Creamy Bacon Pasta
A rich, ultra comforting creamy bacon pasta ready in 15 minutes, and easy to adapt with whatever vegetables you have on hand.
Servings: 2 people
Ingredients
- 200 grams dried pasta or 300 grams fresh
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 4 - 5 rashers streaky bacon chopped into small pieces
- 3 cups fresh chopped vegetables I used broccoli and zucchini, see notes
- 3 garlic cloves finely chopped, minced
- ¾ cup cream
- ½ - 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 70 grams parmesan finely grated
Instructions
- Bring a pot of well-salted water to the boil and cook the pasta according to the packet instructions, undercooking it by 1 minute. Reserve a mug of pasta water before draining.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the bacon and cook until golden and lightly crisp, allowing the fat to render into the pan. Do not drain the pan. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Add the vegetables to the pan and cook for a couple of minutes, just until starting to soften but still with some bite.
- Add the garlic and cook briefly until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Pour in the cream and add the black pepper. Turn the heat down if you need, it should just be a gentle simmer here.
- Sprinkle the parmesan in 2-3 separate lots and mix in, letting each addition melt before adding the next.
- Add the cooked pasta to the sauce along with a splash of reserved pasta water and toss well to coat.
- Return the bacon to the pan and toss everything together. Let it gently bubble for a minute or two, adding more pasta water as needed to loosen the sauce.
- Taste and season if needed (the bacon usually adds enough salt). Serve with extra Parmesan.
Video
Notes
Bacon - Streaky bacon gives the best flavor here. Don’t drain the pan, the bacon drippings form the base of the sauce.
Vegetables - This recipe is very flexible. Broccoli, zucchini, peas, green beans, spinach, or cauliflower all work well. Add vegetables briefly so they stay tender with a little bite.
Cream - I use single (light) cream. In the US, heavy or whipping cream works well, just loosen the sauce with an extra splash of reserved pasta water if it feels too thick.
Pasta portions - I use 200 grams dried pasta or 300 grams fresh pasta for the best sauce to pasta ratio. Weighing your pasta gives the most consistent result.
Pasta water - Always reserve some pasta cooking water. It helps loosen the sauce and ensures the sauce clings to the pasta.