Bittman Basics

Pasta With Eggs and Cheese for Those Days When You Need It

Add bacon for carbonara, if you’d like

Photo: Romulo Yanes

Pasta with eggs and cheese (provided you’re not vegan) should be in your repertoire if it isn’t already. First, a few notes on prepping this dish:

Grating the cheese: Each side of the box grater yields a different texture. Press the hunk of cheese against the side you want and run it up and down and over the holes repeatedly.

Using a microplane: This kind of grater is razor-sharp and the results are fluffy — perfect for hard cheeses like pecorino or parmesan. It doesn’t work well with anything softer.

Tossing the pasta with eggs: Add the hot pasta immediately to the eggs and toss. The eggs will cook and form a thick, creamy sauce in the residual heat.

Pasta with Eggs and Cheese

Time: 20 to 30 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients

• Salt
• 3 eggs
• ½ cup freshly grated pecorino Romano or parmesan, or more to taste
• 1 pound linguine or other long pasta
• Freshly ground black pepper