-
Prep time
15 minutes
-
Cook time
18 minutes
-
Serves
4
Author Notes
This dish lands somewhere between a carbonara and cacio e pepe. The sauce here is silky and luscious, and it’s made with just a few simple ingredients: It blends a little rendered bacon fat with butter, pasta water, and Pecorino Romano. The addition of coarsely ground black pepper brings some heat to complement the rich bacon-and-eggs vibe. A shower of onion-y chives delivers a bit of fresh flavor and color. The finishing touch: a perfectly soft-cooked Eggland’s Best egg, which gives this cheesy, peppery pasta a dose of decadent egg yolk.
Steaming the soft-cooked eggs and then immediately submerging them in an ice bath can make them easier to peel. For the most flawless eggs, tap them on the wide end where the air sac generally forms, then lightly crack the rest of the shell. Peel them under the surface of the ice bath to help the shells loosen. You’ll have gorgeous eggs without gouges. —Sarah Wharton
Test Kitchen Notes
This recipe is shared in partnership with Eggland's Best. —The Editors
Continue After Advertisement
Ingredients
-
1/2 pound
spaghetti
-
4
large Eggland’s Best eggs
-
8
slices bacon
-
1 1/2 teaspoons
coarsely ground black pepper
-
2 tablespoons
unsalted butter
-
1/2 cup
grated Pecorino Romano
-
Thinly sliced chives, for serving
Directions
-
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. (For the best finished sauce, use as little water as needed to cook the pasta and prevent it from sticking.) Add the spaghetti and cook 1 minute less than the package instructions for al dente, about 8 to 9 minutes. Drain the pasta, reserving at least 1 cup of the pasta water; set the cooked pasta and pasta water aside.
-
Place a steamer basket in a medium saucepan with a tight-fitting lid. Bring about 1 inch of water to a boil. Add the eggs and steam, covered, for 6 minutes. Immediately transfer eggs to an ice bath. When cool enough to handle, gently crack the eggs and carefully remove the shells.
-
Meanwhile, chop the bacon into 1-inch pieces. Add to a cold, dry skillet. Place the skillet over medium heat and cook until crispy, 16 to 18 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of bacon fat.
-
To the bacon fat in the skillet, add the black pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the butter until melted. Using tongs, transfer the pasta to the skillet, and add about ½ cup pasta water. Toss to coat. Stir in the Pecorino Romano until incorporated, adding additional pasta water if needed. Stir in three-quarters of the chopped bacon.
-
Transfer the pasta to bowls. Sprinkle with chives and the remaining bacon. Place an egg on top, and split with a knife. Serve, and enjoy.
See what other Food52ers are saying.