American🍜 Noodles & pasta

The Faster Better Way to Make Carbonara

Name: The Faster Better Way to Make Carbonara
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 650 g thick-cut bacon; 150 g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, aged 18 months; 150 g Pecorino Romano cheese; 3 large eggs; 9 egg yolks; 5-6 g cracked black pepper; 10 g cornstarch; ~3 tbsp olive oil; 115 ml water; 900 g spaghetti; 2250 ml water; 10 g salt

⏱ 25 min🍽 Serves 8

A modern one-pot take on classic Carbonara using bacon instead of traditional guanciale. Ready in 25 minutes and easily serves eight. The egg and cheese mixture is stabilized with cornstarch to keep the sauce creamy and emulsified even under heat.

Adapted from a video by Brian Lagerstrom

The Faster BETTER way to make Carbonara (25 Mins!)

Watch on YouTube

Ingredients

thick-cut bacon650 g
Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, aged 18 months150 g
Pecorino Romano cheese150 g
large eggs3
egg yolks9
cracked black pepper5-6 g
cornstarch10 g
olive oil~3 tbspest.
waterfor cooking bacon115 ml
spaghetti900 g

Steps

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1
Dice the bacon into small squares. Cut each slab in half lengthwise, then cut those strips into uniform pieces.
2
Shred the Parmigiano Reggiano and Pecorino Romano on the feather-shred side of a box grater, 150g each.
3
Place the shredded cheeses in a bowl, then add 3 large eggs and 9 egg yolks. Mix in the cracked black pepper and cornstarch, whisking to combine.
4
Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add a generous amount of olive oil, all the diced bacon, and about ½ cup of water.
5
Bring to a hard simmer and cook until the water has completely evaporated and the bacon fat is nicely rendered.
6
Continue frying the bacon in its own fat for 5–10 minutes over medium heat, stirring every minute, until it turns reddish-brown and crispy around the edges.
7
Remove the pot from heat and transfer the bacon and its fat to a bowl. Pour off about two-thirds of the bacon fat, leaving approximately 3–4 tablespoons in the pot.
8
Break the 2 pounds of spaghetti in half.
9
Return the pot to high heat and add 2250 mL of water. Deglaze the pot with a wooden spoon, scraping up any flavorful brown bacon bits stuck to the bottom.
10
Bring to a boil, add 10g of salt, then add all the broken spaghetti. Use tongs to push it down and ensure everything is fully submerged.
11
Reduce heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and cook for 10 minutes total. At the 5-minute mark, stir and flip the pasta to ensure it's not stuck together and remains submerged. Cook until just past al dente.
12
Ladle 1.5–2 cups of the hot pasta cooking liquid into the egg and cheese mixture. Whisk immediately to combine and temper the eggs.
13
Pour the egg and cheese mixture and cooked bacon along with the 3 tablespoons of reserved bacon fat over the cooked pasta. Stir gently to combine.
14
Return the pot to the stove over very low heat for 1–2 minutes. Using tongs, gently fold the pasta to distribute heat evenly until the sauce thickens and becomes creamy and velvety.
15
Taste and adjust salt if needed.
16
Plate the pasta and top with 10–12 pieces of bacon, grated Parmigiano or Pecorino, and fresh cracked black pepper.

The Faster Better Way to Make Carbonara

Ingredients

Steps

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