Spaghetti Carbonara

Updated at: Fri, 12 Apr 2024 18:42:55 GMT

Step 1

Cut the hard skin off the guanciale, slice it lengthways into 1cm strips and then cut into 1 cm pieces.

Step 2

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for your pasta.

Step 3

In a separate pan start to fry off the guanciale on a gentle heat - no need to add any oil as its fat will melt.

Step 4

Meanwhile in a bowl add your eggs (whole and yolks) and beat well. Stir through the grated pecorino and a really decent amount of freshly cracked black pepper (depending on your tolerance and preference for pepper ~ measuring 1/2 tbsp). Set aside.

Step 5

When the guanciale is nice and crisp, turn off the heat and using a slotted spoon remove the guanciale from the pan and onto a plate - reserve the fat in the pan.

Step 6

Add the pasta to your boiling water and cook for approx a minute under packet instructions (just before it’s al dente).

Step 7

Add the pasta directly to the pan with the guanciale fat (reserving the pasta water) taking some of the pasta water with it. Turn the heat back on the lowest flame, and allow the pasta to continue to gently cook, giving it a toss in the guanciale fat.

Step 8

THIS IS WHERE IT GETS INTERESTING! You will need to move relatively quickly.

Step 9

Add a 1/3-1/2 cup of the pasta water to the egg mixture and stir well until the pecorino and egg mix is nice and smooth and quite liquid, like pouring cream.

Step 10

Take the pan with the pasta/guanciale off the heat, pour in the egg mix and stir, toss and mix continuously until it starts to thicken slightly and you have a stable emulsion. At this point you can put the pan back onto a low heat/flame and keep stirring/moving constantly until you’ve worked the egg mixture into a beautiful crema, similar to béchamel. It’s important to keep the sauce moving constantly as you use the heat to thicken.

Step 11

Stir through the reserved guanciale before serving.

Step 12

Serve immediately!! With extra black pepper and a dusting of pecorino.

0 liked

0 disliked