Pasta Carbonara help!

[bevkile]

Here is one of Tyler Florence's Italian classics.

SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA
TYLER FLORENCE

1 pound dry spaghetti
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces pancetta or slab bacon, cubed or sliced into small strips
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 large eggs
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving
Freshly ground black pepper
1 handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Prepare the sauce while the pasta is cooking to ensure that the spaghetti will be hot
and ready when the sauce is finished; it is very important that the pasta is hot when
adding the egg mixture, so that the heat of the pasta cooks the raw eggs in the sauce.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes
or until tender yet firm (as they say in Italian "al dente.") Drain the pasta well,
reserving 1/2 cup of the starchy cooking water to use in the sauce if you wish.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a deep skillet over medium flame. Add the pancetta
and saute for about 3 minutes, until the bacon is crisp and the fat is rendered.
Toss the garlic into the fat and saute for less than 1 minute to soften.
Add the hot, drained spaghetti to the pan and toss for 2 minutes to coat the strands
in the bacon fat. Beat the eggs and Parmesan together in a mixing bowl, stirring well
to prevent lumps. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the egg/cheese mixture into
the pasta, whisking quickly until the eggs thicken, but do not scramble (this is done
off the heat to ensure this does not happen.) Thin out the sauce with a bit of the
reserved pasta water, until it reaches desired consistency. Season the carbonara with
several turns of freshly ground black pepper and taste for salt.
Mound the spaghetti carbonara into warm serving bowls and garnish with chopped parsley.
Pass more cheese around the table.

It sound very straight forward and simple to me.

 

[bevkile]

SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA
TYLER FLORENCE
1 pound dry spaghetti
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces pancetta or slab bacon, cubed or sliced into small strips
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 large eggs
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving
Freshly ground black pepper
1 handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Prepare the sauce while the pasta is cooking to ensure that the spaghetti will be hot
and ready when the sauce is finished; it is very important that the pasta is hot when
adding the egg mixture, so that the heat of the pasta cooks the raw eggs in the sauce.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes
or until tender yet firm (as they say in Italian "al dente.") Drain the pasta well,
reserving 1/2 cup of the starchy cooking water to use in the sauce if you wish.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a deep skillet over medium flame. Add the pancetta
and saute for about 3 minutes, until the bacon is crisp and the fat is rendered.
Toss the garlic into the fat and saute for less than 1 minute to soften.
Add the hot, drained spaghetti to the pan and toss for 2 minutes to coat the strands
in the bacon fat. Beat the eggs and Parmesan together in a mixing bowl, stirring well
to prevent lumps. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the egg/cheese mixture into
the pasta, whisking quickly until the eggs thicken, but do not scramble (this is done
off the heat to ensure this does not happen.) Thin out the sauce with a bit of the
reserved pasta water, until it reaches desired consistency. Season the carbonara with
several turns of freshly ground black pepper and taste for salt.
Mound the spaghetti carbonara into warm serving bowls and garnish with chopped parsley.
Pass more cheese around the table.

 

[Constance]

There's not a precise reason: lard taste is different. Try. They are both good: I too use oil when I have not lard at home.....

Pork fat rules!

 

[mish]

Welcome to DC, matt.

Not sure where to reply as there are two threads going re same. There are excellent suggestions/feedback in both threads.

The recipe you posted for carbonara, in my experience, does not include cream/half-n-half. Re the eggs - Scramble the entire egg - not the yolks, & add the salt and pepper to the scrambled eggs. I use salt & pepper to taste. You can add gobs of pepper on the finished dish - but IMO it takes away from the flavors. I always use evoo, not lard, but that's my preference, and have always seen the 'classic' recipe using evoo. Mushrooms or peas can be added, if you wish. But in answer to your other post for a classic recipe - first stick with the basics if it's your first attempt.

Re Tyler's recipe, I like most everything he does, but, bev you might want to provide a link to Food Network's recipes' site re copyright laws.

Use fresh Italian flat leaf parsley - not dried parsley flakes, freshly grated parm. & freshly grated black pepper - not to excess. One of the keys to this dish, imo, is fresh ingredients, and, yes, raw whole eggs.

 

[vyapti]

. . . and I agree with RDG. Peccorino would be a great addition instead of parmesan. Peccorino made from sheeps milk and has a different flavor than parmesan and romano.

 

[urmaniac13]

To add to the story of pasta carbonara style I have also heard (if I remember correctly) that it originated from Italian coal miners as it was a very quick and easy dish to cook using very few ingredients and the large amounts of black pepper that was used looks like the dust or flecks of coal (or something along those lines).

This is also the story behind "Spaghetti alla carbonara" that I have heard. Although "carbonara" is widely known as one of the most famous Roman specialties, the coal miners in question here were from actually Umbria. However Umbria is just north of Lazio province (where Rome is) and probably there were lots of Romans working there, too, then brought back the recipe to their home and made it famous.

 

[Mylegsbig]

Scramble the entire egg - not the yolks, & add the salt and pepper to the scrambled eggs.

why would you scramble the eggs?

 

[BreezyCooking]

Don't worry Thumper - I'm with you.

This dish has never been one of my favorites no matter how it's made, because I positively cannot choke down undercooked eggs. Not because I'm afraid of bacteria (although that IS a real risk these days), but because unless eggs are cooked to hockey puck consistency I gag on them. This is also why I don't do a traditional Caesar Salad. No "coddled eggs" for me thank you. I also can't eat raw oysters for the same reason - texture.

So if I made this recipe, it would definitely end up as pasta with heavily scrambled eggs - lol!!!!!

 

[Haggis]

why would you scramble the eggs?

By scrambling the eggs I am sure that Mish means to whisk or beat the raw eggs together to combine, not actually cook them as scrambled eggs.

Oh and one of the best tips for a carbonara dish is to get your hands on some organic eggs. Since it is such a simple dish the ingredients must speak for themselves...and organic eggs speak much larger than rubbish cage eggs.

Oh and I noticed that only one recipe posted here recommends pancetta rather than bacon. While it's great with bacon, pancetta is just better in this dish.

 

[Alix]

Right on Haggis, pancetta is DEFINITELY yummy. Thanks for the reminder.

 

[mish]

why would you scramble the eggs?

Re scramble - whisk the eggs to combine them, prior to pouring the beaten raw eggs over the pasta. You don't want the eggs to cook. Here's an example:

1 pound dry spaghetti
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces pancetta (or bacon)
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 large eggs
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving
4 oz sun dried tomatoes
Freshly ground black pepper
1 handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Prepare the sauce while the pasta is cooking to ensure that the spaghetti will be hot and ready when the sauce is finished; it is very important that the pasta is hot when adding the egg mixture, so that the heat of the pasta cooks the raw eggs in the sauce.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender yet firm. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the starchy cooking water to use in the sauce if you wish.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a deep skillet over medium flame. Add the pancetta and saute about 3 minutes, until crisp and the fat is rendered. Toss the garlic into the fat and saute for less than 1 minute to soften.

Add the hot, drained spaghetti to the pan and toss for 2 minutes to coat the strands in the bacon fat. Add sun dried tomatoes to spaghetti.

Beat the eggs and Parmesan together in a mixing bowl, stirring well to prevent lumps. Remove pan from the heat and pour egg/cheese mixture into the pasta, whisking quickly until the eggs thicken, but do not scramble (this is done off the heat to ensure this does not happen.) Thin out the sauce with a bit of the reserved pasta water, until it reaches desired consistency. Season the carbonara with several turns of freshly ground black pepper and taste for salt. The bacon/pancetta is salty, so you may want to taste before adding more salt. Garnish with chopped parsley.

*******************

Here is the link to Tyler Florence's recipe bev posted above.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_23785,00.html

 

[Snoop Puss]

OK. Here's my version:

85 g (3 oz or so) of dried pasta per person
Couple of slices of good quality streaky bacon per person cut into lardons or similar amount of Parma-type ham
30 ml or so (2 tablespoons) of mascarpone cheese per person
One egg per two people
One (American) cup of grated parmesan per two people (or more or less as you prefer)
Ground black pepper to taste
Butter

Boil pasta to your liking
Mix the egg with the mascarpone, parmesan and pepper. The egg will take a little effort to blend with the mascarpone and the sauce will seem very thick. Even if you think it looks a bit curdled, keep going and the egg and cheese will amalgamate.
Towards the end of the pasta cooking time, fry the bacon bits gently in some butter. When the pasta is ready and the bacon is cooked (but not browned or too crisp), drain the pasta well and turn it in the bacon and butter in the pan so it gets well coated and hot. Turn off the heat under the pan. Then pour in the egg mixture and turn the pasta over a few times to mix thoroughly and to allow the heat in the pan and the pasta to heat and cook the sauce. Serve on hot plates and enjoy.

Using mascarpone cheese tends to give a creamier result, even if you choose to leave the heat on under the pan or cook the eggs for longer. Cream or milk will give a sauce that is the texture of thin scrambled eggs, especially if you leave the heat on under the pan.

I'm a Brit living in Spain. Britain complains constantly about salmonella in imported Spanish eggs. I'm the cautious type and never make my own mayonnaise, for example, but would love a domestic egg pasteuriser (I'm told they exist, though I've never seen one) to be able to do so. I've never had any problems with the recipe above so presume that if the pasta gets very hot in the pan with the bacon and fat, there's enough heat to cook a thin coating of egg in the sauce. Maybe Gretchen or another microbiologist could give us some advice.

 

[Banana Brain]

Oh, I hate chicken caberona.

 

[Claire]

The eggs ARE cooked, by the heat of the pasta. When you get it just right, the egg clings to to pasta. Like some, I like to mix the grated cheese into the eggs, then the mixture coats the spaghetti. Yummyumm. I've even used EggBeaters in a pinch ... and it was pretty darned good. When travelling I use whatever cured pork product is the best locally. Some places it might be slivers of dry cured country ham, others apple-cured bacon, etc.

 

[mish]

The eggs ARE cooked, by the heat of the pasta.

I was trying to explain to MLB, it's not a scrambled, fried, cooked egg. Thank you for the clarification. Yes, the egg is cooked, to a degree, when pouring it over the hot pasta. All, in all, it's raw eggs.

 

[Mylegsbig]

thanks for clarifying

 

[mish]

thanks for clarifying

No problem.

 

[Mylegsbig]

that dish is coming up on the Legsbig Menu.

Oh yeah. It's coming real soon too.

i think i'ma do it like Tyler Florence.

That guy's recipes are always solid, and he is a cool dude. my fav foodtv guy by far.

 

[mish]

that dish is coming up on the Legsbig Menu.

Oh yeah. It's coming real soon too.

i think i'ma do it like Tyler Florence.

That guy's recipes are always solid, and he is a cool dude. my fav foodtv guy by far.

I agree, MLB. Like everthing about his recipes, show etc. Hope to see more of him of FNTV. Gonna go look up his method. Thanks.

 

[Snoop Puss]

I've just looked up his recipe after the Tyler Florence recommendation. Garlic and parsley in carbonara sauce? That's either heathen sacrilege or creativity at its darnedest! Hope you enjoy it in any case.