This version of Bucatini Carbonara is very creamy and delicious without the cream. Don’t cut back on the coarsely ground black pepper, it blends beautifully with the pasta and the sauce, even though it seems like a lot.
Ingredients
- 4 portions bucatini
- 1-2 tbsp kosher salt (added to water)
- 1 cup finely diced smoked side bacon or pancetta
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp coarsely ground black pepper
Sauce
- 2 large whole eggs plus 1 yolk
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup grated Pecorino-Romano cheese
Instructions
- Gather all ingredients before starting recipe.
- Bring large sauce pan filled with water to a boil, season liberally with kosher salt. Place bucatini in water and cook according to package directions. The bucatini should be cooked a little more than al dente.
- Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat, then add the finely diced bacon or pancetta.
- Cook for 3-5 minutes, or until the bacon has rendered most of its fat and has lightly browned.
- Finely slice 2 cloves of garlic and add to bacon with about 1 tablespoonful of coarsely cracked black pepper. Sauté over medium high heat for about 1 minute.
- Add a ladle full of hot pasta water to the sauté pan, stir to combine and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Whisk together eggs and one egg yolk in a small bowl. Add parmesan and pecorino cheeses to the eggs and mix well to combine.
Sauce
- When the pasta is done, transfer the pasta to the pan with the bacon and toss to combine. Add more fresh cracked black pepper. Keep the pan on a medium high heat, this will cook the pasta a bit more and will keep it hot until you are ready to finish the dish. Reserve some of the pasta water.
- Slowly add a ladle of the warm pasta water to the egg mixture, stirring as you are adding the water, to temper the eggs.
- Remove the pasta from the heat and slowly add egg mixture to hot pasta, tossing gently to combine.
- Garnish with more freshly ground black pepper, a generous sprinkling of Pecorino-Romano and a drizzle of olive oil.
Author Notes
The pasta should be hot, but should be removed from direct heat when you are ready to mix in the eggs and the cheese. This will prevent the eggs from scrambling but the hot pasta will actually 'cook' the eggs to a creamy consistency.
