Description
This creamy chicken carbonara combines tender chicken, crispy bacon, and a silky egg-and-cream sauce for a restaurant-quality comfort meal made in just 30 minutes.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 lb spaghetti, fettuccine, or linguine
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 6 slices thick-cut bacon or pancetta, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup heavy cream or half-and-half
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (plus extra for garnish)
- 2 large egg yolks (or 1 whole egg)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil or butter
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ cup reserved pasta water
- fresh parsley, chopped (optional, for garnish)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until al dente according to the package instructions. Reserve ½ cup of starchy pasta water before draining and set the pasta aside.
- In a large skillet or Dutch oven, cook the chopped bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside on a paper towel-lined plate, leaving about 2 tablespoons of bacon fat in the pan.
- Increase heat to medium-high. Add cubed chicken to the skillet, season with salt and pepper, and cook for 5–7 minutes until browned and cooked through. Add minced garlic during the last minute of cooking. Remove the skillet from heat.
- In a bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, egg yolks, and Parmesan until smooth. Season lightly with pepper. This will form your creamy carbonara base.
- Return the skillet to very low heat. Add the cooked pasta and pour the cream mixture over top. Toss continuously with tongs so the sauce thickens and coats the pasta. The residual heat will cook the eggs without scrambling them.
- Add splashes of reserved pasta water as needed to achieve a silky texture. Stir in bacon and chicken, season to taste, and garnish with parsley and extra Parmesan before serving hot.
Notes
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 620
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 850 mg
- Fat: 35 g
- Saturated Fat: 18 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 15 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 38 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 40 g
- Cholesterol: 200 mg