Pantry Carbonara
Bacon, egg, and pasta — the silky weeknight version with no cheese required.
Ingredients
- 200 g Pasta
- 120 g Bacon
- 3 Egg
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 1 tsp Black pepper
- 1 tsp Salt
Method
- Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil.
- Dice the bacon and smash the garlic.
- Beat the eggs with a generous grind of black pepper in a bowl.
- Render the bacon in a cold pan over medium heat until crisp; add garlic for the last minute.
- Drop the pasta into the boiling water; cook one minute shy of al dente.
- Reserve a mugful of pasta water, then drain.
- Off the heat, toss the drained pasta with the bacon, then quickly stir in the eggs, splashing in pasta water until silky.
- Serve right away.
Tap “Start cooking” for live timers that flag what to get ahead on while something simmers.
About Pantry Carbonara
Pantry Carbonara is a pared-back take on the Roman classic, keeping the soul of the dish — pasta bound in a glossy sauce of egg and rendered pork — while dropping the cheese so you can make it from ordinary staples. Traditional carbonara from Rome leans on guanciale and Pecorino, but the fundamental magic is the same here: raw egg emulsified with starchy pasta water and hot fat into a creamy coating that uses no cream at all. Using bacon in place of guanciale is the practical swap that makes this a genuine weeknight plate.
Success comes down to temperature control. The eggs are beaten with plenty of black pepper and stirred in off the heat, with reserved pasta water splashed in to loosen the sauce into silk rather than scrambling it into curds. The payoff is a rich, savoury bowl carried by crisp bacon, mellow garlic, and a sharp hit of pepper, all clinging to al dente strands. It's fast, high in protein, and best eaten the instant it's tossed, before the sauce has a chance to tighten.
Pantry Carbonara: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Pantry Carbonara?
A serving has about 725 calories — 30.5g protein, 78.1g carbs, 32.6g fat, 3.9g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is it high in protein?
Each serving has about 30.5g of protein, roughly 17% of its calories.
Is Pantry Carbonara gluten-free?
As written, no — it contains Pasta. You'd need a certified gluten-free swap for that ingredient to make it gluten-free.
How long does Pantry Carbonara take to make?
About 21 minutes start to finish, but only around 14 of those are hands-on — the rest is cooking time. In the Homecooked app the timers and parallel steps are sequenced for you so the hands-on part feels even shorter.
How many servings does Pantry Carbonara make?
This recipe makes 2 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.