by Amber 14 Comments
Spaghetti Carbonara is a classic dish made with spaghetti, bacon, egg, Parmesan cheese and garlic. A busy night go-to in my family!
Spaghetti Carbonara is a classic pasta dish that the whole family loves and you can have it on the table in about 15 minutes making it a perfect dish for those busy nights! Everyone needs a few really easy, go-to pasta dishes and Spaghetti Carbonara is definitely on my list!
You may also enjoy this other pasta classic of Pasta Aglio e Olio. Dinner doesn’t need to be complicated!
Spaghetti Carbonara
Spaghetti Carbonara is creamy and garlicky with a bite of pepper with the Parmesan cheese and ground pepper. Bacon adds that saltiness. Gosh, I really do think I could eat this dish every week of my life and never get bored.
Egg
I grew up eating carbonara so I have never thought twice about adding raw egg to pasta like the instructions state. I do understand that some people may be cautious about doing so. You do want to use fresh, pasteurized eggs. Also, make sure the pasta is used right after draining so it is HOT. The heat from the pasta is what cooks the egg as it is stirred in and safe to consume.
Bacon
Carbonara is traditionally made with pancetta but I typically use bacon. It is a bit cheaper and easier to find as not every grocery will carry pancetta. If you prefer pancetta, absolutely use it for this recipe. You will not need to cook it like bacon however as pancetta is cured and ready to eat so just heat it on the stovetop for a minute with some garlic and then immediately add the pasta, reserved water, egg and cheese. Instructions below in the recipe card are for those using bacon!
Spaghetti Carbonara
- Author: Amber
- Prep Time: 6
- Cook Time: 9
- Total Time: 15
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Spaghetti Carbonara is a classic dish made with spaghetti, bacon, egg, Parmesan cheese and garlic. A busy night go-to in my family!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 pound spaghetti
- 8 slices thick cut bacon, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, shredded or grated
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 egg
- ground pepper
- salt
- 1/2 cup reserved pasta water
- parsley, garnish
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix 4 eggs and 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese together. Sprinkle in some ground pepper. Set to side for later.
- Bring 4-6 quarts of water to a boil. Add salt and pasta.
- Boil pasta el dente per instructions on box.
- Chop the bacon.
- Finely mince the garlic cloves.
- Timing is important with Carbonara so right when you put the pasta in the boiling pot, add the bacon into a large preheated saute pan on the stove top. Cook the bacon for 6 minutes or until crispy.
- Add the minced garlic. Cook until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add in half cup of pasta water from your boiling pot to your bacon pan.
- Immediately drain the pasta as it finishes it cook time. Place the drained pasta into the bacon pan and stir ingredients together.
- Remove the pan from heat and add the egg mixture. Stir well and quickly.
- Serve with some fresh ground pepper and parmesan cheese on top. Garnish with parsley.
Notes
- Sometimes I drain the bacon grease as it crisps up. It depends on how fatty the bacon is. You do want a little bit of bacon grease to coat the pasta. This gives the pasta really nice flavor. If your bacon is swimming in grease as you cook it however, just give it a drain before adding garlic.
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: pasta, carbonara, bacon, pancetta,
What are some of your favorite classic pasta dishes? Let me know in the comments below.
You Might Also Enjoy:
BLT Hot DogsSlow Cooker Orange Marmalade Glazed HamCheesy Taco PastaCarbonara with Peas
Previous Post: « Root Beer Pulled Pork Sliders
Next Post: Berly’s Kitchen Cinnamon Rolls »
Reader Interactions
Comments
What a simple yet delicious meal. I am such a terrible cook which is why I love simple dishes like this Spaghetti carbonara recipe. Thank you so much for sharing!
Reply
That looks so good! I’ve never tried Spaghetti carbonara before, but that does sound like the perfect weeknight meal.
Reply
This is a frequent weeknight meal in our home, so easy and super yummy!!!
Reply
I have never made carbonara from scratch yet, but after reading your post, I’m inspired.
Reply
Oh my god I know what I’m eating for dinner tonight
Reply
certifiedpastryaficionadoYummm! I didn’t think carbonara was so quick and easy. Quick question: what about the yolks? Do they get cooked from the heat of the pasta or something?
Reply
- Aaron and Amber
Good question. Sort of scarey throwing in raw eggs but the pasta, bacon grease and hot left over pasta water cook that egg up and it sticks to the noodle.
Reply
This looks so simple and so delicious!!! I love me some pasta!
Reply
This sounds really good. I’ve never made carbonara before but it sounds pretty easy!
Reply
OK, so this looks pretty simple-I may be trying this soon. I’m really diggin’ the fact that it’s one of those no fuss recipes. I can see making this even on a week night.
Reply
- Aaron and Amber
Easy meal to throw together for the family after a busy work day.
Reply
My daughter and I love this recipe. Plus really is easy to make and so darn good.
Reply
- Aaron and Amber
Definetly a favorite around here.
Reply
Leave a Reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
