skillet carbonara with guanciale

Guanciale is Italian cured pork cheek or jowl- aka Italy's answer to bacon. Bacon or pancetta can be substituted if you cannot find guanciale. The sage adds a nice subtle flavor, but it can also be left out. I've said it before, and I'll say it many-o-times....pasta in a skillet is da bomb dot com. 
***Featured on the Feed Feed website: Best Pasta Recipes

Serves 4
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
 

Ingredients: 
1 pound spaghetti
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8 ounces guanciale (bacon or pancetta), cut into 1 inch thick crosswise
4 white sage leaves (or green sage), roughly chopped  [optional] 
3 large eggs, 2 large egg yolks
1  1/4 cups freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

what to do: Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. In a large skillet, add 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Add the guanciale and sage leaves, stirring occasionally until the guanciale is crisp and golden. Discard the sage leaves. Remove from heat and set aside. (There will be fat left in the pan, but that is the good stuff - do not throw away)! 

Salt the boiling water very generously. Add the pasta and cook until al dente (you want there to still be a bite to it). Reserve about 1/4 cup of the pasta water before draining the pasta. 

Place the skillet with the guanciale back over medium heat. Add the reserved pasta water and then toss in the pasta. Stir for a minute. Remove skillet from heat. Add 1 cup of the parmigiano-reggiano, the eggs, the yolks, and freshly ground black pepper tossing to combine everything. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over top of the pasta. Serve immediately from the skillet.