Kimchi Carbonara Recipe (2024)

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Cooking Notes

John Manor

The borders of the culinary world may be smaller than you think. Some comments complain about the authenticity of this carbonara. Poland would seem farther from Korea than Italy. I have a recipe for Haluski that combines egg noodles with sauerkraut fried in butter. Hmm, sounds a bit familiar. Perhaps we should judge a recipe for its taste, rather than its genealogy.

Equilibrist

Made tonight, really good. Pay no attention to the kvetches who say it’s not traditional.

Patrick Chadd

This is great - I didn’t add the spinach on top. Yes, it needs the egg yolks, it’s a take on carbonara. If you don’t like the egg yolks, make another recipe.

Robert D

I'm Italian and have a great deal of respect for classic Italian cuisine. Carbonara is a life-long favorite of mine. When I read this recipe, I nearly fainted. Fermented Kimchi, egg yolks, ginger and parmesan? Really? I tried it. My suspicions were correct. It's a recipe for those who are in absolute love with Kimchi and relish its pairing with everything and anything under the sun. For those who care more about delicious, time-honored recipes, I recommend that you take a pass on this one.

GBR

Delicious.... but I have to admit that I made a couple of changes to render the dish a bit _less_ of a cultural mashup. I used dry sake in place of the dry white wine, and used a finishing drizzle of toasted sesame oil and some coarse sea salt in place of the parmigianno.

KathyS

I made this recipe entirely plant based and it was so full of delicious flavor. Will definitely make again. To make vegan: swap plant-based butter for dairy butter, swap JustEgg for egg yolks, swap nutritional yeast for the stirred-in parmesan, swap plant-based parmesan for the sprinkle of parmesan on top. SO GOOD.

Cate

It really wouldn't be a carbonara without the egg yolks. At that point, it is more a kimchi stir fried noodle with cheese.

Erin

Made exactly as written. It's not carbonara, but as a vegetarian I found it to be a lovely, rich, comforting substitute. Not sure I'd have identified the kimchee if I hadn't made it myself. Don't skip the salt addition - I did, and was surprised to find it needed it. And do make sure you save plenty of pasta water, and add a little more than you think you'll need - the pasta slurps up the sauce.

Brie G.

The egg is cooked in the residual heat of the pan and pasta making it perfectly safe to eat.

Helena

I've made a version of this with pork belly and udon and I highly recommend

Lars

I have not tried this recipe, but I can't wait to try it. I regularly make the original carbonara with creme fraiche or some sour cream instead of egg yolk. If that doesn't float your boat, perhaps search on internet for egg yolk replacement. There are quite a few. Good luck.

mimi

Finally made this and followed the recipe closely. As a Korean who grew up in Korea, I love it! I love how the butter, parmesan, and egg yolks mellow out the kimchi flavor. My white midwest-raised hubby liked it less though (still too strong kimchi flavor for him), so I get the divide on this dish in the comments. I used less salt than called for per one of the comments and it was still pretty salty. If you don’t like spicy obviously skip the gochugaru but I liked the fire it gives.

Ferguson

an easy & delicious way to use up the 3 egg whites is to make a triple batch of Melissa Clark's coconut macaroons from her pandemic pantry series:https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/10/dining/coconut-macaroons-coronavirus.html

Maryanne

I thought the kimchi flavor was pretty subtle here - going to double the amount of kimchi next time. Otherwise it was delicious and a quick weeknight meal.

Lisa

It's really ok if it's not really Carbonara because it was tasty. If it weren't named "carbonara" this one might have been enjoyed by by the Italian American readers as well. It was spicy and fatty and delicious.

Michelle

Always, always more kimchi. I've made this a few times now and it's definitely my favorite style of potato salad now.

Kimberly

You know it’s a hit when your teenager finishes a big bowl and asks hopefully, ‘is there more of this?’. Made as written with fettuccine noodles.

CBG

This was delightful. I'll be making it again. We love kimchi at our house and are always looking for new and interesting ways to consume it.

Yvonne

This was simple, quick and really good. I decided to give it a go since I had all the ingredients in my pantry (I use homemade Kimchi only). I didn't weigh anything out, but rather just went for it as I would with a traditional carbonara. Tip: before adding the egg-mixture in the pan, add some of the pasta water, let it simmer down, so it thickens a little. Turn off the heat and incorporate the eggs. Perfect sauce. I will sub in mature cheddar next time - just pairs so well with kimchi.

John Sz.

Had to make a few changes, some due to necessity, some just cause. Used daikon radish kimchee, chopped up fine, and mirin instead of white wine. Didn't have much kimchee juice, so took a bit of red miso paste and mixed enough water to make it saucy. Added a splash of sesame oil, and used two whole eggs instead of just yolks - just didn't want to waste the whites. Sprinkled it with sesame seeds and chopped green onions at the end. Nothing like carbonara, of course, but it was absolutely yummy.

Ruby P.

I reheated this with about a tablespoon of miso butter, and that took it from decent to delicious.

Michael

I don’t know Melanie Meyer personally, but as a St. Louisan and Korean, I’ve visited her kitchen many times. Her flavors are on point. Traditional with a modern twist. This recipe is no different. Who cares about what it’s called, how it’s prepared, etc. Does it taste fantastic? Absolutely!

Andrew E

Amazing recipe. Incredible! I used 1 cup chopped kimchi, and 2 egg yolks and 1 whole egg. More shallot might be nice too. This is going into the rotation.

Emjay

This was such a delicious recipe! We ended up adding some cubed bacon before the kimchi to add a little protein and it was divine. Definitely a must if you're a kimchi lover!

Josh O

This was a straightforward and delicious dish! I think we can dispense with carping about authenticity (I’m not running a restaurant, I just want to eat tasty food). Rather than spinach I blanched some samphire and served it on top, which also worked well.

Mic

Delicious! Like Ms. Meyer, my wife is from the Midwest and loves anything with pasta and cheese. Moreover, for years she has been after me to make something with kimchi. Whoa! Winner here! When I make Italian carbonara, I like the eggs runny, just before scrambled, which she does not. So using only the yolks in this hybrid version was a perfect solution. As a substitution, I was out of spinach and used shredded red cabbage as a topping, nice color and crunch.

MK

This is a delicious take on a traditional carbonara. I would highly recommend making this, and if serving to picky children or people with lower spice tolerance, dial down on the kimchi juice and they will love it!Note: Many commenters have been talking about how this is a recipe for people who love Kimchi and those people only. I'm not usually a kimchi fan but found it yum in this recipe, and I think it's great that we have recipes that merge culture together like this.

MVL

This was very, very good. I made it with angel hair because I didn't have other pasta. Love the flavor of the kimchi. Next time I'll a bit more.

dona

for all of us vegetarians out there- just make sure your kimchi of choice does not have shrimp or fish sauce in it. Mama- O has a vegan kimchi which is quite good.

Deedub-sf

I'm going to replace parmesan with gim - Korean dried nori (a seaweed) with terrific flavors.

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Kimchi Carbonara Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the golden rule of cooking a carbonara? ›

Whisk Like You Mean It

You're using more egg yolks than whites here, which is what makes carbonara so rich and luxurious. But there's still two eggs-worth of whites in there. Whisking your eggs so that the whites are completely incorporated into the yolks will give your sauce a more uniform texture.

What should not be added to carbonara? ›

What not to put in Spaghetti Carbonara? Don't put garlic, cream, milk or butter. It is not needed. It is fine if you want to make a dish with those ingredients, but if you want to learn how to make this dish correctly, use only pecorino, eggs/egg yolks, black pepper, guanciale, and pasta water.

What is the secret to making carbonara? ›

Toss FAST.

Once the pasta, pancetta + its fat, and pasta water are heating over low heat, add the egg mixture you made and start mopping it up with pasta. The goal is to toss this extremely quickly—the ambient heat of the pan is going to cook the egg in about 30 seconds to a minute.

Should carbonara not have cream in it? ›

Should carbonara have cream? Typically carbonara sauce is only made of eggs, bacon, parmesan, olive oil, seasoning, and sometimes, vegetables. As for cream, Italians will tell you that is a big no no.

Do you put raw egg in carbonara? ›

What distinguishes carbonara from other pasta dishes is its technique of combining eggs, hard cheese, cured pork, and black pepper into a rich, silky sauce. This recipe calls for raw eggs that are gently cooked by the hot sauce. If you prefer, you can use pasteurized eggs instead.

How does Gordon Ramsay make carbonara sauce? ›

How to make Gordon Ramsay's 10-minute Carbonara
  1. 125g of spaghetti (4.41 ounces)
  2. 80g of streaky bacon or pancetta (2.82 ounces)
  3. 30g of frozen peas (1.06 ounces)
  4. Two eggs.
  5. Two mushrooms.
  6. One chili.
  7. Two garlic gloves.
  8. One and a half tablespoons of creme fraiche.
Nov 7, 2023

Why is there no garlic in carbonara? ›

Because in the traditional recipe there is no garlic, if you add it you will lower quality of a very good food. Why is there no garlic in carbonara? Because it's an Italian dish, not an Italian-American dish, and Italian cooking does not use garlic as heavily as Italian-American cuisine.

Should there be garlic in carbonara? ›

Must-have ingredients

that there are only five ingredients: pasta, pork cheek, eggs, cheese and pepper. That's it. A real carbonara does not contain onion, garlic, or cream.

Does carbonara use whole eggs or just yolks? ›

In a large, metal heatproof mixing bowl, whisk together whole eggs and yolks, Pecorino Romano, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and black pepper. Using tongs and/or a strainer, transfer pasta to skillet with crisped guanciale and its fat; be sure not to drain boiling pasta water.

What kind of cheese is good in carbonara? ›

Pecorino Romano: This aged sheep's cheese is always traditionally used in the Roman pastas, and its salty, grassy, earthy flavor is absolutely delicious in carbonara. That said, if Pecorino is unavailable at your local grocery store, you can use Parmesan as a non-traditional substitute.

How do you stop egg scrambling in carbonara? ›

To avoid the dreaded scramble, the goal is to not let your eggs get too hot too quickly. Rather than add your eggs straight into your carbonara pan, crack them into a different bowl with the Pecorino. From there, you have a few options for how to combine the mixture with your pasta.

What thickens carbonara? ›

Equally important is that the fat that melts out of the guanciale is required to thicken the carbonara sauce to make it creamy. Basically, what happens is that when the fat from the guanciale and in the egg yolks is mixed with starchy pasta cooking water, it thickens.

What is a substitute for heavy cream in carbonara? ›

The 10 Best Substitutes for Heavy Cream
  1. Milk and butter.
  2. Soy milk and olive oil.
  3. Milk and cornstarch.
  4. Half-and-half.
  5. Tofu and soy.
  6. Yogurt and milk.
  7. Evaporated milk.
  8. Cottage cheese and milk.

Do Americans put cream in carbonara? ›

No cream or milk or anything like that. the only dairy product in Carbonara is the cheese.. Americans use cream because you can hide the mistakes of amateur chefs by adding a different texture with more ingredients.

Are peas in carbonara authentic? ›

Peas don't detract from the dish in any way, other than smack the face of tradition. They lend color to an otherwise pale plate of pasta and give it a nice pop of sweetness. Not in an authentic carbonara. Peas can go quite well in a cream-based sauce.

How do I stop my carbonara scrambling? ›

Using a large mixing bowl and setting it over the boiling pasta water to create a makeshift double boiler helps prevent you from accidentally scrambling the eggs.

When to add egg to carbonara? ›

Take the pan of spaghetti and pancetta off the heat. Now quickly pour in the eggs and cheese. Using the tongs or a long fork, lift up the spaghetti so it mixes easily with the egg mixture, which thickens but doesn't scramble, and everything is coated.

Why don't Italians use cream in carbonara? ›

In general, in Italy we have a bad opinion of cream. We prefer to use other ingredients, we consider the cream a "corrector" of culinary errors. If a restaurant puts cream in risotto or pasta, we Italians think it's a bad restaurant. However, there are dishes that contain cream and people who use it more than others.

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