Active Time
24 minutes
Total Time
24 minutes
With crispy bits of pork, a peppery bite, and a velvety cheese sauce enriched with eggs, carbonara is just as easy to make for dinner as it is at 2 a.m. after a long night out. It’s one of Rome’s signature dishes, and just like cacio e pepe and other pasta recipes in that class, its simplicity demands proper technique and quality ingredients. Cured meat adds a salty depth to the dish, and while guanciale is the most traditional choice, diced pancetta or bacon also work well. Egg yolks give the carbonara sauce its luscious texture and golden hue, so pick up farm-fresh eggs if you can. And when it comes to the cheese and pasta, this is the time to spend a little extra: Buy a wedge of Romano cheese or real Parmigiano Reggiano and a nice box of spaghetti, bucatini, or rigatoni.
A word on technique: To achieve the creamy sauce’s signature sheen, adding the ingredients at just the right time and temperature is key for any carbonara recipe. Whisking a quarter cup of hot pasta water into the raw egg mixture and turning off the heat before adding it to the pasta helps bring everything together into a glossy, emulsified sauce without overcooking the yolks. From there, toss everything together quickly and add more pasta cooking water to thin the sauce as needed.
At dinner this pasta dish is nice served alongside a plate of greens, but when you’re in the throes of an after-hours hang, just grab a fork.
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What you’ll need
Dutch Oven
$133 $80 At Amazon
Tongs
$21 At Amazon
Chef's Knife
$34.53 At Amazon
Heatproof Measuring Cup
$26 At Amazon
Box Grater
$12 At Amazon
Whisk
$10 At Amazon
Measuring Spoons
$10 At Bon Appétit Market
Large Pot
$55 $48 At Amazon
Cutting Board
$10 At IKEA
Medium Bowl
$17 At Amazon
Wooden Spoon
$7 At Amazon
Colander
$11 At Amazon
Ingredients
4 servings
3
4
2
4
2
2
1
Preparation
Step 1
Heat 6 qt. water in a large pot over high. When water starts to steam, add 3 Tbsp. salt and cover pot with a lid (this will bring water to a boil faster).
Step 2
While you are waiting on the water, do a little prep. Remove 4 oz. guanciale from packaging and cut into about 1x¼" strips. Finely grate 2 oz. cheese and set aside one-quarter of cheese for later.
Step 3
Whisk 4 egg yolks and 2 whole eggs in a medium bowl until no streaks remain, then stir in remaining grated cheese. Add several cranks of pepper and set aside.
Step 4
Working next to pot, heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium. Add guanciale and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp around the edges, 7–10 minutes.
Step 5
Remove pot from heat. Using a wooden spoon, fish out guanciale and transfer to a small bowl. Pour fat into a heatproof measuring cup, then add back about 3 Tbsp. to pot. Discard any remaining fat.
Step 6
Cook 1 lb. pasta in boiling water, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes shy of package instructions. Just before pasta is finished, scoop out 1¾ cups pasta cooking liquid with same heatproof measuring cup.
Step 7
Add 1 cup reserved pasta cooking liquid to Dutch oven and bring to a boil over medium-high. Drain pasta in a colander, then transfer to Dutch oven.
Step 8
Cook pasta, stirring constantly and vigorously, until al dente and water is reduced by about half, about 2 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
Step 9
Whisk ¼ cup reserved pasta water into egg mixture, then very slowly stream into Dutch oven, stirring constantly, until cheese is melted and egg is thickened to form a glossy sauce. Season with salt, if needed. Thin sauce with remaining ½ cup pasta cooking liquid, adding a tablespoonful at a time, until it's the consistency of heavy cream (you most likely won’t use all of it).
Step 10
Mix in guanciale and divide pasta among bowls. Top with pepper and reserved cheese.
Editor’s note: This recipe was originally printed in our January 2018 issue. Head this way for more of our best pasta recipes →
Leave a Review
Reviews (552)
Back to TopThis is a wonderful recipe. Do remember to remove the pot from the heat before mixing the sauce. You'll get something akin to baby vomit, though it will still taste wonderful. LOL
Michael
Houston, TX
4/9/2024
To Doug R. I thought Ian's comment was helpful and not pedantic. In contrast, yours sounded condescending (from Merriam-Webster : showing or characterized by a patronizing or superior attitude toward others).
Anonymous
4/4/2024
What salt does do is raise the boiling point, thus making the water hotter. It should be added just before you put in the pasta. <a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/adding-salt-increases-water-boiling-point-607447" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer ugc">https://www.thoughtco.com/adding-salt-increases-water-boiling-point-607447</a> m <a href="https://www.americastestkitchen.com/articles/5840-how-salty-should-your-pasta-water-be" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer ugc">https://www.americastestkitchen.com/articles/5840-how-salty-should-your-pasta-water-be</a> No need for snark or pedantry; just look up the answers for yourself.
aasinn01
Louisville
3/26/2024
Salty egg water soup with noodles. It went in the garbage and I had mcdonald's for dinner. This recipe is too vague; you can follow it within the limits of the instructions and it may not turn out. Even if you do get lucky, you might not next time. I won't be making anything else with my precious ingredients using inadequate and untested recipes from this magazine. Don't bother with this unless you've already mastered carbonara elsewhere because you won't find the secret sauce here.
Stuart
Canada
3/23/2024
I have made this so many times and it’s always perfection. We have even had it for Sunday breakfast made with a small pasta, such as mini bows. It never disappoints!
Mamaria21
New Jersey
2/21/2024
This was delicious, our family enjoyed it very much! Followed recipe exactly: easy to bring together and quick to get on the table. No complaints.
JH
2/13/2024
This is great. The salt doesn’t make the water boil sooner it’s the cover. Gee whiz
Anonymous
South Portland ME
2/6/2024
Hey Ian and Steven, Its the LID………..MORONS.
Pete
Easton, Pa
1/9/2024
This recipe is perfect as written. In the fall, I do make one slight tweak and call it "fall carbonara". I crisp up some sage leaves in the oil before adding the guanciale, then add the leaves back on top of the final dish. It imparts a really nice sage flavor that doesn't overwhelm, but does add the fall feeling without distracting from the beautiful texture and flavor of the original dish.
Sarah
Boulder
10/30/2023
To Ian of Kansas and Steven S of Novato: What unnecessary and pedantic comments you make! (from Merriam-Webster: Pedantic is an insulting word used to describe someone who annoys others by correcting small errors, caring too much about minor details, or emphasizing their own expertise especially in some narrow or boring subject matter. - Making my comments pedantic too.)
Doug R
CA
10/5/2023
Easy! Directions are so step by step it's hard to go wrong. Flavor is wonderful
Dianne
Seven Lakes, NC
10/4/2023
Really lovely but I felt like it needed a little acid? Before you purists take me to task, I know traditional carbonara doesn’t call for acid but I’m really more interested in it being delicious. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Perhaps I didn’t use enough pepper or maybe my pasta water was under salted. It just lacked balance.
Corrina
Phoenix, AZ
8/8/2023
The commenter talking about "salt doesn't make it boil faster" ... I made this account and am leaving this comment just for you and any other potential readers.. You are correct that adding salt to water doesn't make it boil faster -- it actually makes it boil ((slower)) due to what's called "boiling point elevation", which is a colligative property of matter. There is also "freezing point depression", which is why adding salt to the roads in the winter helps de-ice the roads. This is because the salt molecules get in-between the water molecules and make it more difficult for the liquid water to form solid ice. Effectively lowering (depressing) the melting temperature. The same applies to boiling liquids -- adding salt to the water causes salt molecules to "get in-between" water molecules and thus makes them less apt to boil (from liquid to gas). That said -- adding salt to water when making pasta definitely does not affect the boiling point to a measurable extent. I believe the part in the recipe where the author states "this helps it boil faster" is referring to putting the lid onto the pot as the water starts to steam -- not the salting! As for the recipe -- I am making this tonight. Looks great!
Ian
Kansas
6/28/2023
I've made this recipe and it worked perfectly and wad enjoyed by all. It has become part of my regular weeknight repertoire, especially good for impressing last minute guests. Fun fact, salt doesn't really make water boil faster no matter when it's added. For all practical purposes, it's a myth. I'm surprised BA would include this note in a recipe. Any change in time it takes the salted water to boil or temperature it reaches is imperceptible except by very sensitive instruments. True if you added 20% salt to the water you might actually notice a difference, but the food you cook would be inedibly salty.
Steven S
Novato
6/24/2023
This came together so easily. It took about the exact time stated, which always makes me happy. I ended up adding more pasta water than it called for - I pulled 2 cups from the pot and needed about 1/4 cup more than that. Incredibly delicious.
Becca
New York, NY
6/8/2023