Spaghetti alla Carbonara

This is a very simple dish but you need to have some basic ingredients that cannot be substituted. You need smoked pancetta, you need egg yolks and NO CREAM! I have seen so many different versions here in Sweden… but they should not be called Carbonara.

Info&Research: CARBONARA.

Carbonara is a traditional Italian dish from Rome. Like most traditional recipes, the origins of the dish are obscure, and there are many legends about its birth. It is sometimes dated back to Ancient Rome. The name is derived from the Italian word for coal “carbone”. Some say the pasta was first made as a hearty dish for Italian coal miners; others say that it was originally made over charcoal grills. Still others state that it is so named because the specks of pancetta and pepper in the pasta look like bits of charcoal. It has even been suggested that it was created by the Carbonari ("coalmen"), the members of an Italian secret society. The dish was unknown before the Second World War and it is not present in the classical book of Ada Boni “La Cucina Romana”, which was published in 1927. Its popularity began after the Second World War, when many Italians were eating eggs and bacon supplied by troops from the U.S. It also became popular among American troops stationed in Italy; upon their return home, they popularized spaghetti alla Carbonara (spaghetti with Carbonara sauce) in North America.

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SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA

Ingredients: spaghetti, smoked pancetta, egg yolk (1 egg yolk per 2 people), Pecorino Romano cheese , extra-virgin olive oil, salt.

Cut smoked pancetta into dices, then cook with some extra-virgin olive oil in a deep heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until fat begins to render, 1 to 2 minutes. Cook spaghetti “al dente” in salted water. While pasta is cooking, whisk together egg yolks, grated Pecorino Romano, salt in a small bowl. Drain spaghetti in a colander and add smoked pancetta first, then the egg mixture. Serve immediately.