Spaghetti Carbonara
Mains · Serves 4 · Prep 10 min · Cook 20 min · Total 30 min
No cream, ever. Eggs, Pecorino and the rendered fat from crisp guanciale come together into a silky sauce in the last two minutes, so have everything measured and ready before the pasta goes in.
Ingredients
- 1 lb spaghetti
- 6 oz guanciale (or thick-cut pancetta), cut into 1/4-inch strips
- 4 large egg yolks
- 2 large whole eggs
- 1 1/2 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano (about 3 oz), plus more for serving
- 1 1/2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp kosher salt, for the pasta water
Steps
- Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil and add the salt. Go easy; the Pecorino is salty.
- Put the guanciale in a large cold skillet and set it over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring now and then, until the fat has rendered and the edges are crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the pepper and let it toast in the fat for 30 seconds, then turn off the heat and leave everything in the pan.
- In a bowl, whisk the yolks, whole eggs and Pecorino into a thick paste.
- Cook the spaghetti until 1 minute shy of al dente. Scoop out 1 1/2 cups of pasta water, then use tongs to move the pasta straight into the skillet with the guanciale. Toss with a splash of pasta water off the heat for about 1 minute so it cools slightly.
- Whisk 1/4 cup of hot pasta water into the egg mixture to loosen it. Pour it over the pasta (heat still off) and toss hard and fast, adding pasta water a splash at a time, until the sauce turns creamy and glossy and clings to every strand, 1 to 2 minutes. If it stays thin, set the pan over the lowest heat for a few seconds while tossing, and never stop moving or the eggs will scramble.
- Serve right away with more Pecorino and black pepper.