Simmer Stock - Kitchen scripts: Spaghetti a la Carbonara

Spaghetti a la Carbonara

Spaghetti a la Carbonara is really bacon & eggs with pasta. OK, in the serving bowl, on the plate and in the mouth it's a whole lot more than that. When done right, the eggs (with some parmigiano reggiano) create a creamy sauce and the pancetta adds a salty meaty tasty thang that makes me wonder why they waste pigs on truffle hunting. Unfortunately, it's pretty easy to overcook it and break the sauce; scrambling the eggs and clumping up the cheese. The trick here is really to have the heat of the pasta rather than the heat of the pan cook the egg and cheese sauce. But, honestly, if it breaks, don't worry. Just do as I do and tell your family and friends that it's supposed to be like that. Because, once they get a fork full in their mouth, they won't remember how it looks. I should know. I've only successfully made carbonara a hand full of times, but I've attempted it dozens of times. In not one instance has anyone done less than smile while eating it (and eat it all).

The keys to the flavor are, of course the bacon and cheese. The bacon has to be good, thickly sliced pancetta. American style bacon doesn't really work. It's too smokey and salty which tends to overpower everything else. Fortunately pancetta is available at the deli counters of most American markets today (if you don't see it, just ask - they most likely have it). And, don't let them slice it into paper-thin wafers on one of those machines. You basically want to fry up little diced cubes of pancetta, so don't let them cut it less than 1/4" thin. For a pound of pasta you'll need a half pound or so of pancetta.

The cheese should be freshly grated parmigiano reggiano. Traditionally the recipe calls for pecorino romano. Straight romano, however, overpowers pretty much any dish it's served in. Most people like a mix of parmigiano and romano, though I prefer straight parmigiano.

Spaghetti a la Carbonara

1 lb. spaghetti
1/2 lb. pancetta
2 tbs. Olive Oil
1/2 cup dry white wine
4 large eggs
1 cup grated cheese (whatever combination of Parmigiano or Romano you like best)
2 cloves garlic
Freshly ground pepper to taste

First, put a large ceramic bowl in the oven to warm up (200° should do) and put a pot of well salted water (it should taste like salt water, not just water with salt in it) on the stove to boil. If you don't have a pasta bowl (which, to be honest, I don't), you can finish the dish in the skillet your fry the pancetta in (which will significantly increase the chances of the sauce breaking).

Dice the pancetta into 1/4" to 1/2" cubes and fry in a little bit of olive oil until lightly browned. Add about a half cup of white wine to the pan and reduce by about 1/2. Set this aside. Yes, there's gonna be a lot of oil and fat. Get used to it.

Boil a your pasta until al-dente. While the pasta is boiling mix four eggs with two pulverized garlic cloves (one of the few instances where the use of a garlic press is perfectly fine) and a cup of grated cheese (I use 100% parmigiano, Cooks Illustrated recommends 3/4 cup parmigiano and 1/4 cup romano, traditional recipes call for 100% romano) until well blended. When the pasta is cooked, drain and toss with the cooked pancetta. Add the egg mixture, toss, grind in about a teaspoon of black pepper (less or more to your preference) and serve.

Serves 4-6 adults (depending on how much they eat. It'd probably only serve one 17 year old hockey player)

Posted on Mar 17, 2002 @ 02:32 PM

Comments:

manu:

when you say a pound of pasta to half a pound of panchetta, do you mean cooked or dried pasta?

cheers!

manu

Posted on Jul 24, 2002 @ 01:49 AM

manu:

stupid me... wasnt reading thoroughly..... who would put half a pound of panchetta to a pound of cooked pasta!?!?!?!?

heheheh.... good thing cooking is a fun thing.... you can be humorous!!!!

manu

Posted on Jul 24, 2002 @ 01:52 AM

Dick:

Yeah, it's a pound of dried pasta.

Posted on Jul 24, 2002 @ 01:49 PM

John Carrow:

Could I use ASIAGO cheese in the
Spaghetti La Carbonara recipe?

Posted on Aug 21, 2002 @ 10:26 AM

Dick:

Asiago would be a great substitute for Parmagiano and Romano (I've always though that Asiago tasted somewhere between the two anyway). You can really use any hard cheese you like - just take care that it's not so strong or pungent that it blocks out the other flavors (straight Romano probably isn't a good idea, and I wouldn't care for an Asiago and Romano blend). There are some aged cheddars and goudas out there that would probably make an interesting (in a tasty type of way) carbonara.

Posted on Aug 21, 2002 @ 09:16 PM

Francesco:

only you yanks can have the idea to use Asiago cheese as a topping on carbonara... behave!!!

Posted on Sep 15, 2002 @ 03:15 AM

Pierre:

I think you minimize the risk of breaking the sauce by putting the pasta, a little at a time, into the eggs so as to avoid overcooking and getting to a high temperature too fast. If you pour the eggs on the mass of hot pasta, they must cuddle.

Posted on Dec 19, 2003 @ 10:47 AM