Carbonara

Original Recipe by Andrew Rea of the Babish Culinary Universe

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb. thick cut bacon

• 4 oz. Parmesan or Romano cheese

• 3 large eggs

• 1 egg yolk

• ground black pepper

• 2 cloves garlic

• 1/3 cup starchy pasta water

• 16 oz. (1 lb.) bucatini

• freshly grated nutmeg (alternatively, 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg)

Instructions

Mise en place

1. Slice 1/2 lb. thick cut bacon into large chunks (lardons).

2. Next, mince 2 cloves of garlic.

3. Grate 4 oz. Parmesan cheese into a bowl. Add your eggs and egg yolk to the bowl. Season with fresh ground black pepper and nutmeg. Whisk to combine.

4. Set a large pot of heavily salted water (about 4 - 5 quarts) on to boil.

Cooking

1. Add the sliced bacon to a cold nonstick pan and then turn the heat to medium.

2. Once the bacon is near fully cooked and the fat has rendered out, strain out the grease, keeping only 2 Tablespoons of fat in the pan.

3. Return the pan to medium low heat and add minced garlic. Sauté for one minute and then turn off the heat.

4. Add bucatini to the pot of boiling salty water and cook to al dente, meaning “tender but toothsome.”

5. Retrieve 1/3 cup of starchy pasta water from the pot using a ladle. Strain the pasta. Set aside.

6. Cool the pasta cooking pot with cold water until the surface of the pot is warm but safe to the touch. Return to the stove, on no heat, and return the cooked bucatini to the pot along with the 1/3 cup of pasta water.

7. Add the bacon and sautéed garlic to the pot, followed by the egg and cheese mixture. Mix rigorously and keep it moving.

8. Taste for seasoning and assess for thickening. If it needs to be thicker, add more cheese (1 ounce at a time) and mix rigorously. Serve and enjoy!