Spaghetti Carbonara
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The easiest pasta dish you will ever make with just 5 ingredients in 15 min, loaded with Parmesan and crisp bacon goodness!
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This is one of those dishes that comes together in 15 minutes or less with just 5 simple ingredients – spaghetti, bacon, garlic, Parmesan and eggs. A lightening fast weeknight meal yet still fancy enough for date night or weekend company. And if you’re skeptical about the raw eggs, have no fear! It actually gets cooked through completely from the residual heat. Just be sure to work quickly so you don’t end up with scrambled eggs (not that scrambled eggs would be the worst thing in the world here).
reasons to make carbonara
- Weeknight superhero made in less than 30 min
- Super short ingredient list, most of which you probably have on hand
- Restaurant-worthy rich, silky, velvety pasta dinner the whole family can enjoy
what is carbonara
Carbonara is an Italian dish typically made with pasta (most commonly spaghetti), eggs, guanciale (cured pork), hard cheese, salt and pepper.
Carbonara versus alfredo
Carbonara is made with eggs as its primary thickening agent whereas alfredo uses butter and heavy cream for a more richer, creamier consistency.
Ingredients
Spaghetti
Spaghetti pasta is typically used in carbonara as its long strands can easily soak up the silky, creamy goodness but linguine, fettuccine or bucatini can be used as well.
Eggs
Room temperature eggs are key here! It serves as a thickening agent without scrambling, binding with the fat from the bacon (or pancetta) and creating that favorited smooth, silky sauce.
Parmesan
Use hard cheese such as pecorino romano or Parmesan. Pre-packaged cheese contains anti-caking agents that can hinder their ability to melt smoothly. Freshly and finely grated cheese is best here, adding a handful at a time for a smooth consistency.
Bacon
Bacon is more readily available but pancetta or guanciale can also be used for a more authentic carbonara.
Garlic
Although garlic is not traditionally used in carbonara, it will add a lovely boost of flavor.
Parsley
Add your finishing touches with a sprinkle of fresh parsley (or basil).
tips and tricks for success
- Use room temperature eggs. Using room temperature eggs will ensure a smooth, well-emulsified silky consistency (cold eggs can seize when added to hot pasta). To quickly bring eggs to room temperature, place the eggs in a bowl of warm water for about 10 minutes. According to the USDA, eggs should not be left at room temperature for over 2 hours.
- Make it richer. For an even richer, creamier consistency, use egg yolks only.
- Lower the heat. Working quickly over low heat, stir in the egg mixture, allowing the residual heat from the pasta to cook the eggs gently to yield that velvety, silky sauce. Remove the pan from heat if needed.
- Reserve pasta water. Thanks to the starch in the pasta water, this will help the sauce stick to the pasta as well as thicken the sauce for extra creaminess.
- Halve the recipe. If cooking for 2, say for date night or a romantic night in, this recipe halves very well. Utilize the same cooking time with a smaller cast iron skillet.
Tools For This Recipe
Large cast iron skillet
Spaghetti Carbonara: Frequently Asked Questions
Spaghetti is a classic choice for carbonara but linguine, fettuccine or bucatini are all great alternatives.
One of the most common reason for scrambled eggs in carbonara is cooking at a high temperature. Lower the heat and add the egg mixture into the center of the skillet over the pasta, avoiding the edges, tossing immediately and quickly to avoid overcooking and scrambling.
Spaghetti carbonara is best served immediately but leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days, adding a splash of water when reheating (to loosen if needed).
Spaghetti Carbonara
Ingredients
- 8 ounces spaghetti
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Equipment
Instructions
- In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; reserve 1/2 cup water and drain well.
- In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and Parmesan; set aside.
- Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes; reserve excess fat.
- Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute. Reduce heat to low.
- Working quickly, stir in pasta and egg mixture, and gently toss to combine; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add reserved pasta water, one tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is reached.
- Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.
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Delicious and easy to make! I’ll be making this again.
It was delicious, I loved it! First time making or eating spagetti carbonara, and I will definitely make this again!
I had just made bacon for our potatoes and my son went and got the noodles… I was like well put it in Google and see what you find.
I had no idea!! This was great… He made us late lunch early dinner tonight. Thank you!
Wow. Really delicious flavours.
I doubled the sauce recipe and added a little cream to the sauce. I added fresh sliced mini tomatos and crushed red pepper at the end. I also used a spiced and smoked bacon from the butcher shop. When the bacon was crispy and I added the garlic (I used smoked crushed garlic) I added the excess fat from the bacon to the noodle water and after the garlic simmered I added the water back to the bacon and garlic and simmered for an additional 5 minutes before I added the egg and cheese mixture and the noodles. This was so packed with flavour. Loved it!
So easy and delicious. Added broccoli into the spaghetti pot for the last 2 minutes because my daughter asked me to. It seemed a bit odd but I went along with it and it was great. Thanks for the recipe.
I made this for dinner last night. It was so easy to make and absolutely delicious! I’m a rather picky eater but I decided to try it based on the ingredients. I usually cut recipes by 1/2 because it’s just 2 of us but because it’s the first time I was making it, I followed the recipe exactly. Sure glad I did because we ate all of it. This is now going to be a regular dish from now on. Thanks for sharing it.
I’ve seen many say that pasta carbonara is a difficult dish to get right but this recipe made it so easy! This may be some of the best pasta I’ve ever made/tasted! I definitely highly recommend. Next time I think I’m going to add some peas too.
This pasta recipe is wonderful! I followed it exactly and it ended up being better than I expected! 100% recommend this recipe.
I havent actually made this. I plan to tonight. I noticed it said to reserve the bacon grease but never says anything else about it. When is it added, and how much?
This pasta recipe is wonderful! I followed it exactly and it ended up being better than I expected! 100% recommend this recipe.
I cooked added the pasta in the same pan that I used to cook bacon and garlic so that’s when it was incorporated for me.
I added a little more at the end. Not sure if I was supposed to or if she just meant reserve for other dishes. Either way I put it in the fridge and turned it into a solid. I’m going to keep it for next time we make this. I’m sure next week.
Thanks for sharing this simple recipe. It was so delicious and I’m not even a great cook. Will be making it again today. Will be following more recipes on your website!
Thank you for sharing this delicious, simple, and quick recipe! Every family member mentioned several times how much they liked it. My 3 year old requested that I make it always 🙂 I added in fresh spinach and artichokes for more veggies. I will definitely make this again!
Just perfect! The genius of carbonara lies in the simplicity of ingredients and ease of preparation. And, honestly, is there a better comfort food? Thank you for sharing!
This was scrumptious!! The first time i have ever made it…got Raves!!
I just got finished making this dish and Boy, was it a Great BIG HIT with my family & friends! I followed this Wonderful recipe to the letter except after I prepared bacon & garlic I added about 2 Tablespoons of Crushed Red Pepper Flakes to kick it up a notch and the spice sure did the trick! Thank You for Sharing!!!
Wishing All Many Blessings & Good Health!
Easy and very tasty! My family was impressed that such a simple recipe could be so good! I followed recipe exactly. 15 minutes! My eggs did scramble a tiny bit… so I stirred very quickly and it looked a little like yellow parmesan… but we all loved it! I will be making again!
Great!!Classic I up’d the cloves of garlic to 6couple and 6 slices of bacon but this is great base.
Super delicious and super easy!! I used about 12 oz of pasta instead and doubled the bacon, hehe, but youll need to take away more of the bacon fat. I also saved an extra half cup of pasta water just in case, due to the increase in pasta. Thank you!!
I’ve never made Carbonara before, but I’m certain it will be fabulous like all of your other recipes. Does the reserved bacon grease get added back? I’m always try to force my family to eat their veggies. Would adding sautéed peppers, mushrooms or onions mess up the sauce?
I made it with vegan bacon and cheese and gluten free pasta and it sucked. JK, nice, if non-traditional dish.
Delicious! Super fast and easy! We added an extra egg. We all loved it!
Single dad, Kids and I loved it! Easy and very delicious! Thank you!