Spaghetti Carbonara
Spaghetti Carbonara is a classic Italian dish known for its simplicity and rich, creamy flavor. It features al dente spaghetti pasta tossed in a sauce made with eggs, parmesan cheese, pancetta and black pepper! The result is a deliciously comforting and satisfying meal.
Servings:4 servings
Ingredients
- 14 oz dried spaghetti
- salt, to taste
- 1 ½ tbsp oil
- 6 oz diced pancetta
- 2 chicken breasts, cut into strips (optional)
- 3.5 oz piece of parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving, see note.
- 2 eggs
- 4 egg yolks
- cracked black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Cook the pasta as per the packets instructions until just tender. Set aside 1 cup of the cooking water.
- Add the oil and the pancetta to a large, non-stick frying pan. The place it over a medium high heat to gradually warm. Once the pancetta starts to sizzle, add the chicken strips, if using. If you’re just cooking the pancetta, remove the pan from the heat once the pieces are crisp. If you’re adding chicken, remove it from the heat when the chicken is just cooked through.
- Meanwhile, grate the parmesan on the smallest hole of your box grater or even better on a microplane, if you have one. Combine with the eggs and a little salt and pepper to make a paste. If there is any, stir in any excess cooking oil from the pan.
- Drain the pasta and stir it into the pan, still off the heat. Gradually stir in the egg mixture, which should cook and coat the pasta in a silky sauce in the residual heat. Depending on how big your eggs were, you might either need to add a little cooking water to loosen the sauce, or return the pan to a low heat, stirring constantly until the sauce has thickened slightly.
- Season to taste with more salt and pepper, if needed, and serve in warm bowls with additional parmesan.
Notes
- DON'T be tempted to use pre-grated or pre-shredded parmesan here. This often contains agents to stop the pieces sticking together in the pack. Great usually but it will mess with your sauce!
- Feel free to replace the pancetta with bacon, and dice it up into small pieces before cooking! You will need about 5 slices for this spaghetti carbonara recipe.
- Use room temperature eggs! Room temperature eggs will also help to ensure that the temperature change is minimal and the sauce will become nice and silky!
- Add veggies! Spaghetti carbonara would be delicious with some peas or mushrooms added to the mix!
- Read through the recipe before starting! This recipe moves quickly and it is important to get the pasta and sauce in the pan while the pan is still warm. The sauce will become silky smooth in the warm pan with hot pasta. If the heat is on though, the eggs could warm up too quickly and become scrambled eggs!
Nutrition
Calories: 907 kcal, Carbohydrates: 76 g, Protein: 57 g, Fat: 40 g, Saturated Fat: 13 g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 7 g, Monounsaturated Fat: 17 g, Trans Fat: 0.1 g, Cholesterol: 393 mg, Sodium: 856 mg, Potassium: 796 mg, Fiber: 3 g, Sugar: 3 g, Vitamin A: 622 IU, Vitamin C: 1 mg, Calcium: 358 mg, Iron: 3 mg