Spaghetti Carbonara

Ingredients

• Salt
• 2 large eggs and 2 large yolks, room temperature
• 1 oz (about ⅓ packed cup) grated pecorino Romano, plus additional for serving
• 1 oz (about ⅓ packed cup) grated Parmesan
• Coarsely ground black pepper
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 3½ oz slab guanciale, pancetta, or bacon, sliced into pieces about ¼ inch thick by ⅓ inch square
• 12 oz spaghetti (about ¾ box)

Instructions

1. Boil water and warm the serving bowl — Place a large pot of lightly salted water (no more than 1 tablespoon salt) over high heat and bring to a boil. Fill a large serving bowl with hot water to warm it, and set aside.
2. Whisk the sauce base — In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, yolks, pecorino, and Parmesan. Season with a pinch of salt and generous black pepper.
3. Render the pork — Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pork and sauté until the fat just renders — on the edge of crispness, but not hard. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Cook the pasta — Add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook until a bit firmer than al dente. Just before pasta is ready, reheat guanciale in the skillet if needed. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water, then drain the pasta and add it to the skillet over low heat. Stir for a minute or so.
5. Emulsify and serve — Empty the serving bowl of hot water and dry it. Add the hot pasta mixture. Stir in the cheese-and-egg mixture, adding some reserved pasta water as needed for creaminess. Serve immediately, topped with a bit more grated pecorino and black pepper.

Notes

• Temperature is everything — If cold eggs hit hot pasta they'll scramble. Use room-temperature eggs and pull the pasta off the heat before stirring in the sauce so it emulsifies creamy rather than curdled.
• Don't be shy with pasta water — The starchy water is what makes the sauce silky. It'll look wet at first but tightens as it cools. Under-saucing leads to sticky, dry leftovers.
• Bowl trick (from comments) — For extra insurance against scrambling, drain the pasta over a stainless steel bowl so the hot water warms it. Discard the water, then use the warm bowl to combine everything off-heat.

Tags: #recipe #mains #pasta #italian #spaghetti #carbonara #bacon #egg #quick #weeknight