Spaghetti Carbonara recipe

This simple recipe has become a regular feature in our household recently – it just perfect for when you’re in a rush/can’t be bothered to spend long cooking and want some comfort food – its very naughty! It comes from a famous Brit chef who I won’t mention here else I get done for copyright, but I was just asked by a houseguest for the recipe and figured if I’m going to write it down I might as well share it with y’all. So here it is from memory, in my own words.

Ingredients (for 2)

200g Spaghetti
4 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
1 egg yolk + 1 whole egg
4 tbsp vermouth
2 tsp olive oil
100g pancetta, cubed
1 tbsp butter
freshly grated black pepper and nutmeg

Whisk the eggs, parmesan, black pepper and nutmeg together. I buy pancetta from my local Italian deli already cubed and ready to go – if you can’t find pancetta you can use a good quality smoked bacon and chop it into small pieces. Measure out the vermouth and butter as this dish takes no time to cook so you need everything ready.

Boil a medium saucepan of salted water and add the spaghetti. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and fry the pancetta for 5 mins until getting crispy. Add the vermouth to the pan and let it cook down to a nice syrupy consistency then turn off the heat. The pasta should be about ready now – just al dente. Drain the spaghetti and put it back in the pan. Add the butter to the pancetta and vermouth mix and then stir this into the pasta. Then stir in the egg mixture (keeping it off the heat – you don’t want the egg to get scrambled!). The result is that the spaghetti is just coated in a delicious creamy sauce, flecked with pancetta bits – but without any actual cream.

The spaghetti carbonara is now ready to serve. I would have a green salad on the side if I have time/inclination. Enjoy!