Spaghetti alla carbonara
Ingredients:
- Spaghetti (400 g)
- Guanciale (180 g)
- Egg yolks (4)
- Whole eggs (2)
- Pecorino Romano (100 g)
- Black pepper
- Salt
Method:
A glossy, generous carbonara
Carbonara is a little lesson in timing: crisp guanciale, peppery cheese and eggs become a silky sauce while the spaghetti is still hot. This version serves four and takes about 25 minutes. Put the plates on the table first, because the finished pasta deserves everyone's immediate attention. There is no cream; the softness comes from eggs, rendered fat and a little starchy water.
Prepare the guanciale and eggs
Cut the guanciale into short strips, removing the hard rind. Put it in a wide, cold frying pan and cook over medium-low heat for 8ā10 minutes, stirring, until the fat is translucent and the edges are golden. Lift out a spoonful for the finish. Keep about three tablespoons of fat in the pan and spoon off any excess.
Finely grate the Pecorino. In a large bowl, mix the four yolks, two whole eggs, 80 g of the cheese and plenty of freshly ground pepper. Keep the remaining cheese for serving. The mixture will be thick, which is exactly what you want at this stage.
Cook and bring everything together
Cook the spaghetti in lightly salted water: the guanciale and Pecorino already bring plenty of salt. Reserve 300 ml of cooking water before draining the pasta al dente. Toss it in the pan with the guanciale and two tablespoons of water, then remove the pan from the heat.
Let the fierce sizzling stop, then transfer the pasta and guanciale into the bowl of eggs, tossing immediately and continuously. Add hot cooking water a tablespoon at a time until the sauce coats every strand. If it needs gentle warming, hold the bowl over the pasta pot's hot water without letting the bowl touch the water, and keep tossing. Stop as soon as it is glossy; direct heat can turn the eggs grainy.
Serve straight away
Divide among four warm plates and finish with the reserved guanciale, Pecorino and another turn of pepper. Keep the sauce slightly loose in the bowl, because it thickens on the way to the table. This is a dish to eat freshly made, while the contrast between crisp pork and silky pasta is at its best.