Easy Authentic Pasta Carbonara

Pasta carbonara is a tasty Italian Roman pasta recipe that requires very few ingredients and is quick to make. This authentic carbonara is a classic carbonara and so easy to make. It is is made up of egg yolks, pasta water and pancetta (or Guanciale) and that is it. It is creamy and delicious and makes the perfect quick weeknight dinner. 

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Total Time: 35 minutes

About this Authentic Pasta Carbonara Recipe:

Pasta carbonara is a creamy, simple and delicious Italian meal that comes together in the time it takes to boil your pasta water. The trick to getting a super creamy carbonara and to make it authentic is to reserve ample amounts of pasta water that you will mix into the egg yolks to make the sauce.

This is a real carbonara recipe so there is no cream. When you make a real carbonara you will see that is comes out creamy from just the eggs and pasta water mixed together.

The meat in this classic carbonara

All of the flavor for this Italian carbonara comes from the pancetta (or guanciale) which is cooked down until crispy and it renders all of its delicious juices and flavors.

If you are not familiar with pancetta, it is an Italian bacon and full of spices. It is really delicious.

If you are working with guanciale, it is Italian cured pork from the cheeks of the pig and similar to pancetta in flavor.

Authentic pasta carbonara uses guanciale but if you cannot find that at your local store, pancetta is a great substitute for it. Many Italians prefer pancetta to guanciale so rest assured, you are in good company if that is what you use 🙂

How to make pasta carbonara

The very first thing that you want to do is saute your pancetta (or guanciale if you are using that.) It should be nice and crisp and the fat rendered out which is going to give your pasta so much flavor.

If you have made my pasta with pancetta with mushrooms, it is similar to that.

Next, you will gather all of your other ingredients and have them ready and set aside waiting for the cooked pasta. Adding the pasta is the very last step in this dish and the heat from the pasta will warm all the ingredients up before serving.

As you can see in the picture above, I have all of my ingredients ready for the cooked pasta. My pancetta is crisped up, my egg yolks are in their bowl waiting to be tempered (I will explain in a second what that is) and my Parmesan cheese grated (not pictured above).

Tempering eggs for the carbonara:

Italians (Roma Italians) have been making this classic carbonara for years and they have one advantage over us, it is less likely that the eggs they use will curdle because in Italy they do not refrigerate eggs.

When you are tempering the eggs for this carbonara recipe, what you are doing is adding a little hot water to the eggs while you whisk them so that the eggs warm. You want the eggs to be the temperature of the pasta that will be added to later on.

If you do not do this step, you will have curdled eggs. I promise it is not as scary as it sounds.

You want to use the pasta water to temper the eggs for the carbonara. The pasta water is starchy and that starch is going to add to the creaminess of the pasta.

You only need about ¼ cup of the water to start. After mixing in the pasta, you can add more pasta water if the carbonara seems dry.

The more you make this dish the better you get at mastering it. You start to know just how much pasta water to use in the end or how quickly you need to move during the tossing of the pasta.

Just make it and keep making it!

What to serve with this authentic carbonara :

Now because authentic carbonara traditionally has no vegetables, I usually serve one on the side.   This simple Italian carbonara is really delicious all on its own but if you want to add some additions to it, here are my suggestions.

• Roasted cauliflower is a great addition to this this carbonara recipe since it is so mild flavored and it will not compete with the delicate flavors of the carbonara.  It also in my opinion makes it a bit more filling and hearty and I feel better about not just eating a whole plate of pasta. I like to roast it in the oven with olive oil, salt and pepper and then add it over top at very end after mixing the carbonara.  This makes sure they do not suck up too much of the olive oil pancetta mixture that goes into the pasta.
• Fresh arugula on top or on the side of the carbonara is also a great idea.
• A fresh spinach and mushroom salad is a great light side dish for the creamy pasta recipe.

If you have never made a classic carbonara before, you must give this easy carbonara recipe a try. It is so good!

My carbonara pro-tip to make the best creamy Italian carbonara:

When you cook your pasta, do not use as much water as you normally would when making pasta. I like to fill my pasta pot only ¾ of the way up when making carbonara because it makes the pasta water more starchy.

You can also use a slightly smaller pot than you would normally use to cook pasta. That starchy water helps make your carbonara extra creamy!

Best pasta for carbonara

There are many different types of pasta but the only two I recommend for carbonara (and that are traditional) are spaghetti and rigatoni.

We like to use both of these types of pasta for this carbonara recipe.

Best Eggs For Carbonara

When you are making a carbonara sauce, you want to make sure you are using the best quality eggs you can find. I like using a brand of eggs called Vital Farms for my carbonara because their egg yolks are a nice orange color.

If you were wondering how to get a beautiful golden color in your carbonara, good quality eggs are it. Preferably ones with vivid egg yolks.

So you like Pasta? You will love these recipes too!

• Pasta Genovese
• Spaghetti with Pork Bolognese
• Pasta with Fresh Cherry Tomato Sauce
• Pasta with Pancetta and Mushrooms
• Spaghetti Aglio e Olio
• Sicilian Sunday Sauce
• Ricotta Pasta
• Cheese Tortellini with Sauce
• Authentic Bolognese