Keep it clean, keep it simple.
Ingredients:
- Really, really good pasta (just make your own already)
- 1 1/2 cups Parmigiano-Reggiano (grate it yourself)
- One slice of pancetta per person, diced
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 whole egg
- 2 tbs butter
- 3 cloves chopped garlic
- Salt & Pepper
Once this one starts cooking it moves very fast, so make sure you do all of your prep work beforehand. Pick out a good, very large bowl as the location for where you do all the final prep work.
Get your pasta water going over very hot heat, make sure to salt it. In a small pan start to fry your diced pancetta in low heat. As your water is getting going and the pancetta is starting to fry and render prep your eggs and Parm. First, whisk your 3 yolks and 1 whole egg. Next, dump in 1 cup of Parmesan (reserving the remaining 1/2 cup). Mix this well to form a sort of egg/parmesan glorious paste.
Right about this time is when you pancetta should be ready. It’s crisped, the fat is rendered, but it’s not burnt. Remove the pancetta but leave the fat in the pan. Once you’ve moved the pancetta to a side bowl throw your diced garlic into this hot rendered fat. Cook briefly to roast the garlic. While cooking toss in a little bit of salt and pepper for taste. Remove the garlic once it’s roasted and place in the same side bowl as your pancetta.
Here’s where things move fast. Cook your pasta al dente and drain via a colander, don’t wash the pasta. Quickly move the pasta from the colander to the “finishing bowl”. If the pasta hasn’t fully drained that’s even better, since a little pasta water only improves flavor.
Once the pasta is in the finishing bowl immediately toss in the pancetta, garlic, egg/parmesan paste, and butter. Use tongs to quickly lift and mix all of the ingredients. Toss for 2 or 3 minutes, careful to get the butter fully melted and the eggs combined – but not scrambled. Salt and pepper to taste. Plate and eat immediately.