These instructions give you enough for a quick weekday meal, with the least amount of dishes, but if you are making more for guests as part of a big spread, adjustments to prepare for a serving bowl. Disambiguation, don't forget our Tale of Two Carbonaras... )
Prep Time5 minutesmins
Cook Time30 minutesmins
CourseMain Course, pasta
CuisineItalian, roman
Keywordguancale
Servings4people
Ingredients
2eggsat room temperature
4yolksat room temperature
2/3cupPecorino Romano cheese, grated~ 2 ounces
12ozspaghetti, dried3/4 lb
1/2tspolive oiloptional
4ozguanciale (or pancetta if that's all that's available), diced
1cuppasta waterreserved
freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Heat a large pot of salted water to a boil, then add spaghetti and cook al dente, according to instructions.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk eggs, yolk and cheeses, and season with a bit of salt and a lot of fresh black pepper. Set aside.
Heat a small frying pan to medium and add a teensy bit of olive oil (depending on pan and meat you may want to prevent sticking). Then add guanciale and cook, stirring occasionally until browned a bit and cooked through. Turn off heat and set aside.
When pasta is done, reserve 1 cup of cooking liquid, then drain the pasta. Put the pasta back into the large pot and add the oil/guanciale and stir to combine. Heat the mixture on medium until warmed through then turn off the heat, and stir in the egg mixture, combining quickly, and adding a bit of pasta water as you go to get it creamy.
Serve immediately with additional grated pecorino and black pepper. Buon appetito!
Notes
Shallots? - The Roman purists will say no shallots here, but it was served to us once with shallots in Italy, and it was delicious as well. If you so desire, add about 1/3 cup finely diced along with the guancale.
Use Dried Pasta - I've been told this works better with dry spaghetti to help the sauce stick, and it's also more authentic to it's roots as a peasant dish as well.
Serving Bowl - If you'd like to prep in a serving bowl, warm the serving bowl with boiled water (discarding the water and drying the bowl prior to serving). You could also add the egg to the pasta in this bowl if it's large enough to mix, and it makes a great presentation / statement for your guests.