Pasta Carbonara
Ingredients:
- 350 g (12 oz) of spaghetti (or make your own!)
- 200 g (7 oz) of pancetta (Gwinner's pancetta is the best)
- 4 whole medium eggs (1 egg each yeld)
- 100 g (1 cup + 1 tablespoon) of grated Pecorino Romano cheese (Check out our cheese cooler for Pinna Pecorino Romano Cheese, you'll find them wrapped and labeled by Stoke Market!)
- Fresh ground black pepper - to taste.
Directions:
1. First, boil the water for the pasta while you prepare the carbonara sauce. Remember: 1 liter (4 cups) of water for every 100 g (3,50 oz) of pasta and 15 g (1 tablespoon) of coarse salt per liter (4 cups) of water.
2. Cut the pancetta into small pieces, then cook in a skillet over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Stir occasionally so that it cooks evenly. Depending on your taste you can keep it soft or bake it until crunchy. When it’s ready, turn off the heat, cover with a lid and set aside.
3. Time to prepare the pecorino cream. In a bowl, put the eggs and pecorino Romano cheese. Use the whole egg, not only the egg yolk.Pinna Pecorino Romano Cheese, the only cheese that is recommended for making carbonara, is a very salty and flavourful Italian cheese so there is no need to add salt. Add some freshly ground black pepper. Then, mix quickly with a fork – or a hand whisk – until you have a creamy sauce. Note: This egg and pecorino cheese sauce should be quite thick. Set it aside for the moment.
4. When the water is boiling, add the salt and cook the spaghetti. If you chose a fairly large pot, the spaghetti should fit comfortably without breaking them. Whole, unbroken spaghetti is best, so you can more easily roll them around the tines of your fork without the help of a spoon. Cook the spaghetti al dente, following the cooking time found on the pasta package. Note: when you're making your own pasta, it requires a shorter cooking time (about 2 minutes or even shorter).
5. Using a spoon for spaghetti, drain the pasta when ready. Then place them in the skillet, over high heat, to season well with the pancetta.
6. Now it's time to shine, where you can make it or break it!
When the spaghetti and pancetta sizzle in the pan, turn off the heat, otherwise the eggs will overcook and you’ll end up with scrambled eggs and pasta! No fun. Quickly add the eggs and pecorino cream to the hot pasta and stir. The pan is not too hot, this way the eggs will cook without lumps.
> Pay attention to the consistency, which should be creamy, but not runny.
> If you notice that your carbonara is too runny, add some grated pecorino cheese.
> Or, if you see that it’s too sticky and dense, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of cooking water.
7. It's ready! With the help of a ladle and a fork, create a pasta nest and place it on a plate.
8. Add the pancetta (what’s left in the pan), freshly ground black pepper and grated pecorino romano to taste.
Buon appetito!