Recipe Studio
64 minutes•Medium•Serves 2

Bacon Carbonara

Jump to recipe
Bacon Carbonara

By @chef1

A classic Roman pasta dish that relies on a delicate emulsion of eggs, cheese, and rendered pork fat rather than cream. This recipe tests your temperature control to create a silky sauce without scrambling the eggs.

Recipe Rating

Not yet rated by chefs

Ingredients

  • ●200g Spaghetti, dry
  • ●100g Bacon, raw
  • ●50g Pecorino Romano, finely grated
  • ●30g Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated
  • ●2 whole + 1 yolk Large Eggs
  • ●1 tsp (generous amount) Black Pepper, freshly cracked
  • ●0.5g Salt
  • ●10g Parmesan cheese, grated

Instructions

  1. 1
    Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
  2. 2
    While water heats, cut the Bacon into small strips or cubes.
  3. 3
    Place Bacon in a cold skillet and turn heat to medium-low. Cook slowly to render the fat until the meat is crispy. Remove pan from heat but keep the fat and meat in the pan.
  4. 4
    In a medium bowl, whisk together the whole eggs, egg yolk, Pecorino Romano, Parmigiano Reggiano, and a generous amount of black pepper until a thick paste forms.
  5. 5
    Cook the dry spaghetti for 10 minutes or to the actual package’s al dente time. Reserve 240ml pasta water before draining.
  6. 6
    Add the drained pasta directly to the pan with the Bacon and toss to coat in the rendered fat. If the pan is very hot, let it cool slightly to avoid scrambling the eggs.
  7. 7
    Pour the egg and cheese mixture over the pasta. Immediately begin tossing and stirring vigorously.
  8. 8
    Gradually add small splashes of the reserved hot pasta water while stirring constantly. The heat from the pasta and the agitation will emulsify the eggs, cheese, and fat into a creamy sauce.
  9. 9
    Toss for 2 minutes until creamy. Serve with all the measured 10g finishing Parmesan and the listed pepper.

Recipe details

Cuisine
Italian
Category
Main course
Preparation
28 minutes
Cooking
31 minutes

Estimated total: 64 minutes. Planning estimate: stated duration ranges use their midpoint; standard preparation, heating and handling allowances are included. Overlapping tasks are counted once. Resting/chilling is included in total time.

How these estimates were calculated
  • Prepare measured ingredients: 10 min planning allowance (vegetable_prep)
  • boil heat: 10 min planning allowance (boil_heat)
  • simple prep: 5 min planning allowance (simple_prep)
  • pan preheat: 3 min planning allowance (pan_preheat)
  • saute: 8 min planning allowance (saute)
  • mix: 3 min planning allowance (mix)
  • brief cool: 5 min planning allowance (brief_cool)
  • transfer: 2 min planning allowance (transfer)
  • mix: 3 min planning allowance (mix)
  • mix: 3 min planning allowance (mix)
  • Chosen 10-minute initial preparation allowance includes implicit chopping and measuring; written preparation is not counted here again.
  • Owner-authorized explicit recipe amount or suitable ingredient substitution.
  • Replace guanciale/pancetta with explicitly chosen raw bacon; retain all rendered fat as written.
  • USDA Parmesan, matching grated versus hard form.
  • Whole egg: USDA large portion weight
  • Egg yolk: USDA large portion weight
  • Black Pepper, freshly cracked: USDA tsp, ground portion weight
  • Matched to 1 tsp ground black pepper. 'Generous amount' is interpreted as the standard 1 tsp.
  • Table salt; unknown quantity means sodium is omitted, not guessed.
  • Chosen measured finishing cheese, separate from the sauce cheese.
  • Combined whole eggs and additional yolks calculated separately using USDA large-egg portions.
  • Bacon, raw: Replace guanciale/pancetta with explicitly chosen raw bacon; retain all rendered fat as written. Original: {"item":"Guanciale (or Pancetta), cubed","amount":"100g"}. Authored: {"item":"Bacon, raw","amount":"100g"}.
  • Parmesan cheese, grated: Chosen measured finishing cheese, separate from the sauce cheese. Original: not separately listed. Authored: {"item":"Parmesan cheese, grated","amount":"10g"}.
  • Spaghetti, dry: Owner-authorized explicit recipe amount or suitable ingredient substitution. Original: {"item":"Spaghetti or Rigatoni","amount":"200g"}. Authored: {"item":"Spaghetti, dry","amount":"200g"}.
  • Salt: Chosen weighed edible amount; not an inferred yield from the original count, package or vague amount. Original: {"item":"Salt","amount":"For pasta water"}. Authored: {"item":"Salt","amount":"0.5g"}.
  • Bacon, raw: Replace guanciale/pancetta with explicitly chosen raw bacon; retain all rendered fat as written. Original: {"item":"Guanciale (or Pancetta), cubed","amount":"100g"}. Authored: {"item":"Bacon, raw","amount":"100g"}.
  • Parmesan cheese, grated: Chosen measured finishing cheese, separate from the sauce cheese. Original: not separately listed. Authored: {"item":"Parmesan cheese, grated","amount":"10g"}.
  • Spaghetti, dry: Owner-authorized explicit recipe amount or suitable ingredient substitution. Original: {"item":"Spaghetti or Rigatoni","amount":"200g"}. Authored: {"item":"Spaghetti, dry","amount":"200g"}.
  • Salt: Chosen weighed edible amount; not an inferred yield from the original count, package or vague amount. Original: {"item":"Salt","amount":"For pasta water"}. Authored: {"item":"Salt","amount":"0.5g"}.

carbonara · guanciale · Pecorino Romano · egg emulsion

Estimated nutrition per serving

850 calories · 41.3 g protein · 79.8 g carbohydrate · 39.4 g fat · 3.5 g fiber · 1271 mg sodium

Source and basis: USDA FoodData Central and reviewed product references; ingredient-based calculation per serving. Documented USDA or manufacturer portion weights; all listed ingredient mass included before cooking losses. Full ingredient matches and assumptions below.

Recipe Context

This recipe was created with the following context in mind:

Wednesday
late night
fall
intermediate
Sign in to report content