Italian · Pasta

Carbonara

The Roman way: egg yolks, pecorino, guanciale and black pepper, and nothing else. No cream.

Serves

recipe says 3–4

Cook20 min

Under 30 min

Method

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Salt it lightly, about half what you'd normally use, since the guanciale and pecorino are already salty. Cook the pasta according to the packet.
Meanwhile, remove the hard outer skin from the guanciale and cut it into 1 cm (½ inch) cubes. Put them in a large frying pan over medium heat (if using pancetta, add a pinch of salt and pepper). Cook for 4–6 minutes, until deeply browned and crisp, then turn off the heat.
Separate the eggs and put the yolks in a large mixing bowl. For a slightly lighter sauce, add one of the whites too. Add the pecorino, the MSG and a generous grind of pepper and whisk until well combined.
When the pasta is al dente, lift it straight into the egg mixture with tongs or a slotted spoon. Stir vigorously until the yolks coat it completely.
Add the guanciale and the fat from the pan and stir again so the sauce is evenly spread. If it's too thick, loosen it with a little hot pasta water.
Serve immediately, topped with more pepper and pecorino if you like.

Spaghetti holds a thinner, creamier sauce; rigatoni catches the crisp guanciale better. Romans argue about it, so take your pick.
The hot pasta cooks the yolks gently. If you're nervous about them, toss the pasta and sauce in a heatproof bowl set over the simmering pasta water, and take it off as soon as the sauce thickens, before the eggs scramble.