Shrimp Carbonara

A rich and creamy pasta carbonara, loaded with fresh shrimp. Authentic Italian flavor in a dish that is ready to serve in under 30 minutes.

Prep: 15

Cook: 30

Total: 45

Yield:4 servings

Equipment

Large pot
Large wooden spoon
colander
medium mixing bowl
whisk
Large skillet
Large plate
Paper towels
Slotted spoon
Tongs
4 serving plates or serving bowls

Ingredients

24 ounces water up to 32 ounces
1 tablespoon sea salt up to 1 ½ tablespoons as desired
12 ounces dry spaghetti noodles or dry bucatini
1 ¼ cups grated fresh parmesan divided, see Notes
6 large egg yolks see Notes
freshly cracked black pepper to taste
6 ounces bacon sliced into ¼-inch-long pieces
¾ pound large shrimp peeled, deveined

Instructions

For the Shrimp Carbonara

Fill large pot with 24 ounces water. Depending on size of pot, add more water if needed to fully cover pasta.
Place pot over high heat and bring water to rolling boil. When water begins to boil, stir in 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons salt. Reduce heat to medium-high and allow water to return to rolling boil.
When water returns to rolling boil, add dry pasta. Boil pasta, stirring occasionally, until pasta is just al dente. For best results, boil pasta 1 minute less than time indicated on packaging.
Before draining pasta, remove 1 cup pasta water from pot and set water aside. Pour pasta and remaining water into colander and drain pasta well. Set pasta aside.
Add 1 cup parmesan cheese and 6 egg yolks to bowl. Whisk ingredients together vigorously until fully combined. Mixture should be quite thick, almost like cake batter. Set bowl aside.
Heat skillet over medium heat. While pan warms, line plate with paper towels and set aside.
When skillet is warm, add bacon slices and cook until bacon is just crispy. Be very careful not to burn bacon - if unsure, stop cooking while bacon is still slightly flimsy. Use slotted spoon to transfer bacon to paper towels, leaving as much rendered fat in skillet as possible.
Once all bacon has been removed, increase heat under skillet to medium-high. Add shrimp to skillet, working in batches as needed to avoid overcrowding.
Sauté shrimp undisturbed 1 minute, then stir shrimp and sauté 1 additional minute.
After 1 minute, add cooked pasta to skillet. Toss pasta to incorporate with shrimp, coating pasta in rendered bacon fat.
Slowly pour in ¼ cup of reserved pasta water while whisking constantly to incorporate water. Pasta water and rendered bacon fat will emulsify and thicken.

To Serve Shrimp Carbonara

Before continuing, stage serving plates or bowls. Carbonara will need to be served immediately after next steps. If time is needed to prepare sides, turn off heat under skillet without removing pan. This will keep dish warm but please note that shrimp and pasta will continue cooking and may become overcooked.
Remove skillet from heat. Return cooked bacon to skillet, then slowly pour in parmesan-egg mixture. Sprinkle 1 pinch salt over liquid.
Use tongs to gently toss pasta and shrimp in parmesan-egg mixture until thick, silky sauce forms. Note: if sauce is too thick, stir in additional pasta water in 1 tablespoon increments, making sure to fully incorporate water before adding more.
When satisfied with sauce consistency, divide shrimp carbonara between serving plates or bowls. Top with additional black pepper and remaining ¼ cup parmesan. Serve immediately.

Notes

Shrimp carbonara needs to be served immediately after preparing, so be sure to account for that before you get started! If you're serving any sides with it, try to time them so they're ready at the same time as the carbonara.
For Saucier Carbonara: Use 7 egg yolks instead of 6, and increase the parmesan to 1 ½ cups total (1 ¼ cups mixed with the egg yolks, and the remaining ¼ sprinkled on top before serving).
Make it Gluten Free: Use gluten-free pasta.
Make it Low Carb: Use palmini linguini or angel hair pasta instead of traditional pasta. Follow the instructions on the packaging to prepare the palmini.

Nutrition

Recipe By:Cheryl Malik