10 cupswater,(for pasta; reserve some to temper the eggs)
1tablespoonsalt (for pasta water)
8slicesbacon,cooked, crumbled and drained
½tablespoonground black pepper
2tablespoonsred pepper flakes(optional)
Instructions
Prep
Crack and separate cold eggs; place egg yolks in a bowl; whisk well; add ½ cup grated cheese to eggs; combine well and set aside
2 large egg yolks
Grate cheese and set aside: ½ of the cheese will go into the eggs; the other ½ will be used at the end of the recipe
8 oz Percorino-Romano cheese
In a large pot on medium-high heat, bring salted water to boil
10 cups water, 1 tablespoon salt (for pasta water)
Cut bacon into small pieces; set aside
8 slices bacon
Instructions
In a large skillet, cook bacon pieces till crispy; remove bacon pieces and place on paper towel
Discard all but 1 tablespoon of bacon grease from the skillet; place pan on the stove on a low setting
Cook pasta 7- 9 minutes (al dente); drain (reserve 1 ½ cups of the water in a bowl); set aside
1 lb spaghetti pasta
Using tongs, transfer drained pasta to the warm skillet with bacon grease; toss pasta
Temper the Eggs
Add ¼ cup of the warm pasta water to egg/cheese mixture, stirring continuously; repeat by adding another ¼ cup to egg/cheese mixture; combine well
Pour egg/cheese/water mixture over pasta; combine well; at this point, if you want more sauce, drizzle in a little more of the water from the pasta into the pan
Add remaining ½ cup grated cheese and bacon crumbles to pasta and tempered egg mixture; (add red pepper flakes now if using them)
2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
Add ground pepper to pasta; combine well and serve; garnish with remaining cheese and serve
½ tablespoon ground black pepper
Notes
Use any strand pasta you like: spaghetti, angel hair, linguine, fettuccine...Authentic carbonara sauce uses no cream, no Parmesan, no onions, no garlic and no green peas - you can add these if you likeThe "bacon" used in a truly authentic carbonara is actually guanciale, which is an Italian cured meat from the pork jowls. You can substitute the Pecorino-Romano cheese with Parmesan, but authentic carbonara doesn't use Parmesan; Pecorino-Romano is much more pungent and flavorful You probably won't use all of the reserved pasta water; store leftover in the refrigerator and when you're ready to heat leftovers, put the pasta in a skillet and drizzle a little of the reserved liquid over it; you may want to add more grated cheese at this point.