Bucatini alla Guerilla Grilling with Eggs and Tasso Ham

Spaghetti alla Carbonara, the Roman pasta dish made with raw eggs and pork, was the jumping off point for this recipe. The eggs cook as they are stirred into the hot pasta, forming a rich silky sauce. Instead of using guanciale, Italian pork howl, and spaghetti, I thought it might be fun to pair The Smokehouse’s tasso, a spiced Cajun ham, with bucatini, a sturdier, chewier string pasta. Having a table with everyone tossing his or her own pasta with an egg yolk is a whimsical touch that I stole from the magnificent Mario Batali. If separating the eggs seems too complicated, simply beat all the eggs together and add them to the pan in a single step as explained below.

Makes 4 main course servings

Kosher salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus a little extra for drizzling over the egg yolks
1 cup white onion cut into ¼ inch dice
Freshly ground black pepper
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
5 ounces tasso cut into ¼ inch dice
5 large organic eggs, at room temperature
1 pound imported bucatini
½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
½ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onions, season with salt and pepper and sauté five minutes or until the onions are tender and they just begin to brown around the edges. Give everything a stir once in a while so nothing burns. Add the garlic and cook one minute. Add the tasso ham and cook four minutes or until the fat starts to render and the ham gets a little crispy. Keep warm over low heat.

Separate four of the eggs, taking care to keep the yolks whole. Drizzle the yolks with olive oil so the tops don’t dry out. Beat the whites with the remaining whole egg until well combined. (If you inadvertently break the yolks or find separating eggs an unbearable trial, just call it a day and beat everything-–all the yolks, all the whites—together.)

Add the bucatini to the pot of boiling water and stir until the water returns to a boil. Cook 10 minutes or until al dente. Scoop out a cup of pasta water and set it aside. Drain the pasta and add it directly to the pan with the ham along with a quarter-cup of the pasta water. Toss everything together and take the pan off the heat.

Beat two tablespoons pasta water into the eggs (not the yolks!) and add the mixture to the pasta while stirring—you want the eggs to emulsify as they cook, forming a kind of creamy coating around the pasta. Don’t put the pan back on the heat of the eggs will overcook and curdle. Keep stirring while you add the cheeses to blend everything together. If the mixture seems too thick, add a tablespoon or so of the remaining pasta water.

Divide the pasta among four warm bowls. Top each with an egg yolk and grind lots of black pepper over the top. Serve immediately, encouraging everyone to toss their pasta just enough to coat everything with rich yellow streaks of yolk.

Jody Adams/Rialto Restaurant

January 2009

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