Italian style vs Filipino style Carbonara Showdown (with Step-by-Step Recipe)

To clean out our refrigerator, I ended up searching for recipes that will use up the ingredients that are about to expire – one of which was this huge pack of parmesan cheese that I purchased when I was on a lasagna baking spree but never managed to finish, while another was these packs of ham and honey cured bacon. With that in mind, I searched for recipes that used these specific ingredients and discovered… Carbonara! I swear I’m learning so much about what actually goes into my food now that I’m starting to cook them myself…

Having said that, I’m actually the only one in the family who likes carbonara. Everyone else prefers red sauce. So… I decided to test out two carbonara recipes, to see which one would be preferred by my family (also to make sure I don’t waste a lot of ingredients only to end up with a dud!)

The two recipes I chose? Serious Eats’ classic Italian recipe and Panlasang Pinoy’s Filipino version

No spoilers – I’ll let you guys know which one my family prefers at the end 😉

DELECTABLE FOOD FOR THE DAY: CARBONARA TWO-WAY (ITALIAN & FILIPINO)

DIFFICULTY: Easy, lots of mixing but otherwise easy-peasy

SERVING SIZE: Good for 5 hungry people (cooked 800g of pasta, and split evenly between the two “styles”)

PREPARATION TIME: 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

ITALIAN STYLE

• 400g Pasta
• 1/2 cup mushroom, sliced
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, packed
• 3 medium eggs, 4 egg yolk
• 150g honey cured bacon, sliced and crisped

FILIPINO STYLE

• 400g Pasta
• 3/4 cup all purpose cream
• 3/4 cup fresh milk
• 3/4 cup mushroom, sliced
• 3/4 cup parmesan cheese, packed
• 1 pc onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, diced
• 1 egg yolk
• 150g ham, diced

STEP-BY-STEP CARBONARA RECIPE

Step 1: Prep the toppings

• Slice up the mushrooms, the bacon and the ham. Place into different bowls so we can cook them later

• For the Italian version:
  • Prepare the eggs.
    • In a BIG metal heatproof bowl (for the Italian style): Place 3 whole eggs, and 4 egg yolks. The remaining egg whites are placed into the “extra” bowl.
    • Why the big bowl? You need a bowl big enough to handle 400g of pasta, since you’ll be mixing in your cooked pasta here later on.
    • Why heatproof? You’ll be placing this big bowl over a boiling water pan later on. The steam from the boiling water will cook the egg mixture BUT will not be hot enough to scramble the eggs, and provide a nice base as you mix the egg mixture into the pasta
    • One distinct difference between the Italian and Filipino version is the amount of eggs used for the sauce. For the Italian version, the sauce is made up of mostly yolks will have a richer, silkier texture compared to one that’s been made with only whole eggs
  • Into the same egg-filled bowl, pour in 1/4 cup parmesan cheese and black pepper, then whisk well

• • Afterwards, cook 1/2 cup mushroom and fry the bacon so that it’s crisped

• Specific to the Filipino bastardized version, which of course subscribes to the belief that more is best
  • Measure out the other ingredients for the sauce and have it ready to cook later on: 3/4 cup all purpose milk, 3/4 cup milk, 3/4 cup parmesan cheese, 3/4 cup mushroom, 150g diced ham
  • Dice the 1 pc onion, and mince the 3 cloves of garlic. You’ll notice there’s
  • In one bowl, place one egg yolk. I placed the remaining egg white in the “extra” bowl – I’ll use all these extra eggs whites as the base for an omelet later on

Step 2: Cook the pasta

• Put water in a pot with some salt and oil. The salt will flavor the pasta and the oil will prevent them from sticking together. Bring the water to boil. Once it’s boiling, add the pasta and mix well using tongs to prevent them from sticking together. Cook for ~10 minutes until al dente
• Pour out the pasta water and placed in a separate bowl (we’ll be using this later – pasta water is PURE GOLD, since it contains starch that creates a creamy emulsion which helps attach the sauce to the pasta)
• Add oil to the cooked pasta and mix – this will again, prevent the cooked pasta from sticking together. Let the pasta cool slightly

Step 3: Create Italian-style carbonara

• Transfer the cooked pasta, the crispy bacon and cooked mushroom into the egg-parmesan mixture bowl. Measure out 1/2 cup of pasta water and add to the mixture as well. The heat of the pasta water will also help cook the egg-parmesan mixture

• Fill a pan with some water, then let it boil. Place the mixing bowl on top of this boiling water pan, making sure the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Stir the mixture quickly in order to cook the mixture and allow the sauce to thicken into a creamy, silky consistency. Remove from heat once done

Step 4: Create Filipino-style carbonara

• Heat the sauce pan with oil, and set it to medium heat. Add 3 cloves minced garlic and sauté for 20 seconds. Then, add the 1 diced onion and sauté for another 20 seconds

• Add the sliced mushrooms and sliced ham. Stir well until you see it’s cooked

• Add the 3/4 cup fresh milk and 3/4 cup all purpose cream. Mix well

• Add the 1 egg yolk into the mixture, followed by 3/4 cup parmesan cheese. Lower the temperature to low heat so that the sauce consistency will remain thick and creamy

• Stir until you’re happy with the sauce consistency. Pour over your pasta and mix well

Verdict? Filipino-style carbonara wins!

Clearly, we’re a family of Filipinos. Who cares about authenticity? We prefer the carbonara version with loads of toppings! YUM YUM!!