This is a proper Spaghetti Carbonara recipe, the authentic way Italian home cooks and restaurant chefs make Spaghetti alla Carbonara. This Roman Pasta Carbonara is rich, creamy, with every strand coated in cheese and eggs. So delicious!
Spaghetti Carbonara is one of the most popular Italian pasta recipes and I’m going to teach you a proper recipe of making this easy and delicious pasta.
The pasta is utterly rich with olive oil, creamy, eggy, yet light and delightful. This pasta is called Spaghetti alla Carbonara Roma in Italian.
SPAGHETTI CARBONARA INGREDIENTS
To make a proper and authentic Carbonara, you need the following:
- Spaghetti pasta
- Eggs
- Pecorino Romano cheese or Parmesan cheese in a block, freshly grated
- Guanciale (the cheek of the pork) or pancetta (Italian bacon) preferred. Bacon if you can’t find either of them
- Olive oil
- Salt and ground black pepper
HOW TO MAKE SPAGHETTI CARBONARA
The method involves five (5) steps:
- Cook the spaghetti per the package instructions until al dente.
- Make the egg and cheese mixture.
- Cook the guanciale, pancetta or bacon until crispy.
- Add the spaghetti to the above.
- Mix the egg and cheese mixture to the pasta.
COOKING TIPS FOR THE BEST HOMEMADE CARBONARA
Many people cook this pasta dish completely wrong. I summarized the following tips below:
- Cook the pasta until al dente. In Italy, the texture of al dente is completely different from American al dente; the pasta has a real “hard” bite to it.
- Don’t be afraid of fat from the bacon, Do not discard it after cooking the bacon. It’s culinary gold!
- The biggest mistake that most people commit when making Carbonara is that the eggs are completely “cooked” in hot pasta.
- The last step of the cooking process is very important: before you add the egg and cheese mixture to the pasta, let cool a little bit at room temperature, about 1 minute. You want the egg mixture to coat every strand of the pasta. You don’t want scrambled eggs Carbonara.
- For those who are concerned about raw eggs, the warm pasta should somewhat cook the eggs, so they are not completely raw.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GUANCIALE, PANCETTA AND BACON
If you can find guanciale (the jowl and cheek of pork meat), please use it by all means. FDA has banned all imports of guanciale from Europe. However, you can still find it from stores such as Whole Foods Market.
Pancetta is Italian bacon and comes from the belly of the pig. It’s very similar to bacon but fattier with different cuts.
Bacon is iconic to Americans. It’s cured, sometimes smoked and can come from either the back of the pig or the belly.
Read all about Guanciale vs. Pancetta vs. Bacon here.
For a truly authentic and proper Pasta Carbonara, please use Guanciale just like the Italians.
OTHER RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE
- One Pan Pasta
- Pork Chops
- Baked Pork Chops
- Honey Garlic Salmon in Foil
- Creamy Garlic Butter Chicken
- Chinese Chicken and Shrimp Chow Mein
Spaghetti Carbonara Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 oz. spaghetti
- 2 oz. freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese preferred or Parmesan cheese
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
- Ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 strips guanciale pancetta, or thick cut bacon, cut into pieces
- 1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley
Instructions
- Cook the pasta per the package instructions until al dente.
- In a bowl, beat the eggs lightly, then combine the eggs with freshly grated Parmesan cheese, salt and ground black pepper together. Stir to mix well.
- Cut the bacon into big pieces.
- Heat the olive oil in a skillet and fry the bacon until crispy.
- When the spaghetti is ready, drain and add the spaghetti to the skillet with the bacon. Stir to mix well.
- Remove the skillet from heat. Allow to cool slightly, about 1 minute. Add the egg and cheese mixture. Stir to coat the spaghetti. Top the Spaghetti Carbonara with the chopped parsley.
- Add some freshly grated Parmesan cheese before serving, if you like.
Notes
Related Posts
Bacon Pasta
Creamy Garlic Butter Chicken
Garlic Parmesan Spaghetti
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Gooooooooooooood
Thanks Kassy.
A great recipe, I’ve made it this way for many years, delicious. However I discard most of the bacon fat and add extra egg yolk for more creaminess, and it tastes wonderful.
Awesome Marj, extra egg yolk sounds very good!
Do the eggs cook when mixed with the spaghetti? I didn’t think we were suppose to eat raw eggs.
Did you get an answer to your question? I was curious about the same yhing
Hi Jessica, the eggs are somewhat cooked as the pasta is warm when the eggs are mixed into it.
Hi Kay, the eggs are somewhat cooked when they are mixed with the warm pasta.
Can we use anything else for bacon?
I have a friend who’s a pescatarian (eats fish but not meat) and he used smoked tuna. It was delicious
Sounds yummy! 🙂
I JUST made this, and my picky son thumbs-upped while he was shoving down another forkful. This is a keeper recipe. I don’t know if I’ll have leftovers for tomorrow…might have to make another batch.
*Made to recipe specifications
Hi Juanita, I am so happy that you tried this spaghetti carbonara recipe. Yes, this recipe is very delicious.
Hi.
I buy my pancetta in a chunk. How many ounces or lbs should I buy?
It’s about 4 oz.
My sister’s MIL was from a small Italian town, and made almost this same recipe, but she added lots of black pepper to it! (about a tablespoon, or “enough to make the cook sneeze”) Absolutely delicious!!
That’s good to know, thanks for letting me know.
This is exactly what I was looking for! I was in the mood for some pasta a few weeks ago, and I thought that what I wanted was a pasta with an alfredo sauce. I found a recipe for a decent one, but it didn’t quite satisfy. When I saw this recipe I decided to give it a try based solely on the picture – a total hit with my boys and myself! The only complaint was that I didn’t make enough – and I had doubled the recipe…I guess I’ll triple it next time! Really, so good, so much better than any alfredo that I’ve ever had. This is my new go-to pasta recipe. Thank you so much!
Thanks Megan I am so happy you love my spaghetti carbonara recipe.
Thank you for the pasta recipes. I love them…and they are very easy to make. Prior to seeing these, I usually made Spaghetti bolognese or Milanese, but now I prefer the bacon and prawn pastas…
Awesome!