This rich Roman dish is a favourite of many around the world however, how many people outside of Italy have experienced the “Real Carbonara”?

I have personally had many debates about the true ingredients of Spaghetti alla Carbonara. The preparation is very simple. Spaghetti alla carbonara is classically made by frying guanciale in lard or butter, though Pancetta makes a great substitute. Raw egg yolks and Pecorino Romano cheese are tossed with the spaghetti in a frying pan off the heat to cook the egg gently, rather than scrambling it. The result is lovely and glossy. Add the final touch to Spaghetti alla Carbonara with a grating of Pecorino Romano cheese and freshly ground black pepper on top.

I have seen many variations of carbonara in Australia, mostly using cream. I have also seen “Carbonara” dishes that use onion, garlic, mushrooms and parsley, just to name a few ingredients that don’t belong in a real Carbonara. There are even people who add fried potato chips to their Carbonara. I am not saying that I am against using cream or any of the other ingredients in a pasta dish (except for chips – they don’t belong in any pasta dishes). All of these other ingredients would make a great pasta, but call it as it is ‘Pasta alla crema e funghi’ (Pasta with cream and mushrooms) etc. – don’t call it Pasta alla Carbonara.

So where does Spaghetti alla Carbonara come from? There are many theories relating to the origins of the classic Carbonara dish. One theory is that Spaghetti alla Carbonara was first made for charcoal burning workers. The word Carbonaro is the Italian word for charcoal burner and this theory claims that the dish was originally cooked over charcoal fire.

The second theory is that the liberal ground black pepper cracked over the pasta before serving resembles coal flakes.

The third story speaks of the invention of the carbonara after the liberation of Rome. The food shortage was so severe that American soldiers distributed powdered egg and bacon to the Italians. A Roman chef used the limited ingredients available to create spaghetti alla carbonara using spaghetti, egg, bacon, cheese and cracked pepper. Later the dish was improved by the Italians to include Guanciale instead of bacon to make the dish what it is today.

Regardless of the origin, Spaghetti alla Carbonara is very simple to make and loved by all. Get a true taste of The Real Spaghetti alla Carbonara the way the Romans intended. Let us know what you think of our version on social media channels Instagram and Facebook? We look forward to hearing from you – buon appetito.

How to make the Real Spaghetti alla Carbonara blog authored by Vanessa Bottaro.

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Vanessa Bottaro

Author, Founder and Creative Director at Italian Spoon

In my eyes, Italian cuisine is love on a plate.

Vanessa is Creative Director of the Italian Spoon website and Author of The Italian entertaining cookbook, a collection of home-style Italian recipes and tips for entertaining in true Italian-style. In addition to cooking and taking photographs, Vanessa writes the recipes and blogs to bring the love of Italian cooking to life! The collection of recipes and blogs on the website have been inspired by travels to Italy and desire to share what she has learnt from the great ‘Mamma’s and ‘Nonna’s in her life!

Vanessa is an entrepreneur and wife to husband Simone and the mother of two beautiful kids Dante and Mia. Even so she was born and lives in Melbourne Australia, Vanessa has a deep connection to Italy. Perhaps it is the food, or maybe it is because it is the place where Vanessa met the love of her life, Simone to whom she has been happily married for so many years.

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