Try this Instant Pot Carbonara recipe, or contribute your own.
- Carbohydrate 0.77 g
- Cholesterol 423 mg
- Fat 9.94 g
- Fiber 0 g
- Protein 12.58 g
- Saturated Fat 3.099 g
- Serving Size 1 1 -6 serving (507g)
- Sodium 149.480000008014 mg
- Sugar 0.77 g
- Trans Fat 1.667 g
- Calories 143 calories
Step-by-step
- Put the pasta and the water, with a pinch of kosher salt, in the Instant Pot and program it to cook on Manual for 5 minutes at high pressure.
- While the cooker heats up, crack the eggs in a bowl, add in the cheese and the black pepper, whisk it until it's all mixed together and put aside until you need it.
- Cook the bacon (pancetta or, if you can find it, the guanciale), in a frying pan over medium heat for a few minutes until it's crispy and has rendered lots of fat and then remove the pan from the heat.
- When the cooking time on the Instant Pot is up, do a controlled quick release. Pasta can foam up so release with small spurts until you are sure it's not going to spew all over the place and then release it all at once.
- Put the pan with the bacon/pancetta back on the heat and dump in the pasta and any liquid left in the pot, wait for the water to come to a fierce bubbling up and cook for about 30 seconds until there is just a bit of water left. You want to see some liquid but you don't it to be all soupy.
- Now, remove the pan from the heat again so that you can add in the eggs/cheese and quickly stir it all together until the eggs thicken into a sauce.
- If you like it super peppery, season with a bit more, more grated cheese if you like and serve right away. Enjoy!
Can pasta really cook under pressure without turning to mush? Rigatoni, penne, and cavatappi hold their structural integrity better than long strands when subjected to high pressure, absorbing the exact ratio of four cups of water to one pound of dry pasta during a five-minute cycle. Controlled pressure release prevents starchy liquid from spewing through the valve. Vent the steam in small spurts initially, checking the foam level before opening the valve completely.
Meat and Cheese Substitutions
Traditional guanciale yields an intense, cured-pork flavor that differs significantly from standard smoked bacon. Pancetta offers an unsmoked middle ground, rendering ample fat when cooked over medium heat for several minutes until crispy. Pecorino Romano brings a sharp, salty bite to the egg mixture, whereas aged Parmesan produces a milder, nuttier sauce. Using finely grated cheese ensures it dissolves smoothly into the four beaten eggs rather than clumping.
Emulsification Mechanics
Stirring the egg and cheese mixture into the hot pasta off the heat prevents scrambling. Residual heat from the pan and thirty seconds of bubbling liquid thicken the proteins into a glossy coating. Coarsely ground black pepper cuts through the rich fat content of the pork and dairy.
