I love a good classic carbonara, just as much as the next person, but sometimes it is nice to shake things up slightly every now and then. With that being said though, I didn’t want to anger Italians too much by “bastardizing” their beloved dish so I just made a slight tweak. This Gnocchi Carbonara is based off the dish we all know and love, except instead of spaghetti, I wanted to use store-bought gnocchi. Mainly because I love gnocchi so much, but also because how do you take a comfort dish and make it even more comforting? Adding potato pasta dumplings of course. Other than that, it’s a pretty standard recipe and you’ll find no cream or peas here.
Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the olive oil and the pancetta. Cook, stirring often, until lightly crisp and golden brown. Keep warm.
**Tip: If you can find guanciale at your store, I highly recommend using that. It’s Italian cured pork cheek that is traditional to carbonara but it can be hard to find. Pancetta or bacon will do the trick though.**
In the meantime, in a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, parmesan, pecorino, a small pinch of salt and plenty of black pepper. Set aside.
It’s important to do this ahead of time because once the pancetta and gnocchi are done, the rest moved pretty quickly and you don’t want to curdle the eggs so it’s important to work fast.
Add the gnocchi to the boiling salted water and cook until just slightly under done. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the gnocchi to the skillet with the pancetta. Give it a stir and cook for a minute or so over low heat.
Remove from the heat and add the egg mixture to the pan. Vigorously stir until warmed and melted through. Add a ladleful of the pasta cooking water as needed to loosen it slightly and create a silky creamy sauce.
Serve with a sprinkle more of cheese and a bit more black pepper. A note when it comes to salt in this dish. You want to be light on the salt you add because the cheeses are salty and the pancetta is salty and so be careful.
If you want a decadent dinner, then look no further because this gnocchi is cheesy, creamy and delicious. The best part is, it’ll be ready in under half and hour and satisfies that comfort food craving. Let me know what you think below and thank you so much for reading and following along.
Gnocchi Carbonara
Equipment
- skillet
- Pot
- Bowl
- whisk
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 ounces pancetta
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1/3 cup grated Parmesan packed
- 1/3 cup grated pecorino Romano packed
- Salt
- Coarse black pepper
- 1 16 oz package gnocchi
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season with plenty of salt.
- Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the olive oil and the pancetta. Cook, stirring often, until lightly crisp and golden brown. Keep warm.
- In the meantime, in a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, parmesan, pecorino, a small pinch of salt and plenty of black pepper. Set aside.
- Add the gnocchi to the boiling salted water and cook until just slightly under done. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the gnocchi to the skillet with the pancetta. Give it a stir and cook for a minute or so over low heat. Remove from the heat and add the egg mixture to the pan. Vigorously stir until warmed and melted through. Add a ladleful of the pasta cooking water as needed to loosen it slightly and create a silky creamy sauce.
- Serve with a sprinkle more of cheese and a bit more black pepper. Enjoy!
nice carbonara twist with gnocchi, I’ve been using zucchini when trying to stay healthy-ish and the carbonara flavors are still there, and gnocchi is a nice change, thank you!
This was delicious and so quick and easy for a weeknight!