Description
This isn’t your traditional carbonara. This version is made with beef bacon! I refer to spaghetti carbonara as “breakfast spaghetti.”
Ingredients
Scale
- 8 oz dried spaghetti
- 4 oz beef bacon, chopped into small pieces
- 1 minced garlic
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese (microbial-rennet)
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 Tablespoons reserved pasta water
Instructions
- Step 1: Cook spaghetti to al dente according to pasta package instructions. Reserve about ¼ cup of pasta cooking water. Drain pasta and set aside.
- Step 2: Place beef bacon in a single layer in a large cold pan. Set over low heat and slowly cook beef bacon to render fat. Once beef bacon has released some grease, increase to medium heat.
- Step 3: Flip beef bacon pieces as needed for even cooking. Continue to cook based on your desired of crispiness. Remove from heat and remove beef bacon pieces and allow to drain on a paper towel lined plate. Keep rendered beef bacon fat in skillet.
- Step 4: In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, grated cheese, salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons of reserved pasta water until smooth. Set aside.
- Step 5: Heat skillet with beef bacon fat over medium heat. Once hot, add minced garlic. Stir and cook until fragrant and lightly browned, about 45-60 seconds. Add cooked pasta and beef bacon. Toss to combine.
- Step 6: Pour in egg mixture. Quickly toss to coat pasta in sauce while the heat is still on, about 30-40 seconds. At this point, the “sauce” should have thickened. Remove from heat.
- Step 7: If sauce is too thick, add in splash of reserved pasta water. Season with additional cheese and black pepper, as desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
The residual heat from the pasta is enough to bring the eggs to a safe temperature. If the temperature of the stove is too high, the eggs may curdle and scramble. If the pan is too hot, remove pan from heat when adding the whisked egg mixture.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian-American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 558 kcal
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 788 mg
- Fat: 24 g
- Saturated Fat: 9 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 13 g
- Trans Fat: 0.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 60 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 24 g
- Cholesterol: 163 mg