Description
This pasta alla carbonara recipe easy to make with 4 classic ingredients and tastes so decadent and delicious.
Ingredients
Scale
- 12 ounces (340 grams) uncooked pasta (mezze rigatoni)
- 2 large eggs
- 4 large egg yolks
- 2 ounces (60 g) freshly-grated Pecorino Romano cheese (plus extra for garnish)
- fine sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
- 8 ounces (225 g) smoked beef cubes (diced into ½-inch cubes)
Instructions
- Cook the smoked beef: Heat a large sauté pan (preferably nonstick) over medium-low heat. Add the smoked beef to the pan and cook, stirring and flipping occasionally, until golden brown and crispy and the fat has rendered, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the smoked beef to a clean bowl.
- Bloom the black pepper: Add 1 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper to the pan with the hot grease, then turn off the heat.
- Boil the pasta: Fill a large stockpot about half full of lightly-salted water (roughly 3 quarts) and bring it to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Mix the sauce: Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, and Pecorino together in a large metal mixing bowl. Gradually pour in the black pepper grease while whisking. After the pasta has cooked for 5 minutes, remove ½ cup of the starchy pasta water and gradually pour it into the egg mixture while whisking.
- Quickly transfer the pasta: Once the pasta is about 1 minute shy of al dente, quickly transfer the pasta to the metal bowl, tossing with the egg mixture. Add the cooked smoked beef to the bowl as well.
- Finish the pasta: Turn off the heat under the stockpot. Carefully place the metal bowl with the pasta directly on top of the stockpot, like a double boiler, so the steam heats the bottom. Continuously toss the pasta until the egg sauce begins to slightly thicken. Immediately remove the bowl from the stockpot and transfer to serving dishes.
- Serve: Serve warm, garnished with an extra sprinkle of cheese and a twist of black pepper.
Notes
Recipe updated to include a richer sauce-to-pasta ratio and a double-boiler method for a more reliable, silky egg sauce that avoids scrambling.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Double Boiler
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 680 kcal
- Sugar: 4 g
- Sodium: 1150 mg
- Fat: 34 g
- Saturated Fat: 15 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 19 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 52 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 38 g
- Cholesterol: 310 mg
Keywords: pasta alla carbonara, Italian pasta, egg sauce, double boiler method