I make spaghetti almost as much as I make rice. I grew up eating rice almost every day. My family always cooked a pot of rice in a rice cooker to serve with poultry, seafood, and/or vegetables every night. Occasionally, my family would buy or make a noodle dish to serve for dinner in place of rice. I didn’t eat a lot of spaghetti growing up, but after moving away from home, I started making pasta and spaghetti all the time. The main reason was because I was a college student at the time and pasta was cheaper than rice. One of the first few pasta dishes I made were cacio e pepe and spaghetti carbonara because both dishes were so simple to make. Spaghetti carbonara was one of the first dishes I learned to make because of the simplicity of the ingredients. Over the years, I’ve refined my version of spaghetti carbonara to include crisp green peas. This version is my favorite because of the simplicity, speed, and satisfaction I feel once I make it.
Spaghetti Carbonara:
· ½ pound of spaghetti, cooked according to the package instructions
· ¼ cup water, reserved from cooking the spaghetti
· 8 slices of thick cut bacon, sliced into small pieces
· 4 ounces Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
· ½ teaspoon kosher salt
· ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
· 2 large eggs
· ½ cup frozen green peas, thawed
Directions:
1) Heat a skillet on medium heat. Add the bacon pieces and cook until crispy, about 5-8 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the bacon pieces to a plate.
2) In a large bowl, combine the grated cheese, kosher salt, black pepper, and eggs.
3) Add the cooked spaghetti and reserved spaghetti water into the skillet. Toss the spaghetti to coat. Add the cheese mixture and quickly toss to combine all ingredients. Add the green peas and toss a couple more times. Return the bacon pieces back to the skillet. Let all ingredients cook for another 3-5 minutes. Turn off heat.
Takeaways: I’ve made variations of the spaghetti carbonara using different vegetables. My other favorite addition in arugula because of the peppery taste. I’ve also added tomatoes and spinach on other occasions. I like to include green peas because it lends a nice crisp and sweetness to the dish.