was intended to be a more humorous answer, because so much of the time people consider recipes to be biblical writs.  They are nervous about changing any part of it, and it was just meant to help a nervous cook relax in their own kitchen.  You are certainly free to cook as  you would like, which was my point.  I only observed that parchment tends to get brittle after exposure to the high heat recommended to cook the bacon. Personally I cook bacon on a wire rack in a sheet pan, and save the rendered bacon fat.  I agree that the reserved rendered fat would make the chicken delicious- which is why I'd be using a silicone sheet to line the pan instead of paper. Cleanup is just as easy, since it can be washed by hand or dishwasher, and the pan also has to be washed as well.   And yes, you are still free to go ahead as you wish.  That's snark.

ellemmbee · Answer

No need for snark, Lori. As an experienced cook, I am proposing efficiency and less waste. I strongly suspect the parchment, with any remnants of delicious bacon fat might enhance all that chicken, veg and honey mustard sauce. After all, one of the benefits of sheet pan dinners (the video even showed the pan used for serving) is less clean up! Why not ask Monique? I’ll just go ahead since you’ve assured me no one is watching.

Lori T. · Answer

Nobody is going to come into your kitchen and take away your chicken if you use the sheet you cooked the bacon on to cook the chicken.  Of course you can use the same pan.  I would suggest lining it with a new sheet of parchment though.  Once parchment has been used in the oven, it gets a bit crispy, and you could end up with bits of it stuck to the chicken and veggies.  But it would be easy enough to cut two sheets at the same time, and do a swap out when needed.

Can’t we just use the bacon sheet pan for the chicken?

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