Pasta alla Carbonara (Roman Guanciale and Eggs)

italian-pastacarbonaraclassic Another unmissable Roman classic: in this case, egg yolk (some also use a small quantity of egg white) is the main ingredient, together with the ‘usual’ guanciale (some prefer bacon) and Pecorino cheese, sometimes mixed with Parmesan. Absolutely no cream or milk is added, according to the original recipe. The result should be a creamy, smooth and rich yellow sauce with the pork lending a nice crispy texture. It’s easier said than done to get the right balance between egg yolk and white (if used), and you need to be fast when adding the egg and cheese mix to the cooked pasta when it is still very hot so the sauce will ‘cook’ without curdling. Carbonara is usually made with spaghetti, rigatoni or penne, and its origins are uncertain: the name could refer to the Carbonari (‘charcoal men’, also the name of a secret society), but according to a popular opinion it could have been invented in Rome in 1944 by US soldiers with a craving for their beloved eggs and bacon breakfast after the allied liberation of the city.

Pasta:
1 lb pasta (spaghetti, angel hair, fettuccine or linguine)
4 Tbsp. sea salt

Sauce:
8 oz (½ lb) guanciale (salt-cured pork jowl) or pancetta, cut into ⅓" cubes (226 g)
4 egg yolks
1 egg white
1 cup (8 oz) Pecorino Romano cheese, freshly grated (226 g)
2 tsp. black pepper, freshly ground

Garnish:
Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, finely grated
black pepper, freshly cracked

First, boil the water for the pasta while you prepare the carbonara sauce. Remember: one liter of water for every 100 g / 3.50 oz of pasta and 15 g / 0.50 oz of coarse salt per liter of water.

Cut the guanciale into small pieces (cubes, slices, as you prefer) then simmer in a frying pan over medium heat for about 2 or 3 minutes. Stir occasionally so that it cooks evenly. The more the guanciale cooks, the more its fats melt and its meat becomes crunchy. The cooking level is up to you, according to your tastes. There are those who love well-cooked guanciale, while those who prefer it soft.

No need for oil: guanciale is already fat, greasy and fabulous of its own. If you want, you can add a Tbsp. of cooking water and emulsify. In this way you create a great greasy sauce to season spaghetti properly. When ready, turn off the heat, cover with a lid and set aside.

Now whisk the Pecorino Romano (which is a very salty and tasty Italian cheese so there’s no need to add salt) with the eggs. Add a little bit of ground black pepper. Stir quickly with a fork - or hand whisk until you get a creamy sauce. This sauce made of eggs and pecorino should be quite thick. Set aside.

The water should now be boiling so you can cook the pasta. If you have chosen a rather large pot, the spaghetti should fit comfortably without breaking them. So that you can roll them more easily around the fork tines, without the help of a spoon. The best way to cook spaghetti without breaking them is to hold them in a bunch vertically and immerse. Let go and they will fall out in all directions. As they soften, with the help of a fork let them sink, then stir. Cook the pasta al dente, following the cooking time found on the pasta packaging.

Drain the pasta in a colendar and put them in the frying pan over high heat, to season them properly with the fat of the guanciale.

At this step, we have reached the crucial moment of spaghetti carbonara. Not to put tension on it, but this is the fleeting moment in which you can make an immortal dish or one that will be a real failure. So now you have to be quick, ready and ruthless.

When the spaghetti and guanciale are sizzling in the pan, turn off the heat. Otherwise the eggs cook too much and you’ll find yourself with scrambled eggs and spaghetti. Now quickly add the eggs and pecorino cream mixture and stir. The frying pan is warm but not so hot that the eggs will cook without lumps.

Pay attention to the consistency, which must be creamy, but not fluid. If you notice that your spaghetti carbonara is too liquid, add some grated pecorino. On the other hand, if you see that they are too sticky and dense, add 1 or 2 Tbsp. of reserved pasta water. If you used a spaghetti spoon to drain, the cooking water in the pot can come in handy at this step.

Authentic spaghetti carbonara is ready. Serve immediately. So with the help of a ladle and a fork, create a pasta nest and place it on a plate.

Add any guanciale left in the pan, freshly grounded black pepper and grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Makes 4 servings.

Cook's Notes: Each traditional recipe has many variations, and this happens even for spaghetti carbonara Italian recipe. In each variantion you can have the addition or substitution of one or more ingredients.

Spaghetti Carbonara with Cream: Many people like to make Spaghetti Carbonara with cream, made by replacing 1 egg with 1 dl of whipping cream. For them the dish is more creamy and it has a taste of egg less pronounced. Well, you should not use the whipping cream to make the dish more creamy. For the simple reason that the fat of the guanciale, the cheese and the eggs are already quite creamy and heavy by nature. So adding the cream would only make the dish heavier and cloying. On the other hand, it is true that if you prepare large quantities of pasta (e.g. for 10 people), a dash of cream can help make the seasoning more fluid.
Pasta Carbonara with Parmigiano: Even for what concerns the cheese, there are those who use Parmigiano cheese instead of Pecorino Romano or half Parmigiano cheese and half Pecorino Romano. In this case the taste becomes less strong and flavourful (pecorino Romano is a very tasty cheese).
Pasta Carbonara with Pancetta: Guanciale, which comes from the cheek of the pork, can be replaced with pancetta, which instead comes from the fatty part of the belly pork. Pancetta is drier and less fat. If you use pancetta (possibly not smoked), add a Tbsp. of oil to fry it.
Pasta Carbonara with Garlic and/or Onion: Many people like to simmer the guanciale with a clove of garlic or a little onion.