By Koby Parry
Welcome back to another week of a poor college kid making food! This week, we’ll be making my go-to carbonara recipe. This recipe is based on the internet chef, Joshua Weissman’s recipe, but I have made small adjustments for the sake of price and convenience. It’s easy, and filling, and everyone will think you’re an amazing chef since “carbonara” is a fancy word.
I always have the ingredients in my fridge for this recipe as it’s got a good amount of protein, carbs, and fat (which isn’t as bad as everyone thinks it is). And, it’s easy to cook! Whenever I finish a tough workout and feel like passing out, this is what I cook. Which hopefully goes to show how simple it actually is.
Carbonara
- 2 whole eggs ~$2.34 ($0.20/ea)
- 5 egg yolks (7 eggs total)
- 1 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese (4 oz of cheese is roughly 1 cup shredded) ~$5.14 ($0.64/oz)
- 12 oz of bacon ~$3.72 ($4.96/lb)
- 1 lb of spaghetti (or any other thin noodle you prefer) ~$0.98 ($0.06/oz)
- Salt and pepper to taste ~$1.66 ($0.32/oz)
- 1 cup of pasta water
Grand total: ~$13.84
Recipe total: ~$9.67
Note: you won’t use the entire cup of pasta water. You’ll need to reserve a cup just in case you need more, but you will likely only end up using about half of it.
- Set a large pot of water over high heat and salt generously. Add pasta once the water starts to boil and follow package directions.
- While the water heats, add two whole eggs and five egg yolks to a bowl and whisk them together. Add shredded Parmesan cheese and mix until evenly combined. Set aside.
- Slice bacon into small thin strips, throwing away any excess fat. Cook in a separate pan until crisp. Once done, turn off the heat and set aside.
- Once the pasta is finished boiling, using a glass liquid measuring cup, save 1 cup of pasta water and drain the rest. Put your noodles back into the pot, adding the bacon and egg-cheese mixture to the pot, and mix until the noodles are thoroughly coated. Add pasta water in small increments until a smooth and creamy consistency is achieved. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Garnish with shredded Parmesan and pepper and serve immediately.
Note: be cautious not to over salt your pasta. The bacon and pasta water will add a lot of salt, so be sure to taste everything before you decide to add more.
Pasta does not store well, but you can put it in a Tupperware container and keep it in the fridge as leftovers.
College Cuisine: Carbonara was originally published in The Herald on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
