This is the secret ingredient for the best pasta Carbonara
A good pasta Carbonara can be quite a challenge; it’s quick to make, but it’s essential that it’s prepared properly. With so few ingredients, things can quickly go wrong. In that sense, it’s a little deceptive: the short cooking time and few ingredients may make it seem like a piece of cake, but nothing could be further from the truth. With this secret ingredient, you can turn your Carbonara into a world-class dish.
We previously shared 4 common mistakes when making Carbonara, but there are even more tips and tricks to ensure you get that perfect, comforting flavor you’re looking for in a pasta Carbonara. Delicious. There’s one ingredient you really want to use in your next Carbonara adventure…
Giada De Laurentiis’s Italian Carbonara
Giada De Laurentiis, the Italian-American chef who won an Emmy for her Food Network show Every Day Italian, knows a great deal about Italian food — and she’s also very good at making it. She swears by one particular ingredient for pasta Carbonara, and always adds her own twist to the authentic recipe. In classic Italian Carbonara, guanciale (pork cheek bacon) is used, but simple recipes often contain bacon or pancetta. Giada has found a middle ground; she uses half guanciale and half bacon. Best of both worlds.
This ingredient could make your pasta Carbonara even better
But that’s not the secret she swears by. No, according to Giada De Laurentiis, a pinch of cinnamon can really turn your pasta Carbonara into a world-class dish. And perhaps you’re thinking: where have we heard that before? Italian-American Anna Benedetto (the mother of singer Tony Bennett) swore by the same ingredient for her legendary lasagna. Could cinnamon simply be a spice you must have in your cupboard when cooking Italian food?
A little sweetness works really well
Chef Giada tells Food & Wine why cinnamon works so well in Carbonara: ‘The cinnamon adds a little sweetness and a lot of warmth to the dish, because as the fat comes out of the meat, the bacon and/or pancetta essentially absorbs the cinnamon.’ We already knew that a little sweetness can take a savory dish to a higher level. But cinnamon in Carbonara is new to me — and I’m definitely going to try it.
Carbonara with heavy cream
It may be a bit sacrilegious in the Italian church, but Giada also has a recipe for her version of Carbonara… It is, however, a little more Americanized. Meaning: even richer than Carbonara already is, with plenty of heavy cream. Of course, that really isn’t done in Carbonara, but hey: over in America, they aren’t exactly known for sticking to authentic Italian recipes anyway. Or have you seen much Chicken Alfredo on the menu in Rome? And honestly: this Carbonara recipe is delicious.
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