Spaghetti alla Carbonara

From the kitchen of Carly

Roman pasta at its purest: spaghetti, crisp pork, egg yolks, sharp pecorino, and a snowstorm of black pepper. No cream. The yolks and pasta water do all the saucing, which means it lives or dies on timing. If your sauce scrambles, your pan was too hot. Pull it off the heat next time before the eggs go in.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Carbonara lives on the line between silk and scramble. The trick is guanciale's fat and pasta water heating the egg yolks into a creamy sauce that coats every strand, never cooking solid. Twenty minutes from stove cold, you get the Roman original: salty, peppery, rich, and worth every second of attention.

Prep
5 min
Cook
15 min
Total
20 min
Servings
4
Difficulty
medium

Ingredients

4 servings

  • 11 oz(320 g)spaghetti
  • 6egg yolks
  • 1 to tastekosher salt
  • 5 oz(150 g)guanciale or thick-cut bacon, diced
  • 2 oz(50 g)pecorino romano, finely grated
  • 1 to tasteblack pepper, freshly ground

Instructions

  1. Bring a large pot of water to a strong boil. Salt it generously, like a mild broth.

  2. While it heats, cut the guanciale or bacon into small lardons. In a wide skillet over medium heat, cook them slowly until the fat renders out and the meat is deep gold and crisp at the edges, 6 to 8 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave the pork in the rendered fat.

  3. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the grated pecorino and a heavy crank of black pepper. The mix should look like wet sand.

  4. Add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook one minute shy of al dente.

  5. Just before draining, scoop out a full mug of pasta water. Drain the pasta, then transfer it directly into the skillet with the pork. Toss in the residual fat for a few seconds.

  6. Off the heat, pour the egg-and-cheese mixture over the pasta and toss continuously, adding splashes of hot pasta water until the sauce is silky and clings to every strand. The eggs should thicken into a glossy coat, never scramble.

  7. Plate immediately with extra pecorino and another grind of pepper on top.

Tips from the kitchen

  • Cook the guanciale low and slow, 6 to 8 minutes, so the fat renders fully and the edges crisp without burning. You want a pool of seasoned fat, not burnt bits.
  • Whisk the egg yolks with cheese and pepper off the heat before the pasta even drains. The texture should look like wet sand, thick enough to coat but not scrambled.
  • Add pasta water in splashes, not all at once. The starch in the water is what thickens the sauce and helps the eggs cling to the spaghetti without seizing up.
  • Toss continuously off the heat until everything glosses over. If it looks too thick, add more pasta water. If it breaks or looks scrambled, you can't save it, so patience wins here.

Variations

  • With pancetta instead of guanciale: use thick-cut pancetta if guanciale is impossible to find, though the smoke and funk won't be quite the same.
  • Spaghetti alla gricia (the original Roman version): hold the eggs and pecorino altogether, just toss the pasta with the rendered guanciale fat and finish with lots of pepper and extra cheese on top.
  • With whole eggs: crack whole eggs into the bowl instead of yolks only for a looser, slightly less rich sauce that some prefer.
  • Spaghetti alla carbonara with cream: stir a splash of heavy cream into the egg and cheese mixture if you want insurance against scrambling, though it's not traditional and dilutes the clean, bright flavor.

Make ahead and storage

Carbonara does not keep well and is best eaten straight from the pan. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for one day in the fridge, but the sauce will separate and the pasta will stick. Reheating is not recommended.

Substitutions
  • guanciale to thick-cut bacon or pancetta. Guanciale (cured pork jowl) is traditional but bacon is what most US grocery stores have. Pancetta is the in-between.
  • pecorino romano to parmesan or a 50/50 mix of both. Pecorino is sharper and saltier; parmesan is mellower. Either works, the mix is best.
  • egg yolks to 3 whole eggs + 2 yolks. Looser sauce but easier on the egg-waste guilt.

Pairs well with: Crisp green salad with lemon vinaigrette to cut the richness, A glass of cold Frascati or any dry white, Garlic-rubbed grilled bread on the side