Spaghetti alla Carbonara (Authentic Roman Recipe)
An egg-based spaghetti dish which comes from the Lazio region, and is made with guanciale and Pecorino cheese.
Equipment
- 1 kitchen tweezer
Ingredients
- 7 oz guanciale (see notes regarding substitutions)
- 1 tsp lard (organic)
- 5 egg yolks (organic)
- 5 oz Pecorino Romano, DOP cheese grated
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 lb spaghetti (high quality)
Instructions
Cook the Pasta:
- Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil to cook the pasta.
- Just before it starts to boil, add enough salt so that the pasta will be salted.
Prepare the Guanciale/Meat:
- Slice the guanciale (remove the rind), pancetta or bacon into bite sized pieces or strips.
- In a large pan (I used a wok) over medium-low heat, add the lard, then add the sliced guanciale (pancetta or bacon pieces). Cook until just starting to brown, but do not let it get dark or crisp. While the pasta and guanciale cook…
Make the Sauce:
- Beat the egg yolks in a bowl, then stir in the grated Pecorino cheese. Add some grated black pepper, next. Do not add salt: the Pecorino is salty, and we’re adding salted pasta water next.
- Now, pour in some of the pasta water a little at a time and beat into the egg mixture. It should form a nice sauce.
Combine the Ingredients:
- When the guanciale is ready, turn off the heat. When the pasta is ready, remove it from the water and add directly into the guanciale in the pan. Stir to combine well.
- Now it’s time to add the egg mixture. Do not turn the burner on, this is done off the heat.
- Continue to mix well until the egg mixture forms a creamy, smooth sauce on the pasta. It’s so glossy and beautiful when made correctly: no clumps or curdled eggs
- Using a large fork, or kitchen tweezers, twirl some of the pasta into a ladle. Bring the ladle to the plate. Keep twirling as you start to remove the ladle
- Remove the ladle and place the pasta onto the plate. Gently remove the tweezers Grate some more cheese on top of the pasta And grate some black pepper, too.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
- As long as you know the authentic Italian recipe, feel free to make it your own version.
- I would advise trying to make it as written the first time to see how it is, and then making changes (as will all other recipes).
- To make the genuine recipe, you need to use guanciale and Pecorino Romano, however, if you are outside of Italy, guanciale is quite difficult (and expensive) to source, so please don't fret if you have to use pancetta or bacon, or Parmigiano Reggiano instead of Pecorino (a cow's milk cheese instead of a sheep's milk cheese).
- It's better to use quality ingredients over the "right" ingredients. For example, Parmigiano Reggiano cheese would be my choice over a copycat Pecorino cheese. Also, if you can buy guanciale, but it's full of spices and nitrates, use a plain pancetta, or nitrate-free bacon, instead.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 805kcal | Carbohydrates: 70g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 293mg | Sodium: 1161mg | Potassium: 252mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 413IU | Calcium: 348mg | Iron: 2mg
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