This recipe is for my non-pork eating friends. We don’t eat pork in our family – which eliminates a number of recipes that center around bacon. I had never been able to try carbonara, and it’s one of those recipes that always looked so good to me.
That is, until I found beef bacon!
This recipe was very exciting to make. Carbonara is delicious, smoky, creamy, decadent, and comes together quickly!
I’d suggest making this meal for your partner or to impress somebody — it gives off that kind of vibe. Fancy and delicious. So, if you want to WOW someone and their taste buds, try this.
Ok so let’s talk about beef bacon. It’s chewy, fatty, smoky, crispy. All the things you’d expect! And it makes this dish so decadent – a really special recipe.
Criticisms of beef bacon compared to it’s pork version — it is more breakable. What I mean is that when you pull it out of the packaging it crumbles – so if you want it to be in thick pieces….that’s not really how it works best. For carbonara, 100% beef bacon is perfect.
Here’s the intimidating part…..adding in the egg mixture to the pasta! Be brave, I promise it’s hard to mess up! Pro-tip…reserve 1 cup of the pasta water. You will need that to thin out the egg mixture and make the sauce.
Don’t forget to keep a cup of liquid from the pasta water before draining!
Look how beautiful this is! While simple to make, this recipe is sure to impress!
Spaghetti Carbonara Featuring Beef Bacon
Course: MainCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Easy4
servings10
minutes20
minutesIngredients
1 pound spaghetti
1 package beef bacon, cut into bite size pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 eggs (large)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan (plus more to garnish)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 t. freshly ground black pepper (plus more to garnish)
1 t. salt
Directions
- Put a large pan of water on to boil for the pasta. Season that water with salt!
- Prepare your beef bacon: cut it into bit size pieces. In another large pan that will fit the pasta later, cook the sliced beef bacon in the oil until crispy but not crunchy.
- In a bowl, beat together the eggs, Parmesan, cream, and pepper. Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions, but since you want it kept al dente start checking it 2 minutes before end of the recommended cooking time.
- When the pasta is done, remove approximately 1/2 to 1 cup of the pasta water before draining.
- Put the pan with the beef bacon pieces on the heat and add the drained pasta, tossing well to coat with the delicious beef bacon fat.
- Take the pan off the heat again and add the eggs and cheese mixture, swiftly tossing everything to mix.
- Thin with pasta water, if needed.
- To serve: spoon into a bowl and add more freshly ground pepper and parmesan cheese! Enjoy!
Notes
- Don’t forget to reserve a cup of the cooking liquid!
- Stir quickly once you add the egg mixture so it doesn’t scramble. Just keep the spoon moving and you’ll be good to go.
