Simple Spaghetti Carbonara

Photo: Kita

Ingredients

Extra virgin olive oil (3 tablespoons)

8 oz diced bacon, pancetta, or guanciale (if you can find it)

1 pound spaghetti

2 cups freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano, depending on your taste

4 large eggs, separated

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 A brunoise of medium red onion

Freshly ground pepper

Kosher salt to taste

Preparation

Bring 5–6 quarts of water to boil in a large pot. Season generously with several pinches of kosher sa lt (this should be done whenever you cook pasta, and cannot be emphasized enough).

In a large (12 in) saute pan, add the olive oil over medium/low heat, tilting the pan to make certain that the oil covers the entire surface. Add the bacon, cooking until it has rendered its fat, and become crisp.

Add onions and garlic to pan, tossing to combine with bacon. Cook for 5 minutes, or until translucent. Remove pan from heat, set aside, do NOT drain the fat.

Cook the spaghetti in the water (it should be at a rolling boil) until al dente, about 5–6 minutes. Reserve 1/3 cup of the pasta water and set aside. Drain the pasta.

Add the reserved pasta water to the pan with the bacon, onions, and garlic, tossing in the pasta. Return the pan to medium heat, shaking it for 1–2 minutes. Remove from the heat, adding in 1 cup of the parmigiano-reggiano, the egg whites, and ground black pepper, tossing all ingredients to make certain they are mixed completely.

Divide the pasta into four portions, topping each portion with one of the reserved egg yolks. (Note: do this gently, so as to not prematurely break the yolk before the plate reaches the diner). Season each yolk with more cracked black pepper, and use the remaining parmigiano-reggiano to garnish the top of each serving. Serve immediately (Note: if you don’t serve immediately, the pasta will have lost enough heat that it won’t cook the yolk when it is stirred in).

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About

From the kitchen of a friend: This is a pretty simple dish, but much like an omelet, there’s a surprising degree of finesse required to execute it properly. There is a fine line you must walk when heating the pasta in the pan: if the heat is too low, the egg whites & pasta water will make the dish runny, as will the egg yolk later; if the heat is too hot, the egg whites will scramble. The goal is for the pasta to have a creamy, unctuous finish, where the cheese, egg whites, pasta water, and finally yolks are in harmony.