Ingredients:
1/2 lb. of squared spaghetti or thick spaghetti, whichever you prefer
6 ounces of Guanciale (From Italy – Italian Dry-Cured Pork Jowl) (You can buy this on Amazon or at an Italian market. Don’t use smoked American bacon for authentic carbonara)
6-7 ounces of finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Lots of fresh cracked black pepper
4 eggs (3 yolks, 1 whole egg)
1 tbsp sea salt for the pasta water
Cooking Instructions:
I’m using squared spaghetti from my favorite brand DeCecco, lots of finely grated pecorino romano, four eggs, fresh cracked black pepper, Guanciale, which is pig’s cheek, don’t use smoked bacon, and about a tablespoon of sea salt for the pasta water. Start by dicing the guanciale into fairly large chunks. Separate 3 egg yolks and one whole egg into a bowl. Add in a healthy amount of grated pecorino romano cheese and plenty of cracked pepper. Mix well until a yellow paste is formed. Get some water boiling in a large pot and add in some sea salt. In a medium low heat pan, render the guanciale until crispy. Remove from it from the pan with a slotted spoon to save the rendered fat. Drop about half a pound of squared spaghetti in the boiling water. While the spaghetti cooks, strain the rendered fat and wipe out the remaining bits with a paper towel. On low heat add a little of the fat back to the clean pan. Reserve a cup of the pasta water. Once the spaghetti is al dente, add it to the pan, stir it up, then add some of the guanciale and save some for the top. Add a little splash of the pasta water to the egg mixture to help temper it. Place the pan on top of the boiling pasta water pot, add in all of the egg mixture. Constantly stir and add in pasta water. Do not stop stirring, you don’t want scrambled eggs here. Toss it in the sauce until it’s completely creamy and the spaghetti is coated well. Plate it up, sprinkle on some crispy guanciale, fresh pecorino romano, and lots of black pepper.
Cook Time: 25 mins