Rachael Ray: Basic Pasta Carbonara Recipe with Pancetta

Rachael Ray: Pasta Carbonara Recipe

Rachael Ray was not content to just leave all the Celebrity Cooking School lessons to her special guests. She wanted to ensure that Nate Berkus knew a few things about her Italian specialties as well. That’s why she showed him how to make her Pasta Carbonara Recipe, and now you can try it at home too. If you want to get fancy, you could also try her recipes for Carbonara with Sausage & Mushrooms or Carbonara Milanese-Style.

But for kitchen novice Nate Berkus, it is all about baby steps. He can decorate a kitchen, but he’s not great at cooking in one, it seems.

Rachael Ray: Pasta Carbonara Recipe Ingredients

• 1 lb Spaghetti or Rigatoni
• 1/4 lb chopped Pancetta (or Bacon)
• 5-6 chopped cloves Garlic
• 3 Egg Yolks
• 1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
• 1/2 cup Dry White Wine
• 1/4 cup Olive Oil
• Salt & Pepper
• Romano Cheese
• Parsley

Rachael Ray: Pasta Carbonara Recipe Directions

1. Bring water to a boil in a large sauce pot. Season the water heavily with salt.
2. Cook pasta al dente, which should take around eight minutes.
3. Turn a skillet on medium heat.
4. Heat olive oil and pancetta in the hot skillet.
5. Brown the pancetta or bacon for around two minutes.
6. Mix in garlic and red pepper flakes, cooking another two or three minutes.
7. Add in the wine and use it to deglaze the pan and loosen any bits of pancetta.
8. In a bowl, beat your yolks well. Add about 1/2 cup of the water from cooking your pasta. (This is to keep the eggs from scrambling.)
9. Drain pasta thoroughly.
10. Add pasta to skillet with oil and pancetta.
11. Pour the egg mix into the pasta skillet.
12. Toss quickly to coat everything without cooking the egg.
13. Take the pan off the heat and add in cheese, along with a generous amount of pepper and a little more salt.
14. Continue to toss the pasta until the egg mix is soaked up and thickens.
15. Serve garnished with Romano cheese and parsley.