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The Roman classic — guanciale is the orthodox cure, but pancetta is the everyday substitute. Spaghetti, fat, eggs, Pecorino, pepper. No cream, no garlic, no peas. Five minutes once the water boils.
Serves 4Prep 10 minCook 15 min
What to ask for
This recipe calls for Pancetta. Can't get it where you are?
Ingredients & method
Ingredients
- 400 g spaghetti or rigatoni (bronze-die for grip)
- 200 g pancetta, cut into 1 cm lardons
- 4 large egg yolks plus 1 whole egg
- 100 g Pecorino Romano, finely grated
- Freshly cracked black pepper (lots)
- Coarse sea salt
Method
- 1Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a rolling boil. Add the pasta and cook to a minute under the package time (it will finish in the pan).
- 2Meanwhile, render the pancetta in a wide cold pan over medium heat — start cold so the fat releases slowly. Cook until crisp at the edges but still tender in the centre, about 8 minutes. Take off the heat.
- 3Whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, and Pecorino in a heatproof bowl. Add a generous amount of pepper. The mixture should be like thick paint.
- 4Scoop a mug of pasta water from the pot. Drain the pasta, reserving more water.
- 5Tip the hot pasta into the pan with the pancetta and toss to coat in the fat.
- 6Now the critical move: with the pan off the heat, pour in the egg mixture and toss vigorously, adding splashes of pasta water until the sauce coats the noodles glossily. The residual heat cooks the eggs to creamy — it must not scramble.
- 7Plate immediately with extra Pecorino and pepper.
Cook this well
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Chef's tip
If the pan is too hot when the eggs hit, you get scrambled eggs on pasta — not carbonara. Always off the heat, always lots of pasta water on hand to loosen.
Cook this later?Save the recipe, then keep notes on what worked and what you'd change next time.