pasta carbonara made with bresaola

“quasi carbonara” con bresaola

TOTAL TIME: 25 minutes

MAKES: 4 to 6 servings

Bresaola in place of pancetta or gunaciale makes a carbonara that's a little tangier than traditional versions. A little cornstarch helps the sauce thicken.

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Ingredients

Fine sea salt
6 large eggs
1 tablespoon plus 2 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 1/2 tablespoons cold water
1 pound trenette or linguine
2 1/2 cups whole milk
2 cups freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano cheese (about 4 1/2 ounces)
1 (4-ounce) 1/4-inch-thick piece bresaola, cut into 1/4-inch cubes (1 cup)

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, lightly beat eggs. In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and 1 1/2 tablespoons cold water.

Cook pasta in the boiling water until al dente.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring milk to a boil, then whisk in cornstarch mixture. Whisking constantly, cook milk mixture until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes; remove from heat. Whisking, pour about 1/2 cup hot milk mixture into bowl with eggs. Repeat twice, then, whisking, add egg mixture back to remaining milk mixture. Whisk in cheese and 1 teaspoon salt.

Drain pasta, then return to pot. Add egg mixture and half of the bresaola to hot pasta; toss to combine. Let stand 2 to 3 minutes (pasta will absorb some of the sauce), then toss again. Adjust seasoning, if desired, then divide among serving bowls. Spoon extra sauce and sprinkle remaining bresaola over the top. Serve immediately.

April 2011

keywords:

carbonara, pasta

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Comments [3] | Add your comment

I made this recipe meat free. I added a small amount of garlic and basil then served sauted tomatoes on the side. This was a really nice recipe, I loved it. This sauce is devine.

Posted: February 26, 2013 09:23 by x7anoonah
I am enchanted with the idea of the Bresaola, verses Pancetta as a sub ingredient; however, I have never heard of corn starch being employed in Carbonara Sauce, and I live in Italia.

Why would you add corn starch to a classic ?

Normally, it is prepared with the following:

1 tblsp. olive oil extra virgin

6 slices pancettas sliced into 1/4 inch cubes or strips

4 egg yolks

2 small egg whites

salt and freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup Reggiano Parmesano or Grana Padano

6 tblsps. cream

1 pound trenette or linguini or fettuccine style pasta

grated Reggiano or Grana Padano

Ciao, Happy New Year,

Margherite.
Posted: January 01, 2013 08:50 by Margherite
'Squisita! This eminently achievable recipe is fast and fun to prepare, and very tasty.

Finding besaola is a challenge, and even if you do, it may be priced beyond what you want to pay for a weeknight meal -- or any meal for that matter. No worries. This dish works equally well with the traditional pancettal. Buy the pancetta in a slab (1/4 lb. / 125g or so) and cut into 1/4 inch cubes. Sautee these lightly in olive oil until they turn a dark pink color; if you prefer, you may continue to sautee until they begin to "char" a bit at the edges, living up to the meaning of the name, carbonara. Proceed with the recipe as written.

As always, we put in a bit more cheese into our preparation than this recipe called for ... okay, a lot more cheese. Call it a weakness if you must. We Italians love our cheese. The sauce was thicker, but not "gloppy" in any way -- still velvetty smooth, but of course, very rich.

And this is a problem because ...?

It's nice to find a Cucina Italiana recipe that actually works as advertised, as this magazine seems to be plagued by a lack of testing, especially when they take recipes from outside sources, such as in the pasta issue. (Has anyone out there gotten the homemade trofie recipe to work?!). This recipe works as described, no testing or changes required.

Buon Apetito!

Antonio Christopher Dittmann (ne Foglia)

10/12/2012

Posted: October 12, 2012 16:02 by antonio57