| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 40 min |
| Prep: | 20 min |
| Cook: | 20 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 40 min |
| Prep: | 20 min |
| Cook: | 20 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 6 medium green and yellow zucchini
- 1 pound penne
- 4 large free-range or organic egg yolks
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 good handfuls freshly grated Parmesan
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Olive oil
- 12 thick slices pancetta or lean bacon, cut into chunky pieces
- A small bunch fresh thyme, leaves picked and chopped, flowers reserved (if you can get hold of flowering thyme)
- Optional: a few zucchini flowers
Instructions
- Carbonara is a classic pasta sauce made with cream, bacon and Parmesan and is absolutely delicious. Try to buy the best ingredients you can, as that’s what really helps to make this dish amazing. I’m using a flowering variegated variety of thyme but normal thyme is fine to use. When it comes to the type of pasta, you can serve carbonara with spaghetti or linguine, but I’ve been told by Italian mammas (who I don’t argue with!) that penne is the original, so that’s what I’m using in this recipe.
- Before you start cooking, it’s important to get yourself a very large pan, or use a high-sided roasting pan so you can give the pasta a good toss.
- Put a large pan of salted water on to boil. Halve and then quarter any larger zucchini lengthwise. Cut out and discard any fluffy middle bits, and slice the zucchini at an angle into pieces roughly the same size and shape as the penne. Smaller zucchini can simply be sliced finely. Your water will now be boiling, so add the penne to the pan and cook according to the package instructions.
- To make your creamy carbonara sauce, put the egg yolks into a bowl, add the cream and half the Parmesan, and mix together with a fork. Season lightly with salt and pepper and set aside.
- Heat a very large frying pan (a 14-inch is a good start – every house should have one!), add a good splash of olive oil and fry the pancetta or bacon until dark brown and crisp. Add the zucchini slices and 2 big pinches of black pepper, not just to season but to give it a bit of a kick. Sprinkle in the thyme leaves, give everything a stir, so the zucchini is coated with all the lovely bacon-flavored oil, and fry until they start to turn lightly golden and have softened slightly.
- It’s very important to get this next bit right or your carbonara could end up ruined. You need to work quickly. When the pasta is cooked, drain it, reserving a little of the cooking water. Immediately, toss the pasta in the pan with the zucchini, bacon and lovely flavors, then remove from the heat and add a ladleful of the reserved cooking water and your creamy sauce. Stir together quickly. (No more cooking now, otherwise you’ll scramble the eggs.)
- Get everyone around the table, ready to eat straightaway. While you’re tossing the pasta and sauce, sprinkle in the rest of the Parmesan and a little more of the cooking water if needed, to give you a silky and shiny sauce. Taste quickly for seasoning. If you’ve managed to get any zucchini flowers, tear them over the top, then serve and eat immediately, as the sauce can become thick and stodgy if left too long.
- “Our agreement with the producers of “Jamie at Home” only permit us to make 2 recipes per episode available online. Food Network regrets the inconvenience to our viewers and foodnetwork.com users”
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 1093 |
| Total Fat | 62 g |
| Saturated Fat | 23 g |
| Carbohydrates | 99 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 8 g |
| Sugar | 12 g |
| Protein | 36 g |
| Cholesterol | 251 mg |
| Sodium | 1305 mg |
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 1093 |
| Total Fat | 62 g |
| Saturated Fat | 23 g |
| Carbohydrates | 99 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 8 g |
| Sugar | 12 g |
| Protein | 36 g |
| Cholesterol | 251 mg |
| Sodium | 1305 mg |
Reviews
Good use of zucchini. Medium size zucchini is wide open to guess — so I measured how much I used, 8 C thinly sliced zucchini. Perfect amount. Definitely lighter than regular carbonara, but still very rich and filling. Good flavor, but not wow. Followed recipe but mistakenly used whole eggs instead of egg yolk. This thinned the sauce, added more finely grated cheese over simmer heat to thicken. Would I make again — yes, especially if I had the zucchini to use up and wanted pasta.
Delicious!! Made it to exact recipe and my family loved it!! Will definitely make this again. ❤️
One of the best pastas I’ve ever made! It’s creamy, yet still feels lighter than a regular carbonara.
I made it exact to the recipe and wouldn’t change a thing!
I made it exact to the recipe and wouldn’t change a thing!
I’ve been making this recipe for years now. Thanks Jamie. I live in Greece and zucchini is plentiful. I’ve adapted this by omitting the egg, adding a tablespoon of dried oregano, alittle whole cream, and a pinch more pepper. I always have to double the recipe to keep up demand. Bravo!
I love this recipe and so did everyone who ate it. the bacon is an awesome addition to this recipe
I used light cream instead, but still this dish is super heavy. It was delicious, don’t get me wrong, but perhaps next time I’ll find a trick or two to lighten up the ingredients, maybe less bacon, something, I don’t know. Very good though.
Absolutely delicious. We were amazed at how this seemingly pedestrian dish was so fantastic.
Just Perfect! Bravissimo!
My girlfriend has chickens so she gave me the fresh eggs and zucchini from her garden so I decided on this recipe and it is outstanding! Jamie Oliver uses fresh herbs and that’s key. I used red pepper flakes in the zucchini saute as I like spicier food. It was perfect. My pancetta was not thick but it didn’t matter it was delicate and blended with the zuccchini also delicate. I will make this again and again…Thanks Jamie!
Thank you Jamie Oliver!! Amazing dish very quick to prepare! My seven year old LOVED it and was begging for 2nds! Made it a tad lighter and used only 2 egg yolks..delish! KEEP IT COMING!!