Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large pot for pasta (at least 6 quarts)
• •12-inch skillet or sauté pan
• •Microplane or fine grater
• •Tongs for tossing pasta

Instructions

1. 1

   Start the pasta water

   Fill your largest pot with water and bring it to a rolling boil. Salt it generously until it tastes like the sea. This is your only chance to season the pasta itself. The water should be abundant because you will need some of it later to build the sauce.

2. 2

   Render the guanciale

   Place the guanciale in a cold pan, then set it over medium-low heat. Let the fat render slowly, about eight to ten minutes. You want the meat to crisp at its edges while releasing its sweet, peppery fat into the pan. Do not rush this. The rendered fat is your cooking medium, your flavor base, your connection to the pig and the person who cured it.

   Starting in a cold pan prevents the outside from seizing before the fat has time to melt away from the meat.
3. 3

   Prepare the egg mixture

   While the guanciale renders, whisk together the egg yolks, whole eggs, and most of the pecorino in a bowl. Add a generous grinding of black pepper. The mixture should be thick, almost paste-like. Set it beside the stove where you can reach it quickly.

4. 4

   Cook the pasta

   Drop the spaghetti into the boiling water and cook until just shy of al dente, about one minute less than the package suggests. The pasta will finish cooking in the pan. Before draining, save at least two cups of the starchy cooking water. This cloudy liquid is essential.

5. 5

   Combine pasta and guanciale

   When the guanciale is crisp and golden, remove the pan from heat. Let it cool for one minute. This is important. Transfer the drained pasta directly into the pan with the guanciale and rendered fat. Toss to coat every strand.

6. 6

   Create the sauce

   With the pan still off the heat, pour the egg mixture over the pasta. Toss vigorously, lifting and turning the strands so the residual heat cooks the eggs into a silky coating without scrambling them. Add splashes of pasta water as needed, a few tablespoons at a time, until the sauce clings to each strand and pools slightly in the bottom of the pan. The consistency should be loose and creamy, not tight or gluey.

   If the eggs begin to curdle into bits, add more pasta water immediately and toss faster. The starch helps smooth things out.
7. 7

   Finish and serve

   Taste. Adjust with more pepper, more cheese, or a pinch of salt if needed. The guanciale and pecorino are both salty, so go carefully. Serve immediately in warmed bowls, topped with the remaining pecorino and another generous crack of black pepper. Carbonara waits for no one.

Chef Tips

• •Seek out guanciale from an Italian butcher or specialty market. Pancetta is acceptable, bacon is not. The sweetness of the jowl fat is irreplaceable.
• •Pecorino Romano must be aged and sharp. Parmesan is a different dish entirely. Grate it yourself on a microplane for the finest texture.
• •Room temperature eggs are essential. Cold eggs seize when they hit the hot pasta, creating curds instead of sauce.
• •The pan comes off the heat before the egg mixture goes in. Remember this. The residual warmth is enough.
• •Carbonara is best in cooler months when you crave richness. In summer, consider a lighter pasta with fresh tomatoes and basil instead.

Advance Preparation

• •The egg and cheese mixture can be whisked together up to one hour ahead and kept at room temperature.
• •Guanciale can be cut into batons a day ahead and refrigerated.
• •Carbonara cannot be reheated successfully. Make it, serve it, eat it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 320g)