How to Do It
Ingredients (4 servings): 400g spaghetti, 200g bacon or pancetta, 1 onion, 4 eggs, 100g grated Parmesan. Plus: salt, pepper, a pinch of nutmeg.
Step 1: Cook spaghetti al dente
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil and cook the spaghetti. Important: Save about 100 ml of the pasta water before draining – it's your sauce lifeline.
Step 2: Crisp up the bacon
Cut bacon into strips and fry slowly in a non-stick pan without oil until crispy. Remove, reduce heat, and sauté the finely chopped onion in the bacon fat for about 3 minutes.
Step 3: Prepare the egg-cheese mix
Whisk 4 eggs with 100g Parmesan. Season with salt, pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg.
Step 4: The crucial moment
Add spaghetti and bacon back to the pan and heat briefly. Then: take the pan off the heat! Pour the egg-cheese mixture over the pasta and toss thoroughly. The residual heat is enough to create a creamy, silky sauce.
Why No Cream?
Authentic Roman Carbonara never contains cream. The creaminess comes entirely from the emulsion of eggs, cheese, and starchy pasta water. Cream makes the sauce heavy and masks the flavour. Italian grandmothers would hit you with a wooden spoon.
The 3 Most Common Mistakes
- Scrambling the eggs: Take the pan off the heat before adding the egg mixture. Otherwise you get scrambled eggs, not a sauce.
- Forgetting to save pasta water: If the sauce gets too thick, a splash of pasta water saves everything. The starch makes it silky.
- Using cream: That's not Carbonara. End of discussion.
Pro Tips
- Guanciale (cured pork cheek) instead of bacon is even more authentic.
- Pecorino Romano instead of Parmesan (or a 50/50 mix) adds more depth.
- Serve immediately – Carbonara waits for no one.
- If the sauce is too thick: add pasta water a tablespoon at a time.
- If the eggs scrambled: sadly unrepairable – take the pan off heat sooner next time.
Good to Know
- Prep time: about 15 minutes (5 min prep + 10 min cooking)
- Per serving: approx. 685 kcal
- Perfect for: weeknight dinners, students, families
- Leftovers: Not recommended – Carbonara with soft-cooked eggs should be eaten fresh.