This Creamy Carbonara recipe is a plate of heavenly, creamy pasta. Silky spaghetti with crispy pancetta in a super creamy and cheesy sauce. Simply delicious and so easy to make at home.
Crispy pancetta is my absolute favorite member of the vegetable food group. Wait…you mean it’s not a vegetable? Well this is Jo Cooks world, and in this world – we get 3 – 4 servings of pancetta a day. This delectable pork topper adds the perfect texture and flavor to our creamy dreamy oh so silky carbonara.
What Is Carbonara?
At its core, this Italian dish is from Rome and is super super simple. It’s made from egg, hard sharp cheese, pepper, and guanciale – a cured pork. If guanciale is a little too hard to find pancetta or bacon works in a snap.
My carbonara recipe uses some cream to thicken it all up and ensure it really sticks to your ribs. Yes, I know the traditional dish doesn’t have cream in it, but that’s why this is creamy carbonara!
Ingredient Notes
- Pasta – I used spaghetti for that fork twirling goodness, feel free to use any pasta you have on hand.
- Pancetta – Our key pork treat, feel free to substitute bacon if that’s what is on hand.
- Cream – I used half and half but if you’d like to cut back on calories feel free to use a lighter cream or whole milk.
- Eggs – Just the yolks! Save those whites for breakfast tomorrow morning.
- Cheese – You need a sharp hard cheese like Parmesan or Pecorino, today I opted for parm!
- Pepper – Just fresh ground pepper today, no need for salt!
- Basil – Fresh and chopped up fine for some fragrant garnish.
How To Make Creamy Carbonara
- Prepare the pasta: Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- Crisp the pancetta: Add the pancetta to a large skillet and saute over medium-low heat until crisp. Transfer the pancetta to a bowl using a slotted spoon.
- Get saucey: Add the half and half to the skillet and bring to a simmer. Whisk the egg yolks into the sauce followed by the Parmesan cheese. Stir in the black pepper. Taste for salt and season if needed.
- Finish the carbonara: Add the cooked spaghetti, bacon and basil to the skillet and toss well to combine. Garnish with more cheese and serve hot!
If you want to go as authentic as possible, nix the cream and hunt down some guanciale, which is available is most specialty Italian supermarkets. Just keep in mind that axing the cream will result in a dish that is a bit drier, hence not quite a creamy carbonara. For pasta you can also use fettuccine, rigatoni, or bucatini.
Leftovers
Store in an airtight container for up to 3 – 4 days. This creamy carbonara recipe does not freeze well as the pasta can become mushy and the egg based sauce may separate upon reheating so try to make it day or week of if you’re planning on feasting!
More Pasta Recipes To Try:
- Cajun Chicken Pasta
- Creamy Avocado and Spinach Pasta
- Pesto Shrimp Asparagus Pasta
- Baked Mac and Cheese
- Easy Chicken Alfredo Pasta Bake
- One Pot Creamy Parmesan Pasta
- Easy Pasta Alfredo
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Creamy Carbonara
Ingredients
- 8 ounces spaghetti uncooked
- 6 oz pancetta chopped
- 2 cups half and half
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 ½ cups Parmesan cheese freshly grated, plus more for garnish
- 1 tsp pepper freshly ground
- 4 tbsp basil chopped
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- Add the pancetta to a large skillet and saute over medium-low heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer the pancetta to a bowl using a slotted spoon.
- Add the half and half to the skillet and bring to a simmer. Whisk the egg yolks into the sauce. Whisk in the Parmesan cheese. Stir in the black pepper. Taste for salt and season if needed. I find no salt is needed since the cheese adds plenty of saltiness.
- Add the cooked spaghetti, bacon and basil to the skillet and toss well to combine.
- Garnish with more Parmesan cheese if desired and serve immediately.
Video
Recipe Notes
- Half and Half: Half and half has 12 percent fat content. Heavy cream can also be used. It is also called heavy whipping cream because it’s whipping cream with a milk fat content between 36 and 40 percent.
- Leftovers: Store leftovers in an airtight container for 3 to 4 days. Make sure to refrigerate within two hours of cooking.
- Nutrition: Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
I made this successfully once and now every time I make it once I add the pasta the sauce curdles what am I doing wrong?? Send help please?!
Make sure everything is room temperature and fresh, the half and half can do that if it’s too cold or old. Also it may be the egg as well. Temper the egg, so reserve some of the cream to whisk into the egg before adding it to the overall mix, a few tbsp should do it!
Hope this helps!
I’m not an expert but to me this is a perfect way to cook carbonara. Today I used what and how much I have on hand and simply followed the steps and the end result was oh delicious! Thank you!
Thanks for the comment, Joann! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Absolutely gorgeous. I used bacon. Wonderful carbonara
This was delicious. My beef with traditional carbonara is that it can be dry. The cream is just the ticket. Nice job Jo! Your blog is going onto my favorites!
We are so happy to read this and that you enjoyed it so much!
I Made this for my family a couple of nights ago, my kids are so fussy its hard to find a dish we can all eat but they loved this simple easy recipe and even asked for seconds! Delicious.
That sounds great! So happy everyone enjoyed it!
So easy and so good!!! I made it during a winter storm for my boyfriend and I (he is very picky) but he loved it 🙂 thank you!
We are so happy he loved it!
So good!!!! I used heavy whipping cream instead of half and half…..both are great!
Is single cream ok to use?
Yes!
Yummy!
I’ve tried several carbonara recipes, and this is by far my favorite! Thank you!
I’m from the UK, is half and half cream with milk, equal parts? And what measurement is a cup? So excited to try this!!
Yes! Half whole milk, half heavy cream. There is a conversion button on the recipe card that will convert the measurements for you! 250ml/ 8 fl oz / 128 g are all equal to 1 cup 🙂
made this, added baked salmon and it was delish. May I know if there is a substitute for cream for those who are lactose intolerant?
You can buy lactose free cream, coconut cream and cashew cream can also be used, but may alter the flavor of the dish.
Hi Joanna
Can I add leftover rotisserie chicken to this dish?
Absolutely!
I usually make my own version until I came across your recipe . made this tonight and omg it’s devine! Best ever Carbonara I’ve ever tasted ..better than the restaurant!
Love to hear it!!