Real carbonara. No cream. No garlic. No onions. Just pasta, guanciale, eggs, pecorino, and pepper — done right, it's transcendent. Done wrong, it's scrambled eggs with bacon.
Spaghetti Carbonara
Real carbonara. No cream. No garlic. No onions. Just pasta, guanciale, eggs, pecorino, and pepper — done right, it’s transcendent. Done wrong, it’s scrambled eggs with bacon.
Ingredients
Method
- Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Drop in the spaghetti.
- Meanwhile, put the diced guanciale in a cold dry skillet. Set over medium heat. As the pan warms, the fat renders out slowly — this is the secret to crispy edges and silky fat. Cook until golden and crisp, about 6-8 minutes. Turn off the heat.
- In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, pecorino, and a generous amount of black pepper into a paste.
- When the pasta is al dente, reserve 1 cup of pasta water and drain. Add the pasta to the skillet with the guanciale (off heat) and toss for 30 seconds to coat in the rendered fat.
- Add the egg mixture and toss vigorously, adding splashes of pasta water as needed. The residual heat cooks the eggs into a creamy sauce. Too dry? Add more pasta water. Looks scrambled? The pan was too hot.
- Plate immediately. Top with extra pecorino and another generous crack of pepper. Eat right away.
Notes
The biggest mistake is heat. The eggs need warm, not hot — too hot and you get scrambled eggs. Off-heat is your friend. Speed and confidence at the toss.