Pasta Carbonara (Bacon Pasta)

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I will never say no to pasta, and I am excited to share this very simple recipe for the classic dish, Pasta Carbonara. Pasta Carbonara is a popular Italian dish compromised of spaghetti, bacon, butter, eggs and cheese – that’s it! It also comes together in less than 30 minutes.

Who doesn’t love bacon and cheese, right? The main ingredients of this delicious bacon pasta recipe. I recently acquired an Italian cook book. It’s like a real Italian cook book. I’ve been tagging certain recipe to make, and this pasta carbonara was one of them. You will not believe just how easy this bacon pasta is to make and how quickly it comes together.

The Ingredients:

• Butter: Butter is the fat used to cook the bacon in. It also gives this pasta recipe that indulgent buttery flavor.
• Garlic: I like a subtle garlic flavor in this recipe. Sautéing it with the bacon gives the dish just enough sweet aroma.
• Bacon: You can’t make pasta carbonara without bacon! It’s the nostalgic bacon flavor that makes this recipe so delicious. Bacon also adds a nice crunch and saltiness to the pasta dish.
• Spaghetti: Spaghetti is the pasta of choice for pasta carbonara!
• Beaten Eggs: The eggs helps create the silky sauce.
• Grated parmesan cheese: Parmesan is a hard, granular cheese made from cow’s milk that’s been around for hundreds of years. The rich sharp flavor with other notes of nutty, sweet, salty, and fruity works so well in this recipe!
• Grated Pecorino Romano cheese: Pecorino Romano cheese is a hard, salty, and crumbly Italian cheese made from sheep’s milk. It has a strong aroma and sharp, smoky, spicy and salty flavor notes. It’s mixed with the eggs and pasta to create the silky sauce coating on the spaghetti!
• Black pepper: Black pepper is used to balance the salt and add a bold sharp flavor to the sauce. I also love seeing the little black specks throughout the dish.

How To Make Pasta Carbonara:

1. Heat butter over medium heat in a large heavy sauté pan then add diced bacon and one clove of garlic. Fry until bacon is crispy. Remove the garlic and discard.
2. While bacon is frying, boil spaghetti until al dente. Al dente is an Italian term that refers to the ideal consistency of cooked pasta. Pasta al dente is firm but not hard when bitten into. It’s a happy medium between undercooked and overcooked pasta. Al dente pasta holds its shape and texture well, even when coated in sauce.
3. Once spaghetti is done boiling and drained, add to the pan of fried bacon and mix well.
4. Remove pan from the stove and stir in back pepper, beaten eggs, and half of the parmesan and pecorino Romano cheese. Stir until the eggs have set and created a nice silky coating on the noodles.
5. Garnish with the rest of the cheeses and serve promptly.

Eggs seem odd, right? I know I know. It’s the egg that creates a coating all over the noodles, though. Believe it or not, the eggs cook enough without curdling. That’s what creates the silky “sauce.” The bacon provides the perfect smoky crunch. It is salty and delicious! Parmesan cheese gives it a cheesy sharp bite.

Tips For Success:

• Prepare all of your ingredients ahead of time. This recipe comes together very quickly so measure, dice, stir, etc. before starting the recipe.
• Use high quality ingredients to get the full pasta carbonara experience. I would buy fresh parmesan and pecorino romano cheese and grate yourself. Since the bacon and the cheese are what flavors this recipe, it’s important they are high quality.
• Serve promptly! If pasta becomes sticky, you can use a few tablespoons of warm pasta water to break it up.

I like the serve pasta carbonara with a simple dinner salad to balance out the butter and bacon flavors.

Enjoy!

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Yield: 3-4

Pasta Carbonara

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Spaghetti with bacon, egg and parmesan resulting in a rich classic Italian pasta dish.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 pound bacon, diced
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 pound spaghetti
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup grated pecorino cheese
• Black pepper

Instructions

1. Prepare all of your ingredients - dice, measure, chop, stir, etc. (this recipe comes together quickly so it's important to plan ahead)
2. Heat butter over medium heat in a large heavy sauté pan, add the diced bacon and clove of garlic, and fry until crispy. Remove garlic.
3. While the bacon is frying, boil spaghetti in salted water until al dente, about 9-10 minutes. Before draining, reserve about 1/2 cup pasta water just in case.
4. Add spaghetti to the pan of fried bacon and butter and mix well. Then, remove from stove and stir in a pinch of pepper, beaten eggs, and half of the parmesan and pecorino romano cheese until the eggs begin to set. (the eggs should heat through to cook but not curdle). Once eggs have set and created a nice silky coating on the noodle, sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top and serve immediately. This goes well with a simple Italian salad with balsamic vinegar.
5. If pasta seems sticky, add a few tablespoons of pasta water to help break it up. It will become sticky as it cools.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 647Total Fat: 38gSaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 19gCholesterol: 236mgSodium: 1384mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 2gSugar: 1gProtein: 37g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated. Use as an approximation only.

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