Whisk the egg yolk, 1/3 cup grated parmesan, and chopped parsley together in a small bowl. Set aside.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. While the water is coming to a boil, chop the bacon into small pieces.
Heat the olive oil in a large, non-stick pan over medium heat.
Around the same time, add the pasta noodles to the boiling water and add the bacon to the pan with olive oil.
Cook the bacon for about 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally so it starts to brown evenly. Stir the shallots into the bacon and continue cooking until shallots are softened and bacon is crispy, another 4-5 minutes.
Once the noodles are cooked, turn off the heat from under the pot. Use tongs to carefully transfer the noodles directly into the pan with the cooked bacon and shallots (leave the pasta water in the pot).
Toss to coat the pasta in the chopped bacon and shallots. Decrease the heat under the pan to low heat.
Slowly pour 2 tablespoons of the reserved pasta water into the bowl with the egg mixture, whisking constantly as you add it. (This tempers the egg and prevents it from scrambling in the hot noodles.)
Drizzle half of the egg mixture into the pasta noodles, constantly tossing the noodles with tongs as you add it. Repeat with the remaining egg mixture until it's totally combined with the noodles.
Pour 1/4 cup of reserved pasta water onto the noodles and toss to combine. Sprinkle in remaining parmesan, and keep tossing with more pasta water, one tablespoon at a time, until it develops a silky, creamy texture.
Sprinkle in some freshly cracked black pepper, and toss the noodles a final time.
Notes
*Use really good parmesan if you can! Grab a little wedge of it from the specialty cheese section, and keep it on hand for future pasta recipes.** 4 oz. is the recommended serving size for two, but I personally like to use 6 oz. so there's a larger portion! If you're hungry, use 6 oz. of pasta. Spaghetti, bucatini, and linguine are my favorite noodles for carbonara pasta.***Be sure to save the salty, starchy pasta water after the noodles are cooked! You may not use the entire cup, but keep it so you can use as much as you need.
Nutrition
Serving: 1servingCalories: 355kcal
Keyword Bacon Carbonara, Carbonara, Carbonara for Two, Carbonara No Cream, Easy Carbonara Recipe