I love carbonara so am always looking to reach new heights. This was a fun experiement and the eggs keep for up to 3 months in an airtight container so I have been using on other pastas. It's subtle but it does add a sort of umami flavour.
Ingredients
Cured Egg Yolks
2 egg yolks
Fine sea salt
Carbonara
1 tbsp of olive oil
120g of guanciale
1 whole garlic clove, bashed
200g of spaghetti
2 egg yolks
75g of parmesan, finely grated
Method
Egg Yolks - Start the cured yolks 24 hours ahead.
Cover the base of a container in fine sea salt and make dimples in it for the eggs.
Make sure the egg yolks are completely free of white, then put them into the dimples in the salt.
Cover the yolks with more salt, then refrigerate overnight.
Preheat the oven to 40ºC fan.
Wash the yolks under cold water, then place them on an oiled rack.
Transfer to the oven for three hours and they will become hard and ready for grating.
Carbonara
Heat the olive oil in a high sided pan, and add the guanciale and garlic clove.
Cook until the fat has rendered – around 10 mins.
Discard the garlic clove.
Cook the pasta until al dente.
Whisk 2 egg yolks in a bowl with a pinch of salt.
Once the pasta is almost cooked, use tongs to lift it into the pan with the guanciale.
Stir the pasta to coat it in the pork fat, adding a splash of pasta water.
Keep mixing until coated in a silky sauce, adding more pasta water as necessary.
Add the beaten yolks to the pan, stirring vigorously, then add a little more pasta water, continuously stirring.
Add the Parmesan and continue stirring, adding more water if needed.
Season with black pepper.
Transfer to warm serving bowls and top with the grated cured egg yolk.
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