I've decided on a new, immediate food goal...or rather, I'm adding this goal to the ever-growing list!
One thing I love, but have never successfully made, is spaghetti carbonara. I have never once managed to make it in such a way that the eggy, cheesy, creamy sauce becomes thick and unctuous and coats the pasta lovingly. Instead I almost always end up with bacon and scrambled eggs mixed through pasta. Not appetising and frankly, just not right!
Now, I realise this is far from being my problem alone - in fact, I'm sure there are many support groups and message boards out there in the world wide web, offering a place to cry with similarly incapable cooks who have just wasted £4 worth of organic smoked bacon and £3 worth of Parmesan. But it's a problem I've decided I simply must overcome. I will, therefore, be putting my waist and sanity on the line and will try as many different variations of carbonara until I find one that works every time.
I will conquer you spaghetti carbonara...as god as my witness, I'll never eat scrambled egg pasta again!
Awesome challenge!!
ReplyDeleteI can't enjoy the pleasure of a good carbonara but I am trying to perfect a similar dish myself. It was an exquisitely simple yet incredibly rich and delicious and oh so elegant dish I had at a fancy Italian restaurtant in Sydney with my sister. It consisted of fresh homemade fettucine, cream, good quality parmesan and a perfectly soft poached/friend? truffle egg (i.e. I'm assuming it was cooked with a dash of truffle oil). This was all tosssed at table in front of us together with black cracked pepper and some salt. So, so good.
Looking forward to hearing all about your carbonara trials!
Ooh that sounds amazing! And actually, sort of a vege carbonara of a fashion...! I might try to find a couple of vege carbonara recipes too...I believe they're out there, and you could probably make the same cream/cheese/egg sauce with some pan fried mushrooms or slivers of smoked salmon?
ReplyDeleteI'll definitely keep you posted. I am rather determined...
Try taking the past off the heat as soon as you've added the egg. the heat of the pasta and bacon should be enough to cook the egg as you stir it through.
ReplyDeleteYeah, that's what I usually do but still I end up with scrambled egg. I perhaps need to wait a minute or two...maybe the pots hold the heat too well?!
ReplyDeleteThere's also a bit of debate as to whether true carbonara should have cream or just eggs and cheese...from what I can gather, proper Italian carbonara doesn't have cream. Such pasta politics...