Introduction
This rustic Italian classic makes a quick dinner. Because the main ingredients are bacon and eggs, it also occasionally turns up as a brunch dish.
Ingredients
| 16 | oz. (1 lb.) spaghetti, linguini, perciatelli, or other long dried pasta |
| 8 | oz. pancetta or ordinary bacon, diced |
| 2 | eggs, beaten |
| ½ | cup extra-virgin olive oil |
| 1 | cup freshly grated Parmesan |
| ½ | cup fresh Italian parsley leaves, minced |
| ~ | Salt and freshly ground black pepper |
Steps
- Bring a pasta pot full of salted water to a boil.
- While the water heats, cook the diced pancetta or bacon over medium heat until the bacon bits are thoroughly cooked. Remove from the heat.
- Cook the pasta in the boiling water until al dente. Meanwhile, whisk together the eggs, olive oil, Parmesan, parsley, and salt and pepper. Scoop out a little of the hot pasta water, let it cool, and mix it into the oil-cheese mixture.
- When the pasta is done, drain it and put it into a large bowl. Pour the bacon, along with its cooking fat, over the pasta. Pour the oil-eggs-cheese mixture over the pasta. Stir well; the various fats in the sauce should make a slick coating for the long strands of spaghetti. Serve hot, with a generous grind of pepper, passing more Parmesan cheese as desired.
Notes
Variations on the bacon-and-eggs basics include slipping a few thick slivers of garlic in with the bacon fat (and removing them before they brown), putting a dash of red chile flakes in the hot oil, adding about ½ cup white wine to the simmering bacon, pouring a dash of cream or whole milk to the oil-cheese sauce, and mixing a bit of Pecorino Romano cheese in with the Parmesan.
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25% recommend this recipe
1. by argus on Jan 29, 2009 at 5:48 AM PST
Perfect. Didn’t have fresh parsley on hand; used dried parsley and lessened the amount. Instead of parmesan I had pecorino - worked just as well.
2. by Caroline Cummins on Jan 29, 2009 at 12:21 PM PST
Argus -- Honestly, the parsley is just a garnish. It’s really all about the bacon, eggs, and cheese. Glad you enjoyed it!
3. by Rebecca T. of HonestMeat on Mar 21, 2009 at 8:20 AM PDT
I like to seperate the egg yolk from the white. First blend the white with the just cooked pasta then place the yolk on top just before serving. Let the eater mix it all together right before shoveling into their mouth.
Also, I highly recommend using the real deal for this dish, and that is guanciale, which is air-cured pork jowls. It may be hard to find, but well worth it.
4. by Kristina on Jun 29, 2011 at 5:14 PM PDT
Just made this for dinner. I used regular bacon (pancetta just didn’t fit in the budget), added some basil along with the parsely, and added peas. It all came out very well.
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