Treat yourself to this Fettuccine Carbonara recipe for a smooth and creamy weeknight dinner with fresh parsley and bacon. This easy pasta dish is so incredibly fast you’ll be hard-pressed to reach for a jar of sauce ever again.
You can have a tasty dinner that doesn’t take long to pull together and that’s deeply satisfying.
How to Make Fettuccine Carbonara
The carbonara sauce comes together in the time that it takes water to boil plus the 8 minutes it takes to cook the pasta or spiralize the zucchini. If you’re using fresh pasta, that’ll cut off 4 minutes. The measurements are in the printable recipe at the bottom of this post.
Pasta Carbonara Ingredients
- 8 ounces fettuccini pasta
- 2 shallots minced
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 egg yolks
- 6 strips bacon cooked and chopped
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese grated
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In a large skillet over medium heat, add the bacon and cook until done but flexible. Sauté shallots and garlic until soft. If shallots are not available, dice a small onion and cook the onion until it’s soft and translucent. -
Turn off the heat. Add cream, parmesan cheese, and egg yolks to the shallots and bacon. Mix well. -
Boil pasta until al dente in a large pot of salted water. If you’re using frozen fresh pasta about 6 minutes. If it’s not frozen, 4 minutes. -
If you are making the pasta in advance, drain the pasta (reserve 1/2 cup water), rinse it with cool water, and drizzle it with olive oil. This stops the cooking process and keeps it from sticking. When your sauce is ready, add a little of the reserved water and stir in the pasta.
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If your sauce is ready when you boil the pasta: lift the hot pasta directly out of the water and put it directly into the cream-egg mixture. If a little of the pasta cooking water gets into the sauce, that’s ok. The starch in the water with help thicken it up and create a silky sauce. -
Drizzle with olive oil. Top with parsley and parmesan. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Easy Carbonara Recipe Variations
You can jazz up your carbonara by adding peas and mushrooms. Switch out the fettuccine for any pasta and create spaghetti carbonara or ziti carbonara. Black (squid ink) noodles are fun too!
Grilled chicken or gently sauteed garlic shrimp are lovely additions to carbonara. A piece of salmon nestled on top is tasty too.
Personally, I like a basic fettuccine carbonara with lots and lots of garlic.
What to serve with carbonara?
Keep it simple by serving it up with rustic tomato tart, garlic bread, and a fresh Parmesan Garlic Salad. This salad is very similar to a Caesar salad but without anchovies and eggs.
Wine and dessert pairings for this fettuccine carbonara recipe
A crisp sauvignon blanc pairs really nicely with this meal. For dessert, keep the simple elegance vibe going with fresh berries and vanilla ice cream.
I love Fettuccine Carbonara not only because it’s so easy, but because everyone in our family (from 2 to 80) can’t get enough of it! Maybe it’s the bacon? Maybe it’s the lightness of the sauce? Maybe it’s the butter?
All I know is, it’s a winner every time it hits the table and that makes me feel like I’ve hit a home run for my family! It’s smooth rich and creamy with a tad of green freshness and a touch of smokiness.
If you’d like to make fresh homemade pasta, I’ve made an easy to follow step by step tutorial that will walk you through it. Warning: You may never buy a box of pasta again!
More Easy Pasta Dishes You’ll Love
- Adult Mac and Cheese
- Pasta Alfredo
- Shrimp and Scallop Pasta in spicy tomato sauce
- Brown Butter Sage Tortellini
- Tortellini Soup
- Cacio e Pepe (Cheese & Pepper)
Fettuccine Carbonara
Classic pasta dish. Easy to make with less than 10 ingredients. Yum. Make this a meal with a salad or serve it as a side. Everyone in our family loves it! | www.lakesidetable.com
Ingredients
- 8 ounces fettuccini pasta
- 2 shallot minced
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 egg yolks
- 6 strips bacon cooked and chopped
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese grated
Instructions
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Over medium low heat, add the bacon and cook until done but flexible. Sauté shallots and garlic until soft.
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Turn off heat. Add cream, parmesan cheese, and egg yolks to the shallots and bacon. Mix well.
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Boil pasta until al dente. If you’re using frozen fresh pasta about 6 minutes. If it’s not frozen, 4 minutes.
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Lift pasta out of pot and put into cream mixture. If a little of the pasta water gets into the sauce, that’s ok. The starch in the water with help thicken it up. Stir well and serve.
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Drizzle with olive oil. Top with parsley and parmesan. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Recipe Notes
With Zucchini Zoodles
Nutrition Facts
| Amount Per Serving | ||
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 206 | |
| % Daily Value* | ||
| Total Fat 19.8g | 30% | |
| Saturated Fat 8.8g | ||
| Trans Fat 0.3g | ||
| Cholesterol 102.4mg | 34% | |
| Sodium 194mg | 8% | |
| Total Carbohydrate 1.9g | 1% | |
| Dietary Fiber 0.1g | 1% | |
| Sugars 1.2g | ||
| Protein 5.2g | 10% | |
| Vitamin A 106.9µg | 7% | |
| Vitamin C 1.5mg | 2% | |
| Calcium 24.5mg | 2% | |
| Iron 0.4mg | 2% | |
| Zinc 0.5mg | 4% | |
