Carbonara
Every time someone publishes a Carbonara recipe, you can be sure outraged Italians somewhere in the world will be ready to pounce at the poor person. If you have as little 1% of Italian DNA, you will get this. Food is part of the culture and heritage. Food is family, love & friendship.
Italy has over 4600 unique traditional ingredients that can be combined in countless ways. People through the centuries have taken these ingredients and created the recipes that are well known and loved worldwide.
Carbonara is one of these recipes and alas, I can guarantee that once you try the real deal you too will no longer have mercy for those who suggest adding things like cream or garlic (please don’t!).
A few points to keep in mind before you make it:
Using bacon is the first common mistake. You should always try to use guanciale which is pork cheek cured with pepper. Pancetta is an acceptable substitute only if there is absolutely no way of sourcing Guanciale
Do not use cream. Ever. The typical creaminess of this dish is given by mixing Pecorino Romano cheese and egg
The egg must be raw. If you don’t like the idea, this might not be the right recipe for you
You will not use any kind of additional fat, oil or butter. I promise, the guanciale will do the job
No onion and no garlic.
There is some debate around using the whole egg Vs the yolks only. This being a traditionally “poor” recipe, I choose to use the whole egg as it seems foolish to waste a potential source of nourishment. On the other hand, recipes evolve and now days a lot of people prefer to use just the yolk or a combination of the two. More importantly though, rest assured that both options are accepted.
That’s it.
Ingredients:
240g Spaghetti
2 eggs
60g of grated Pecorino Romano
200g guanciale
Black Pepper
2 handfuls of coarse salt for the pasta water
Cooking time & people
30min
These quantities are for 2 people
Step by step
Clean your guanciale and get rid of the rind. Slice it into thin strips
Put the guanciale in a non-stick pan at medium heat and cook for 15min roughly and until it’s golden and crunchy. The guanciale will sweat out the fat and cook in it. Once ready set aside (do not throw away the fat!)
Put the water for the pasta on the hob and cover with a lid. Add the salt when it’s close to boiling
In a separate bowl beat the two eggs and mix them with the grated pecorino. It should be-yellow dense cream (see pictures below). Grind some black pepper and add it to the cream. Put aside
When the water starts boiling add the Pasta and cook according to instructions. Take a small glass and fill it with some of the boiling water. Put aside
Strain the Pasta when it’s ready
At this point you won’t need heat anymore. It’s very important you mix your carbonara away from the hob
Put the pasta back in the pan, add the guanciale along with its fat and mix roughly
Now it’s time to add the egg and pecorino mix. You have to be fast and stir the pasta and egg cream quickly and vigorously
While doing this you will notice how the cream will start mixing with the pasta giving it a very glossy/creamy finish
If your pasta looks a bit dry add a couple of tbsp of the pasta water you had previously set aside, and keep stirring. This step is not mandatory, do it only if you don’t get the creamy/glossy finish straight away
You are ready to go! Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper and eat immediately
Tips & cheats
Try and grate your pecorino as thin as possible. This will make it melt easily when you mix the pasta.
Always keep next to you a glass with pasta water when mixing. You will be surprised how much it helps to achieve the right texture.
The secret to true “al dente” pasta is to start tasting it a couple of minutes before it’s meant to be cooked. You’ll find the sweet spot is usually 30 to 60 seconds before the stated cooking time.
If you are vegetarian don’t despair. You can still enjoy the great egg and pecorino creamy combo. Just substitute the guanciale with sautéed asparagus or sautéed courgettes. In this case you are allowed to use spring onion for the sauté. Follow the rest of the recipe as above.
“Carbonara is not a matter of opinion. There are no ‘versions’. It is, or it isn’t.”
