carbonara.
spaghetti alla carbonara
Ingredients:
100g spaghettoni/sapghetti.
2 egg yolks.
80g guancialle, cut into 1-2cm cubes.
15g Pecorino Romano, grated.
10g Grana Padano/Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
toasted & ground black pepper.
Equipment:
mixing bowl.
whisk.
sauté pan.
saucepot.
spice grinder/mortar and pestle.
Yield:
1 serving.
Execution:
toast the pepper:
Heat a small skillet over medium, add the peppercorns, toast until fragrant.
Add to a spice grinder/mortar and pestle, grind until coarse/just barely cracked.
cook.
Fill one pot with water, season with salt until salty like the sea, bring to a simmer over medium-high heat.
Put on another pot, fill halfway with water and place over a medium-low heat.
Render off the guanciale in a sauté pan set over medium heat until browned and crisp, but not excessivley crisp it should still have a slight chew from the fat and meat. Strain the guanciale through a sieve and reserve the fat.
Add your pasta to the salted water pot, cook until al dente. (*Do not cook pasta in boiling water, but rather a simmer as this will promote even cooking.)
Place a mixing bowl on top of the second pot, add the eggs, cheese and a few cracks of black pepper, whisk to combine.
Add a few spoonful’s of pasta water to the egg mix and whisk until it becomes lighter in color and fluffy.
Begin slowly drizzling in the guanciale fat while whisking constantly.
Once all the fat is incorporated, remove the bowl from the double boiler, at this point the pasta should be al dente.
Add the pasta to the egg mixture and begin tossing the pasta in the bowl vigorously.
Add the guanciale.
2. serve.
Create a nest of pasta; using a carving fork/long tweezers, swirl the pasta around the twines until you have gathered most of it around your fork, place the tip of the fork into the bowl of a ladle, begin twisting the fork into the bowl to fill it with the pasta, place the bottom of the ladle onto the bowl, slowly remove the ladle from underneath until the tip of the fork is touching the plate, continue to twist to form a nest and pull the fork out through the top of the nest.
Top with black pepper and more grated cheese.