Pasta Carbonara is an easy pasta dish that traditionally includes eggs, parmesan cheese, and pancetta. I like to go off script and add heavy cream for an extra creamy sauce, as well as additional spices for a little razzle dazzle.
The traditional recipes calls for pancetta. Pancetta is Italian bacon that can be found at most specialty marts. If you are unable to find pancetta, thick cut pork bacon can be used in its place. Another stable piece of this dish is parmesan cheese. The fresher the cheese, the better. Try to find a block of parmesan cheese that you can grate yourself or pre-grated cheese. When in a pickle you can use shredded cheese but grated is always best .
Can you use any other cheese besides Parmesan? Of course you can! Asiago or Romano would work just as well!
The egg yolks in this dish serves as the base for your pasta sauce. The yolk and cheese mixture should be added to the pasta immediately after the pasta is drained. The heat from the pasta will help melt the grated cheese. To avoid cooking your eggs during this process, you should add some of the starchy pasta water to the yolk mixture before introducing the eggs to the pasta. This process is known as tempering. Tempering the eggs gradually introduces heat to your eggs so they do not start to cook. While slowly pouring the hot water into the egg mixture, stir constantly. Adding the starchy water will also help thicken the sauce and add a bit of salty flavor.
This is a definitely a dish best served hot. Unfortunately, this dish does not reheat well. Although it will still be delicious the creaminess of the sauce will not be retained.