This Mushroom Carbonara recipe is a twist to the classic, being a meatless version that is rich and creamy without using any cream.
Spaghetti Carbonara is a classic Italian pasta dish from Rome. The traditional recipe includes eggs, hard cheese, black pepper & guanciale which is a cured pork, similar to pancetta.
This gorgeous pasta only uses 5 ingredients and takes less than 15 minutes to make.
If you're pasta crazy like me, then be sure to check out my other popular pasta recipes, Baked Feta Pasta, Penne Alla Vodka, Baked Feta Pasta with Mushrooms, and Superfood Pesto Pasta.
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Ingredients to Make Mushroom Carbonara
- Spaghetti is the classic pasta used for a Carbonara, but you can also use any long pasta
- Mushrooms, I've used shiitake as it gives a rich flavour and meaty like texture and is a good substitute for bacon
- Eggs are the key ingredient for the base of the sauce, with the yolks providing that rich creaminess
- Cheese, as with the eggs, you will need to use a hard cheese like Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano Reggiano. Pecorino has a more tangy and saltier taste than Parmigiano.
- Black pepper gives some grit to this pasta and is added in when you mix the eggs and cheese together
How to Make Mushroom Carbonara
- Slice up mushrooms and sauté on high heat with no oil to start. Once browned, add olive oil and sauté
- In a bowl, add eggs, cheese, and pepper then mix together
- At the same time, start to cook pasta in heavily salted water
- Once mushrooms are cooked, take the pan off the heat
- Add a splash of pasta water to the egg/cheese mixture and stir together
- Add the cooked pasta into the pan, pour over the mixture & stir quickly
- Serve with some cracked pepper and extra cheese if you prefer
FAQs
No, the base of a Carbonara sauce is eggs, cheese and pasta water. This produces a creamy Carbonara without using any cream.
Ensure to take your pan off the heat before adding the pasta, then pour in the egg/cheese mixture and continuously toss together for no more than 30 seconds. The heat from the pan will cook the eggs without scrambling them, providing you with a nice silky and creamy texture.
Traditionally, the main cheese used is Pecorino Romano but Parmigiano Reggiano can also be used. If you use a mixture of both, it will provide further character to your dish.
More Mushroom Recipes
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Recipe
Mushroom Carbonara
Ingredients
- 360 g spaghetti
- 400 g shiitake mushrooms
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 whole egg
- 100 g pecorino romano
- Black pepper to taste
- Sea salt
Instructions
- Slice up mushrooms
- In a bowl, add eggs, cheese and pepper then mix together.
- Sauté mushrooms on a high heat with no oil to start. This brings out the beautiful nutty flavour. Once they’ve browned, add olive oil and saute together
- At the same time, start to cook pasta in heavily salted water
- Once mushrooms are cooked, take the the pan off the heat
- Add a splash of pasta water to the egg/cheese mixture and stir together. You will have a thick creamy sauce
- Whilst the pan is off the heat, add the cooked pasta into the pan, pour over the mixture and stir together quickly. The mixture will make a nice creamy sauce to coat all of the pasta without scrambling the eggs as the pan will have cooled slightly
- Serve pasta straight away with some cracked pepper and a sprinkle of extra cheese
Arulmathi
This recipe was absolutely delicious! Mom isn’t a fan of egg yolks but she definitely enjoyed it in this! Thank you for this simple and delightful recipe! ♥️
Ayeh
So glad your mama loves this too! xx
Gemma
This was my first time ever making carbonara...and it was so yummy! Can’t believe how good it tastes without any cream. I even added some zucchini which worked a treat. Will defiantly be a recipe I use from now on.
Ayeh
Yayyy so happy you loved it too!