Description
Experience the delightful twist of Carbonara with Gnocchi, where creamy, rich sauce meets tender potato dumplings. This dish combines classic flavors with a unique texture that will leave you craving more.
Ingredients
Scale
- Good quality potato gnocchi
- Cured beef belly or beef bacon
- 2 large egg yolks and 1 whole large egg (for two servings)
- 4 yolks and 2 whole eggs (for four servings)
- Pecorino Romano cheese (about 1 cup packed for two servings)
- Freshly ground black pepper (at least 1-2 teaspoons, or to taste)
- Salt (for salting the gnocchi cooking water)
Instructions
- Prepare Your Mis En Place: Grate your Pecorino Romano cheese. In a medium bowl, whisk together your egg yolks and whole egg(s) until well combined. Stir in about half of your grated Pecorino Romano and a generous amount of freshly ground black pepper. Set this mixture aside. Finely dice your cured beef belly or beef bacon into small lardons or cubes.
- Render the Beef: Place a large skillet over medium heat. Add your diced beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until crispy and most of its fat is rendered, about 8-12 minutes. Transfer the beef lardons to a small bowl, leaving the rendered fat in the skillet.
- Boil the Gnocchi: Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a rolling boil. Add your gnocchi and cook according to package directions or until they float to the surface, typically 2-4 minutes for fresh gnocchi. Reserve about 1 to 1.5 cups of the starchy gnocchi cooking water before draining.
- Assemble the Sauce: Transfer the hot, cooked gnocchi directly from the pot into the skillet with the rendered beef fat. Do NOT return the skillet to the heat.
- Emulsify: Pour the egg and cheese mixture over the hot gnocchi in the skillet. Toss vigorously with tongs, gradually adding small splashes of the reserved hot gnocchi water until the sauce coats the gnocchi beautifully and reaches your desired consistency.
- Final Touches and Serve: Stir the crispy beef lardons back into the gnocchi. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Transfer to warm bowls, garnish with more freshly grated Pecorino Romano and a generous flourish of black pepper. Enjoy it piping hot!
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl
- Calories: 600
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 800 mg
- Fat: 30 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 15 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 60 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 25 g
- Cholesterol: 200 mg
Keywords: Using room temperature eggs helps prevent scrambling. Control the skillet temperature to ensure a smooth sauce. Don't hesitate to use the reserved gnocchi water for emulsifying the sauce.