Most people avoid this thinking it’s complicated. It isn’t — but it does need more egg yolks than almost any other pasta dish. No cream; the eggs are the sauce.
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti or rigatoni (450g)
- 4 egg yolks, plus 1 whole egg
- 1 cup finely grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano (100g)
- Plenty of black pepper
- Diced bacon or pancetta
Method
- Cook pasta in heavily salted water until just al dente.
- Whisk egg yolks, whole egg, and cheese together with black pepper.
- Cook bacon or pancetta until golden and crisp. Remove from heat.
- Reserve 1 cup pasta water, then add hot pasta to the bacon pan off the heat. Pour in the egg mixture and toss rapidly, adding pasta water as needed until glossy.
The heat of the pasta gently cooks the eggs without scrambling — a restaurant-quality dinner for four at a fraction of the price.