Recipe: pasta carbonara
The other day as I was wrapping up a product shoot, I noticed Kaweah lying on the floor next to a light stand, looking bored. I walked over to stroke her silky ears and she casually lifted her front paw asking for a belly rub. Kaweah was in a mellow mood, which used to be a rare thing but is now the norm. Instead of putting the studio gear away, I pulled the background down to the floor and coaxed the dog over with treats. I need to remind myself to do this more often while she’s still with us. It’s so easy to get busy and tell yourself that you’ll do it later, and then one day… later is just too late.
she reminds me of a plush toy sometimes
kaweah got bored
the half-bambi
We took care of house things on Saturday which involved lots of running up and down the stairs to do laundry, to seal the driveway before the next snow storm, to consolidate our recycling and trash to take to the dump, to move our deck furniture into the basem*nt until summer. That sort of house stuff. Kaweah, in her old age, no longer likes hearing loud sounds (despite being mostly deaf). She also dislikes seeing furniture or large appliances moved about. And it makes her nervous when we go in and out of a room too much. So after getting wigged out for most of Saturday and hiding in the office, she finally emerged when I started making dinner.
pasta carbonara: linguine, olive oil, pepper, parmigiano-reggiano, eggs, pancetta, salt
Yes, leave it to cured pork (or any meat) to pique Kaweah’s interest. Truth be told, I was interested too. I’ve never made pasta carbonara before. It’s something I have seen and heard praises about for eons, but I had never even tasted it. Pasta carbonara had been sitting on a long list of dishes I wanted to make and/or try. I had no idea it was so simple.
dice the pancetta
grate the cheese
Originally, I intended to make a full recipe which serves four, but wound up buying half the amount of pancetta I needed because I got two recipes mixed up in my head. This was actually a good thing, because pasta carbonara doesn’t reheat well. It’s one of those dishes that is best eaten fresh. I wound up making enough for the two of us.
place the olive oil and pancetta in a frying pan
brown the pancetta, but don’t fry it to a crisp
whisk the eggs, cheese, and pepper together
the egg-cheese mixture should become thick and creamy
Another thing about this pasta carbonara… it needs to come together quickly. So have your mise en place ready because timing is important. Get the pot of salted water on the stove to boil. Fry the pancetta. Whisk the eggs and cheese and pepper together. As soon as the pasta is just shy of al dente, reserve a cup of pasta water, drain the pasta, and place the pasta in the frying pan with the pancetta. Whisk a quarter cup of the pasta water into the egg mixture. Pour the egg over the pasta. Toss it all together. You can imagine what a nightmare this was to shoot with Kaweah underfoot in her undying devotion to pork.
place the pasta in the frying pan
whisk some pasta water into the egg mixture
pour the sauce over the pasta
toss to coat
Rich, decadent, salty, creamy. If you fear raw eggs, they say the heat of the pasta is supposed to cook the eggs in the sauce, which explains why the pasta has to be added right after draining. But water boils at a lower temperature the higher you go in elevation, so keep that in mind. We thought this was especially delightful with a glass of bubbles (bubbly tends to do well with salty and creamy). It’s not a good make-ahead meal because it doesn’t reheat well, but pasta carbonara is quick to prepare and an indulgence to be eaten hot.
quick and decadent
Pasta Carbonara
[print recipe]
from Fine Cooking
1 lb. dried spaghetti or linguine (or 24 oz. fresh)
2 tbsps kosher salt
1/2 lb. pancetta or guanciale, diced into 1/4-inch cubes
2 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
3 large eggs, room temperature
4 oz. Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 3 1/2 cups)
black pepper, freshly ground
flake salt to season
Bring 8 quarts of water and 2 tablespoons of kosher salt to a boil in a large stock pot. Boil the pasta just shy of al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water and drain the pasta. While you wait for the water to boil, place the olive oil and the pancetta or guanciale in a skillet (NOT cast iron) and cook over medium heat. Stir the meat occasionally to bring it to a golden brown, but don’t render all of the fat and fry it to a crisp. The guanciale should take about 3-5 minutes. Pancetta takes 5-7 minutes. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, cheese, and 1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper together until combined. Whisk in a slow stream of 1/4 cup of the pasta water into the egg mixture. As soon as you drain the pasta, place it in the skillet with the pancetta or guanciale. Pour the egg mixture over the pasta and toss everything with tongs until the pasta is completely coated with sauce (about 15 to 30 seconds). Add more pasta water if necessary to achieve a creamy constistency. Serve hot with black pepper. Serves 4.
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November 4th, 2013: 12:40 am
filed under cheese, eggs, meat, pasta, recipes, savory
FAQs
What not to put in Spaghetti Carbonara? Don't put garlic, cream, milk or butter. It is not needed. It is fine if you want to make a dish with those ingredients, but if you want to learn how to make this dish correctly, use only pecorino, eggs/egg yolks, black pepper, guanciale, and pasta water.
What is the golden rule of cooking a carbonara? ›
The golden rule to silky carbonara is to whisk your egg whites so that they're completely incorporated with the egg yolks. This will create a smooth, velvety sauce. As like any pasta dish, including carbonara, cook the pasta perfectly al dente so that it's soft but still firm, with some bite.
Does authentic carbonara contain cream? ›
Should carbonara have cream? Typically carbonara sauce is only made of eggs, bacon, parmesan, olive oil, seasoning, and sometimes, vegetables. As for cream, Italians will tell you that is a big no no.
Why don t Italians use cream in carbonara? ›
Just guanciale, black pepper, eggs, and Pecorino. A mixture of Pecorino and Parmigiano Reggiano, and a few drops of extravirgin olive oil to help rebdring the guanciale are allowed. Why don't traditional pastas use cream? The reason is that cream isn't used in Italian pasta dishes is that it can be overpowering.
Why do people not like carbonara? ›
Some people may find the texture too heavy or slimy. Dietary restrictions: Carbonara is not a dish that can be easily modified to accommodate certain dietary restrictions. For example, it contains eggs, dairy, and often meat, making it unsuitable for vegans or those with lactose intolerance or egg allergies.
What is real carbonara made of? ›
Carbonara is made with guanciale (cured pork), eggs, Pecorino Romano cheese, spaghetti pasta, and lots of black pepper. Italians don't add extra ingredients like cream, milk, garlic, or onions. Try this recipe if you want to make an authentic, creamy carbonara that comes straight from Italy, where I live.
How does Gordon Ramsay make carbonara sauce? ›
Gordon Ramsay Carbonara Recipe - TheFoodXP
- Meat. • 80 g Streaky bacon.
- Produce. • 2 cloves Garlic. • 2 Mushrooms. ...
- Refrigerated. • 2 Egg yolks.
- Canned Goods. • 1 Chili.
- Pasta & Grains. • 125 g Spaghetti, Dried.
- Baking & Spices. • 1 Salt and black pepper.
- Oils & Vinegars. • 1 tbsp Olive oil.
- Dairy. • 1 1/2 tbsp Creme fraiche.
Because in the traditional recipe there is no garlic, if you add it you will lower quality of a very good food. Why is there no garlic in carbonara? Because it's an Italian dish, not an Italian-American dish, and Italian cooking does not use garlic as heavily as Italian-American cuisine.
Do Italians put cream in pasta carbonara? ›
The Italian version doesn't use cream or ham. It is made with pancetta (pork belly meat that is salt cured, also referred to as Italian bacon), Parmigiano Reggiano or pecorino romano cheese, eggs, and black pepper—called the basics.
What kind of cheese is good in carbonara? ›
Pecorino Romano: This aged sheep's cheese is always traditionally used in the Roman pastas, and its salty, grassy, earthy flavor is absolutely delicious in carbonara. That said, if Pecorino is unavailable at your local grocery store, you can use Parmesan as a non-traditional substitute.
the only dairy product in Carbonara is the cheese.. Americans use cream because you can hide the mistakes of amateur chefs by adding a different texture with more ingredients.
What makes carbonara so good? ›
Egg yolks and whole eggs – The egg combined with the guanciale fat is what makes the stunning creamy carbonara sauce that the world is obsessed with. There's no need for cream for a creamy sauce! See section above for why. We use a combination of whole eggs, plus egg yolks for richness.
Why is carbonara so hard to make? ›
The carbonara sauce in pasta primarily consists of egg yolks. Achieving a smooth and creamy consistency is often the most challenging step. Since the raw egg yolks have to be mixed with the pasta, you have to make sure to add the egg yolks to the pasta OFF the heat so the eggs don't scramble.
Is carbonara better with or without cream? ›
real carbonara has no cream in it. non-Italians added cream because they can't cook a proper carbonara, they think it needs cream to be creamy but they are just wrong.
Why is Italian carbonara so yellow? ›
As the fat renders, he removes some of the molten liquid with a spoon. The lean part of the meat ultimately caramelises and becomes a sort of "popcorn guanciale": crunchy outside and tender inside. His carbonara is very yellow in colour since he only uses egg yolks – one per 60g of pasta.
What are the ingredients in pasta alla carbonara? ›
The ingredients are simple—just spaghetti (or another long pasta), and the carbonara is made with pancetta or bacon, eggs, Parmesan, a little olive oil, salt and pepper. The silky carbonara sauce is created when the beaten eggs are tossed with the hot pasta and a little fat from the pancetta or bacon.
Why not bacon in carbonara? ›
If you want your carbonara to be as authentic as possible, you should be using guanciale, not bacon or pancetta. Guanciale is cured pork cheek. It looks a little like bacon, but isn't smoked, so its flavor leans more towards pancetta. Rich, unctuous and packed with umami, guanciale is what real carbonara is made from.
How do you not cook eggs in carbonara? ›
The first is by using tongs to move the cooked pasta directly into the bowl with the egg mixture. The hot pasta water from the noodles will slowly introduce the eggs to heat, allowing them to slowly congeal into a sauce rather than solidify.
Recipe: pasta carbonara
