John Torode Spaghetti Carbonara Food

EASY SPAGHETTI CARBONARA

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook until crisp and slightly browned. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.
• Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Add the spaghetti and cook for 8-10 minutes, until firm but slightly chewy (al dente).
• While the spaghetti is cooking, beat together the eggs and Parmesan with a fork. If it's a little thick, add some milk. Season well with salt and pepper.
• Once the spaghetti is cooked, drain over a bowl, reserving some of the cooking water.
• Place the frying pan with the pancetta in back over a medium-low heat. Add the drained spaghetti and egg mixture and stir thoroughly so all the spaghetti is coated in the sauce. Add 1-2 tablespoons of the reserved pasta water to loosen, if necessary. Serve immediately on hot plates with grated Parmesan on top.

SPAGHETTI CARBONARA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Combine the bacon, olive oil, garlic, rosemary, jalapenos and 1/4 cup water in a large skillet. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the water evaporates and the bacon crisps, about 12 minutes. Discard the garlic. Add the cognac, if desired, and cook until it evaporates. Remove from the heat and set aside 1/4 cup bacon mixture for garnish.
• Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in the boiling water as the label directs. Mix the eggs, cheeses, parsley and 1 teaspoon pepper in a bowl. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/4 cup cooking water.
• Return the skillet to medium-high heat. Add the pasta and toss until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Whisk the reserved pasta water into the egg mixture, then quickly pour over the pasta and toss to gently cook the eggs and make a creamy sauce. Garnish with the reserved bacon mixture and more parmesan.

ULTIMATE SPAGHETTI CARBONARA RECIPE

Steps:

• Put a large saucepan of water on to boil.
• Finely chop the 100g pancetta, having first removed any rind. Finely grate 50g pecorino cheese and 50g parmesan and mix them together.
• Beat the 3 large eggs in a medium bowl and season with a little freshly grated black pepper. Set everything aside.
• Add 1 tsp salt to the boiling water, add 350g spaghetti and when the water comes back to the boil, cook at a constant simmer, covered, for 10 minutes or until al dente (just cooked).
• Squash 2 peeled plump garlic cloves with the blade of a knife, just to bruise it.
• While the spaghetti is cooking, fry the pancetta with the garlic. Drop 50g unsalted butter into a large frying pan or wok and, as soon as the butter has melted, tip in the pancetta and garlic.
• Leave to cook on a medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until the pancetta is golden and crisp. The garlic has now imparted its flavour, so take it out with a slotted spoon and discard.
• Keep the heat under the pancetta on low. When the pasta is ready, lift it from the water with a pasta fork or tongs and put it in the frying pan with the pancetta. Don't worry if a little water drops in the pan as well (you want this to happen) and don't throw the pasta water away yet.
• Mix most of the cheese in with the eggs, keeping a small handful back for sprinkling over later.
• Take the pan of spaghetti and pancetta off the heat. Now quickly pour in the eggs and cheese. Using the tongs or a long fork, lift up the spaghetti so it mixes easily with the egg mixture, which thickens but doesn't scramble, and everything is coated.
• Add extra pasta cooking water to keep it saucy (several tablespoons should do it). You don't want it wet, just moist. Season with a little salt, if needed.
• Use a long-pronged fork to twist the pasta on to the serving plate or bowl. Serve immediately with a little sprinkling of the remaining cheese and a grating of black pepper. If the dish does get a little dry before serving, splash in some more hot pasta water and the glossy sauciness will be revived.

CHEF JOHN'S SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA

Steps:

• Cook guanciale with olive oil and 1 teaspoon ground black pepper in a Dutch oven over medium-low heat until almost crisp, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low.
• Whisk eggs, 3 tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, 3 tablespoons Pecorino Romano cheese, and 1 teaspoon ground black pepper in a bowl. Set aside.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water.
• Pour reserved pasta water and drained spaghetti into the bacon-pepper mixture; stir to combine.
• Slowly pour egg mixture into the pasta mixture; cook, stirring constantly until the egg mixture forms a thick sauce, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Stir remaining 3 tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and 3 tablespoons Pecorino Romano cheese into the pasta mixture and serve.

NEXT LEVEL SPAGHETTI CARBONARA

Steps:

• First, warm your serving dishes in a low oven or in the microwave. Heat the oil gently in a large, shallow pan. Fry the guanciale or pancetta and garlic for 10 mins, or until all the fat has rendered off and the meat is golden and crisp. Remove and discard the garlic clove, then turn off the heat.
• Bring a large pan of salted water to a simmer and cook the pasta until it's al dente (about a minute less than the pack instructions). Meanwhile, whisk 2 egg yolks in a small bowl with a pinch of salt.
• Using kitchen tongs, lift the pasta from the water into the pancetta pan along with any dripping water. Use a wooden spoon to stir it into the rendered fat. If the pan looks dry, add a small ladleful of pasta water and mix it in. Keep adding until you see a little pasta water at the bottom of the pan - you'll be surprised how much will be absorbed.
• Working quickly, tip the beaten yolks in with the pasta and stir vigorously. Rinse the yolk bowl out with a little more pasta water and pour that in too. Add most of the parmesan and beat again. If at any time it's becoming claggy or starting to scramble, pour in a little more water. If you've added too much, stir the pasta over the lowest heat for a few moments. You're aiming for a smooth sauce that is the consistency of double cream. Season with a couple of pinches of ground black pepper and taste for salt.
• Transfer the pasta to the warmed serving dishes, scatter over the remaining parmesan and nestle the last two egg yolks on top, if using. Season them with some salt and pepper, and drizzle over the truffle oil, if you have it, just before serving.