Spaghetti Carbonara

Ingredients (Serves: 4)

400g of Spaghetti Rustichella d’Abruzzo, 2 whole eggs, 4 egg yolks, 50g grated pecorino cheese, 90g grated Grana Padano riserva cheese, 400g of guanciale (or pancetta), salt and black pepper to taste.

Preparation

Remove the rind from the guanciale, slice in ½ cm thick slices, and chop into thick strips. Gently fry the guanciale in a pan on low heat. This will slowly render the fat and the guanciale will crisp up to golden perfection. When done in about 10/15 minutes, drain the guanciale from the fat and pat dry on kitchen paper. Dispose correctly 3 quarters of the fat left in the pan and keep the rest to dress the pasta.

To create the sabayon, whisk the yolks, the whole eggs, and the grated cheeses in a large bowl. Now place the bowl on a bain-marie and cook gently while whisking to reach a thick custard-like consistency. It should take about 2/3 minutes. Never allow the water to reach the boiling point or it will scramble the eggs. It is not essential, but if you have a kitchen thermometer it will help you during this step as the sabayon will be ready when reached a temperature of about 62 degrees Celsius. 

Drop the Spaghetti in a large pot of salted boiling water and cook until ‘al dente’ for about 9 minutes. Mix every now and then. Drain the pasta and make sure to save a mug of the cooking water. Place the pasta into the pan with the remaining fat and mix well. Away from the heat add the sabayon to the pasta and after that add a splash of pasta water to losing it up and reach a creamy sauce consistency. Stir and toss the pasta in the sauce to make sure it is well coated. Add the crispy guanciale and abundant freshly ground black pepper. Plate in large pasta bowls and top with extra grated cheese!

Recipe by Danilo Cortellini