Mains · By James
Pasta Carbonara
Sharon found this BBC Foods recipe online in 2018 when we were in the Valpolicella region, craving a Carbonara (we modified it a bit). We had lots of fresh pasta available, and much of it was a yellow egg-rich pasta, which northern Italians love for bolder pasta dishes. We had this Carbonara with the egg pasta a couple of times in our beautiful AirBnB country home, with Amarone wine (inexpensive in this area). It was synchronous for Sharon to have found a British recipe for this Italian dish, since the first time we ever had Carbonara was years earlier when we were staying at Torale (an olive farm) in Tuscany, and one of the British women staying there at the same time taught us her "best-ever Carbonara," and we loved it.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups pancetta (may use ham or bacon)
- 5 tbsp pecorino cheese
- 5 tbsp parmesan
- 3 large eggs
- 340 g spaghetti (the small pasta boxes are 340 g). If you can find egg pasta (typically fresh), or make egg pasta yourself, the dish will be enhanced.
- 4 plump garlic cloves, crushed
- 4 tbsp butter
- Sea salt and freshly grated black pepper
- ½ cup chopped flat leaf parsley or ¼ cup sliced chives or green onions
Method
- 1
Put a large saucepan of water on to boil.
- 2
Finely chop the pancetta (it may already be diced into 1 cm pieces).
- 3
Finely grate pecorino and parmesan and mix them together.
- 4
Beat the 3 large eggs in a medium bowl and season with a little freshly grated black pepper. Mix most of the grated cheese in with the beaten eggs, keeping a small handful back for sprinkling over the finished dish.
- 5
Add 1 tsp salt to the boiling water, add spaghetti and when the water comes back to the boil, cook at a constant simmer, partly covered, until al dente.
- 6
While the spaghetti is cooking, fry the pancetta. Leave to cook on a medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until the pancetta is golden and crisp.
- 7
Add the butter and crushed garlic to pancetta and fry for a couple of minutes more. When the pasta is ready, lift it from the water with a pasta fork or tongs and put it in the frying pan with the pancetta mixture. Don't worry if a little water drops in the pan as well (you want this to happen) and don't throw the pasta water away yet.
- 8
Take the pan of spaghetti and pancetta off the heat. Now quickly pour in the eggs and cheese. Using the tongs or a long fork, lift up the spaghetti so it mixes easily with the egg mixture, which thickens but doesn't scramble. Make sure everything is coated.
- 9
Add extra pasta cooking water to the mixture to make it saucy (a few small ladles-full should do it). You want it moist enough that there is a slight sauciness. Season with a little salt, if needed. If the dish gets a little dry before serving, splash in some more hot pasta water and the glossy sauciness will be revived.
- 10
Use tongs to serve, twisting the pasta into bowls. Serve immediately with a sprinkling of the remaining cheese and the parsley or chives, plus a fresh grating of black pepper.
A note from James
Drink/wine pairing: a Sangiovese (Chianti) or a Pinot Noir. A rosé or sparkling wine will also be excellent. An oak-aged Chardonnay would be lovely too.
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