Cook Spaghetti Carbonara with Bacon

Spaghetti carbonara with bacon is basically bacon and eggs for the pasta world! It's a classic Italian pasta recipe that is simple yet delicious. However, while the recipe itself is easy, timing is critical to ensure a smooth creamy sauce.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 lb (225g) spaghetti
  • Bacon, thickly sliced works best
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2-3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • Black pepper–coarsely ground (at least a tablespoon or two)
  • A clove or two of crushed garlic (optional)
  • A small amount of cream (optional)

Steps

  1. Slice the bacon into 1/2" (1cm square) pieces. Put the pieces aside in an unheated frying pan.
  2. Bring water to boil in the heavy pot or saucepan for the pasta.
  3. Once the water is boiling, add the pasta in. Set a timer for 10 minutes. However, the best test to tell when the pasta is ready is to eat a piece––it's ready when it no longer has any grit or crunch, but still has some resistance when bitten.
  4. Meanwhile, turn on the heat under the frying pan to medium-high. Add some crushed garlic cloves if you wish to.
  5. Cook the bacon. Adjust the heat as necessary to render fat out of the bacon, but avoid cooking the bacon to the crispy stage––you really want it soft and just slightly browned.
    • Timing is critical––you should be able to have the bacon cooked in the 10 minutes it takes to cook the pasta––you may need to lower the heat to keep the bacon hot. Do not allow the pasta and pot/ pan to go cold waiting for the bacon to cook, as this will leave the egg uncooked.
  6. Quickly and while the pasta and pan are still hot dump the pasta in the strainer. Shake quickly to remove excess water. Do not rinse the pasta and return it to the hot pot you originally used to boil it in.
  7. Pour the contents of the frying pan (bacon, garlic and and fat) over the pasta in the pot and begin to stir, coating the pasta with the bacon fat.
  8. Add the beaten eggs and continue to stir. The eggs will cook from the heat of the bacon fat and hot pasta (and the hot pot).
  9. Add the grated Parmesan cheese and continue to stir. The cheese will melt from the heat of the bacon and pot.
    • If desired, you may add a splash of cream to improve the richness of the dish.
  10. Begin to sprinkle in the coarsely ground pepper. Stir in, until the pasta mixture is speckled with pepper. You could use around a tablespoon of coarsely ground pepper although as the cook, you could add more or less to your personal taste.
  11. Serve immediately. The combination of Parmesan cheese and pepper make this a wonderful dish. It can be served as a side or main dish (depending on serving size).

Tips

  • Use a strong spoon, as the pasta mixture does get somewhat sticky as you're mixing in the eggs, cheese, and black pepper. A heavy wood spoon is a good choice, as it won't scratch the pasta pot.
  • A heavy pot is needed to boil the pasta because the heat of the pot and the heat of the pasta is crucial to cooking the eggs and melting the cheese.
  • Always use freshly-grated Parmesan cheese, as the canned stuff won't work.
  • If you can, use fresh coarsely ground black pepper, otherwise use a coarsely ground jarred pepper.

Warnings

  • As with any dish that contains eggs, there is a risk of food poisoning if the eggs aren't completely cooked. If you use a heavy pot to boil the pasta, this shouldn't be a problem. Another way to avoid this is to use pre-packaged egg substitute. This is normally pasteurized so the bacteria that cause food poisoning has been killed; egg substitute is also lower in fat and cholesterol.
  • Be sure the bacon is fully heated/cooked, but not crispy.

Things You'll Need

  • Heavy pot
  • Frying pan
  • Strainer
  • Heavy spoon

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