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Mains · Italian

Spaghetti Carbonara

Guanciale rendered slowly, a yolk-rich sauce, and the one step that matters most: letting the pan cool before the eggs go in.

Prep
10 min
Cook
15 min
Total
25 min
Serves
2

Added · Revised : Revised from two whole eggs to three yolks and one whole egg.

Illustration of carbonara

Why this version

  • Three yolks plus one whole egg gave a glossier sauce than two whole eggs, which turned grainy twice out of five.
  • Cooking the pasta in half the usual water makes it starchier, and that starch is what holds the sauce together.
  • Mixing off the heat, after the pan stops sizzling, beat the double-boiler method on both texture and washing-up.

Ingredients

Servings
2 servings
Units
  • 200 g spaghetti
  • 120 g guanciale or pancetta, cut into 1 cm batons
  • 3 large egg yolks
  • 1 large egg
  • 50 g pecorino romano, finely grated, plus more to serve
  • 1 tsp black peppercorns, coarsely crushed
  • 1 tbsp coarse salt, for the pasta water

Method

  1. Bring 2 litres of water to the boil in a wide pot with the salt. That is less water than usual on purpose: it becomes starchier.

  2. Meanwhile, put the guanciale in a cold large frying pan and set it over medium-low heat. Let it render for 8–10 minutes, stirring now and then, until the fat is clear and the edges are crisp but the centres are still a little chewy. Turn off the heat.

  3. In a bowl, whisk the yolks, whole egg, pecorino and most of the pepper into a thick paste.

  4. Cook the spaghetti for 1 minute less than the packet says. Scoop out 250 ml of the cooking water before draining, or lift the pasta straight into the frying pan with tongs.

  5. Add the pasta and 60 ml of the cooking water to the guanciale pan and toss over low heat for 30 seconds so the pasta takes up the fat. Then take the pan off the heat and wait about a minute, until it stops sizzling.

  6. Whisk 2 tbsp of the pasta water into the egg mixture, then pour it over the pasta. Toss hard with tongs for 1–2 minutes, adding cooking water a splash at a time, until the sauce turns glossy and clings to every strand. If it stays runny, set the pan over the lowest heat for 10-second bursts, tossing all the time.

  7. Serve immediately, with more pecorino and the rest of the pepper.

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What we tested

  • Two whole eggs (our original version): fine on a good day, but the whites set into fine curds twice in five attempts.
  • Double boiler over simmering water: reliable, but no better than the off-heat method, and one more pan to wash.
  • Half parmesan, half pecorino: milder and rounder; good if pecorino tastes too salty to you.

Keeping

Carbonara does not keep: the sauce tightens as it cools. Make it for no more than four people at a time.

Swaps and notes

Thick-cut smoked bacon works in place of guanciale; render it a couple of minutes less. There is no cream or garlic here, not out of purism but because neither improved the dish when we tried them.

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