How beautiful the name Carbonara with Bacon and Cream sounds! It immediately becomes clear that this dish comes from the sunny Mediterranean, or rather, from Italy. Surely it tastes just as good?
It really is. Carbonara pasta is actually a delicious, beautiful and satisfying dish that has earned respect and respect around the world. It is served in many restaurants around the globe. If you want to surprise your friends, please your loved one or make a lasting impression on your colleagues, our step-by-step recipe will help you learn how to cook this delicious dish.
What is carbonara
In Russian cuisine, there is an unimaginable number of recipes for cabbage soup, pancakes, meatballs, cabbage rolls and other popular dishes. Each mistress certainly has a proven way of cooking for years and a couple of “secret ingredients”. With carbonara, things are about the same. Each region of Italy has its own special carbonara paste.
A recipe with bacon and cream is more common outside the historic homeland of this dish. And Italians use guanchial or pancetta to cook this dish. In addition, they, as a rule, do not add cream to carbonara, but make pecorino romano cheese sauce.
Special ingredients
Guangchinale is a special product with a bright unforgettable taste. It is prepared from pork cheek, which is lard with layers of meat. The cheek is generously rubbed with a mixture of salt, sugar and Italian spices, and then laid out to dry for 3 weeks. Finely chopped with guanchial slices must be added to the carbonara.
Pancetta is one of the varieties of bacon. In fact, this is also a dried brisket seasoned with spices.
Alternative to rare ingredients
But tell me, is it easy to get these delights in the outback or even a big city outside of Italy? That's why they came up with the idea of replacing guanchial and pancetta with more familiar bacon. Instead of a rare high-quality pecorino cheese , ordinary parmesan is sent to the dish. Today we can say that this cooking method is no less popular than the classic one. After all, carbonara pasta with bacon and cream is also very tasty.
Recipe Features
Carbonara with bacon and cream is relatively simple to prepare, does not require time for preliminary preparation or special cooking skills. This dish can be the main decoration of a romantic dinner. Get a good hearty breakfast or lunch. The dish is self-sufficient, it does not require snacks, salads and other additions, although cutting fresh seasonal vegetables will not be superfluous.
Essential Products
In Italy, the ingredients needed for carbonara are often taken “by eye”. And those who are preparing this dish for the first time, it is better to adhere to certain proportions. They are something like this:
- durum wheat paste - 400 g;
- bacon - 300 g;
- raw eggs - 3 pcs.;
- Parmesan (grated) - 300-350 g;
- cream - 300 ml;
- garlic, young basil, nutmeg, a mixture of peppers, salt - to taste;
- olive oil for frying.
Well, now we will understand how carbonara is prepared. A recipe with bacon and cream, complemented by illustrations, will help you do everything right and quickly.
Cooking process
The dish consists of pasta and sauce. These components are prepared separately from each other, and together they are connected immediately before serving.
First put the boiling water. It should be at least one and a half liters, so pasta will be tastier. While boiling, pour a little olive oil into the water and add salt.
Load the pasta and cook, without covering, as much as indicated on the packaging.
Combine the eggs, cream and most of the parmesan and beat with a whisk. Add nutmeg and spices, without which a real carbonara paste is simply unthinkable.
A recipe with bacon and cream implies that these two tastes will dominate. So, let's start cooking bacon. It needs to be cut smaller and fry in a deep frying pan in olive oil until completely transparent. At the very end, add the basil, chopped into large pieces, to the bacon.
Our pasta will be cooked completely by this time. Water needs to be drained, and the pasta sent to the pan to the bacon. It remains to add the sauce of cream and eggs. Turn off the fire immediately and mix the contents of the pan.
That's all, our carbonara paste with bacon and cream is ready. You can call everyone to the table!
Serving
Remember, we didn’t add all the parmesan to the sauce? The remaining part, we will decorate the dish before serving, simply sprinkling crumbs on the surface. As a decor, young greens are also perfect, thanks to which our carbonara with bacon and cream will become even more appetizing and aromatic.
This dish is usually eaten using ordinary cutlery - a fork and a knife. As a complement to the dish, you can serve toasts or croutons, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes. There won't be a jar of olives on the table - this appetizer will only emphasize the Italian character of the dish and complement its taste.