Filipino-style Pasta Carbonara loaded with crisp bacon, mushrooms, and flavorful cream sauce. Hearty and delicious, it’s a guaranteed crowd pleaser!
I have crispy binagoongan scheduled next on our holiday menu line up, but since pasta dishes are very popular during Christmas time, I decided to post this Filipino-style Pasta Carbonara first.
I’m sure you’ll be glad I did! Rich, creamy, and loaded with crisp bacon and delicious mushrooms, it’s a must for Noche Buena!
Like our Filipino-style spaghetti and macaroni salad, pasta carbonara is one dish we’ve adapted from the west to suit our Pinoy tastes.
Pasta carbonara in its traditional form is made with pancetta, eggs, and Parmesan cheese along with copious amounts of garlic and fresh parsley. Although cured meat such as bacon or ham is still a core ingredient, this pasta dish has evolved in our local food scene to include cream sauce and mushrooms.
This Filipino-style pasta carbonara is a quick and easy dish you can pull together in no time. It’s easy to make for family dinners yet fancy enough for holiday gatherings. It has a short list of ingredients and is ready in 30 minutes or less.
Tips on How to Make Pasta Carbonara
- Cook the pasta a few minutes less than the package calls for as it will be tossed in the sauce for a few minutes and will continue to cook.
- Bacon, bacon, bacon! Bacon adds much of the flavor in this pasta dish so please don’t skimp! I usually use about two pounds and just love the crisp, smoky bits at every bite!
- Pasta tends to absorb a lot of moisture so go a little heavy on the cream sauce to compensate for the drying out. The sauce will also thicken as it sits so make sure your sauce is a bit thinner in consistency than you’d like.
- Once you add the heavy cream, cook in a gentle simmer and do not allow to come to a boil to prevent from curdling.
- Please do not skip the nutmeg! It’s not a traditional ingredient in Filipino-style pasta carbonara but it does round up the flavors of the cream sauce beautifully.
Filipino-style Pasta Carbonara
Ingredients
- 1 pound uncooked spaghetti
- 2 pounds bacon, chopped
- 1 onion, peeled and chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 1 pound fresh button mushrooms. sliced thinly
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 14 ounces all purpose cream
- 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese and more for serving
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, stemmed and chopped
Instructions
- In a large pot over medium heat, bring about 4 quarts salted water to a boil. Add spaghetti and cook 1 minute shy of package directions. Remove from heat and drain well. Keep warm.
- In a wide pan over medium heat, add bacon. Cook, stirring occasionally, until it browns and crisps. With a slotted spoon, remove from heat and drain on paper towels.
- Discard the rendered fat except for about 1 tablespoon. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened.
- Add mushrooms and cook until softened.
- With a slotted spoon, remove the mushroom mixture from the pan and keep warm.
- Add butter to pan and heat until melted. Add flour and cook, stirring regularly, for about 1 to 2 minutes or until smooth and lightly browned.
- Slowly add chicken broth, whisking regularly to prevent lumps.
- Add cream. Lower heat and bring to a simmer. Continue to cook, whisking occasionally, until slightly thickened.
- Add Parmesan cheese and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add pasta, bacon, and mushroom mixture. Toss to combine until pasta is coated with sauce and heated through.
- To serve, garnish with fresh parsley and additional Parmesan cheese. Serve hot.
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Nutrition
Disappointed ☹️
I am sorry to hear that. May I know why the recipe didn’t work for you?
Gsto q po malaman ang mga recipe nio sana mbgyan nio q salamat po
how did it become filipino style?
Hello Hans,
Authentic Pasta Carbonara is made of raw eggs and parmesan cheese instead of cream like in this recipe 🙂
I really love your recipes…thank you, i just tried to cook the dinuguan for the first time. My kids loved it
Thank you, Jeans. I am glad you liked it 🙂
Thank you for the info. It’s a great help to cook my favorite spaghetti. Can I use seafood ingredient?
Pasta Carbonara is usually made with bacon but I suppose you can add cooked shrimp if you like.
I think it’s not “Filipino” enough. In my opinion you should have added unique Filipino ingredients in your recipe, like lechon bits or tinapa in your carbonara.
i don’t know where to find fresh nutmeg, can i use the ground one? Thanks.
Yes, you can. 🙂
thanks!
Hello, Ate!
Merry Christmas and have a Blessed New Year to you and your lovely family! Keep those recipes coming!
Thank you, Rose. Happy holidays to you and your loved ones as well. 🙂
When you mentioned all purpose cream, can I use heavy or whipping cream? Or is this cream in a can that I see in the Mexican food aisle? Thank you for the recipe, I’ve been wanting to make this since I had it in an Italian Restaurant.
Hello Ann,
Yes, I use the one in the can, Nestle’s. It’s called table cream in the U.S. 🙂
Happy Holidays to you and your family.
Thank you, Rosemary. Merry Christmas to you and your family as well.