April 6th is such a wonderful day in the world, because it’s national carbonara day! Being that I am currently in Italy writing this, and it is my all-time favorite pasta dish, I used this time as an opportunity to research and develop the ultimate Carbonara recipe to share with everyone.
Carbonara is a very simple dish. For those of you that don’t know what carbonara is, shame on you. Just kidding. I encourage all carbonara virgins to try it out. Carbonara is a pasta dish that originates from Rome made with egg, Pecorino Romano, guanciale/pancetta, and black pepper. 4 ingredients! SO EASY. The traditional roman way is made with guanciale, however, it’s difficult to find in American grocery stores, so pancetta is the next best thing. The dish is simple and easy to achieve as long as you understand the specific technique to create that deliciously creamy egg sauce we all drool over… and I will help you get there.
Ingredients
1 egg yolk for each person and only one whole egg. 50 g of guanciale/pancetta per person 40 g of Pecorino Romano Pepper Rigatoni Pasta Save about 1 cup of pasta water
Steps
1. Start your pasta water and salt generously. Once it comes to a boil add pasta (you want to cook until slightly underdone) 2. Begin to brown your pancetta in a large saucepan. (You will be adding the pasta to this pan, so you want it to be large enough for the amount you’re cooking). No extra oil is needed since the pancetta contains fat. Cook until the pancetta is nicely browned and little bits have stuck to the pan. Remove pancetta from pan. 3. For the egg mixture. Combine egg yolks + the one whole egg with the pecorino and a good amount of pepper. You want this mixture to be thick and creamy. Add more cheese if you feel it is needed, or some egg whites if the yolks were small. 4. When the pasta is almost at the perfect al dente, snag about a cup of pasta water and drain. Place the pasta into the pancetta pan. Heat on medium low with some of the pasta water, stir and incorporate pasta with pancetta fat. Finish off the pasta until it’s the perfect al dente and there’s little to no water in the pan. Turn off heat and remove from burner. 5. Add egg mixture to the pasta. Stir in some pasta water to loosen the egg mixture. Place pan back on burner and turn to low heat, gradually stir and add pasta water until you feel the pasta is glossy and creamy. Creamy is key! Stir in pancetta. 6. Serve into bowls and top off with fresh grated Pecorino. Enjoy your classic Italian carbonara!