Simple Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Ingredients:

1 pack spaghetti
olive oil 

200g pancetta or bacon, sliced into small strips
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 large eggs
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, more for serving
black pepper 

fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped, to taste

Preparation:

Prepare the sauce at the same time the pasta is cooking so that the spaghetti will be hot and ready when the sauce is finished; it is very important that the pasta is hot when adding the egg mixture, so that the heat of the pasta cooks the raw eggs in the sauce.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook until tender yet firm (al dente). Drain the pasta well, reserving 1/2 cup of the starchy water to use in the sauce.

Heat the olive oil in a deep skillet over medium flame. Add the pancetta or bacon and saute until the bacon is crisp. Add the garlic into the fat and saute to soften.

Add the hot, drained spaghetti to the pan and toss for 2 minutes to coat the pasta in the bacon fat.

Beat the eggs and Parmesan together in a mixing bowl, stirring well to prevent lumps. 

Remove the pan from the heat (very important that this is done OFF the heat) and pour the egg/parmesan mixture into the pasta, whisking quickly until the eggs thicken, but do not scramble. Thin out the sauce with a bit of the reserved pasta water, until it becomes thin as desired. 

Season the carbonara with black pepper and salt to taste. Serve with chopped parsley and more cheese on top, to taste. Enjoy.