Pasta Carbonara

overhead shot of a bowl of Carbonara Pasta topped with bacon bits, cheese, and parsley

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5 from 3 votes

This pasta carbonara is a tasty Italian meal that's quick and easy to make, complete with a cheesy homemade sauce.

Prep Time10

Cook Time10

Total Time20

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, Italian

Keyword: Carbonara Pasta Recipe

Servings:

Calories: 204kcal

Ingredients

3 large eggs, room temperature
3 large egg yolks, room temperature
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1¼ cups grated pecorino Romano cheese, divided into 1 cup and ¼ cup
10 cups water
1 tablespoon salt
16 ounces linguine pasta
½ pound bacon, diced
2 teaspoons fresh minced garlic
1 to 1½ cups reserved starchy pasta water, from the cooked pasta
1 to 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

Instructions

In a medium mixing bowl, beat together the whole eggs, egg yolks, black pepper and 1 cup of the grated pecorino cheese. Set aside.
In an 8-quart stockpot, bring the 10 cups water and 1 tablespoon of salt to a rolling boil. Once your water is boiling, you can add your linguine noodles and cook until al dente. This will take about 10 minutes. While your pasta is cooking, you can start cooking your bacon.
In a large 12-inch skillet that is 2 inches deep, on medium heat, add the diced bacon. Cook the bacon for 9 to 11 minutes, stirring often or until golden and crispy. Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the skillet and place it into a small bowl, leaving the rendered bacon grease in the skillet.
Turn off the heat to the skillet and add the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until the garlic is soft and fragrant.
Remove 1½ cups of the starchy pasta water from the pot of cooked pasta and set aside. Add the cooked pasta to the skillet and toss it around to coat the pasta with the garlic.
Add the beaten egg mixture to the pasta and quickly toss the pasta with the egg mixture. Add 1 cup of the starchy pasta water and toss the pasta until the sauce has coated the pasta and slightly thickened up. The heat from the pasta and the starchy pasta water will gently cook the eggs without scrambling them. You may need to add an additional ¼ to ½ cup of starchy pasta water to thin out your sauce. You need to work fast and toss the pasta in the sauce a few times to really coat the pasta.
Transfer your carbonara pasta to a large serving bowl. Top with the remaining ¼ cup grated pecorino romano cheese, cooked bacon crumbles and the fresh chopped parsley.

Notes

Using a high-quality cheese rather than any processed grated cheese in the shaker container for this recipe will give you the best results.
The timing is critical in this recipe. It's important to have all your ingredients ready before you start making it.
This pasta must be served hot and immediately after preparing it. It does not keep or reheat well.

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