With crispy pork, a velvety cheese sauce, and a peppery bite, this spaghetti carbonara recipe is as easy to make for dinner as it is at 2 a.m. after a night out. It’s a signature dish of Rome, and like cacio e pepe and similar pasta dishes, its simplicity demands proper technique and quality ingredients. Cured meat adds salty depth; guanciale is traditional, but pancetta or plain old American bacon (preferably thick-cut) works too. Egg yolks provide the sauce’s luscious texture and golden hue, so use farm-fresh eggs if possible. For the cheese and noodles, spend a little extra: Buy Romano cheese or Parmigiano Reggiano and quality bronze-cut spaghetti.
Timing and temperature are critical for achieving the glossy sheen of carbonara’s creamy sauce. Be sure to add the ingredients in the order indicated and remove the pot from the heat before incorporating the raw egg mixture. The hot pasta will help cook the yolks while you stir, emulsifying cheese, eggs, and the starch of the pasta water into liquid velvet.
At dinner, this pasta dish is nice served with a salad of mixed greens, but when you’re in the throes of an after-hours hang, just grab a fork.
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What you’ll need
Eataly Italian Bucatini Pasta
$14 At Amazon
Recipe information
Total Time
22 minutes
Yield
4 servings
Ingredients
3
4
2
2
2
12
Preparation
Step 1
Heat 6 qt. water in a large pot over high heat. When water starts to steam, add 3 Tbsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 Tbsp. plus 2¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt and cover pot with a lid (this will bring water to a boil faster).
Step 2
While you are waiting on the water, do a little prep. Slice 4 oz. guanciale, pancetta, or bacon into about 1x¼" strips. Finely grate 2 oz. Parmesan or Pecorino Romano and set aside a quarter of the cheese for later.
Step 3
Whisk 2 large eggs plus 3 large egg yolks in a medium bowl until no streaks remain, then stir in bulk of the grated cheese. Add several cranks of freshly ground black pepper and set aside.
Step 4
Working next to pot, heat 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium. Add sliced guanciale, pancetta, or bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp around the edges, 7–10 minutes.
Step 5
Remove pot from heat. Using a wooden spoon, scoop out pork and transfer to a small bowl. Pour fat into a heatproof measuring cup, then add 3 Tbsp. of rendered fat back to pot. (Discard any remaining fat or reserve for another purpose; it’s great for frying eggs.)
Step 6
Cook 12 oz. spaghetti in salted boiling water, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes shy of package instructions. Just before pasta is finished, scoop out 1¾ cups pasta cooking liquid with same heatproof measuring cup.
Step 7
Add 1 cup reserved pasta cooking liquid to Dutch oven and bring to a boil over medium-high. Drain spaghetti in a colander, then transfer to Dutch oven.
Step 8
Cook pasta, stirring constantly and vigorously, until al dente and water is reduced by about half, about 2 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
Step 9
Whisk ¼ cup reserved pasta water into egg mixture, then very slowly stream into Dutch oven, stirring constantly, until cheese is melted and egg is thickened to form a glossy sauce. Season with kosher salt, if needed. Thin sauce with remaining ½ cup pasta cooking liquid, adding a tablespoonful at a time, until it's the consistency of heavy cream (you most likely won’t use all of it).
Step 10
Mix in pork and divide pasta among bowls. Top with pepper and reserved cheese.
Editor’s note: This recipe was originally printed in our January 2018 issue. Head this way for more of our best pasta recipes →