Vegetarian Carbonara is a pasta recipe made with vegetables and a cheese that binds all the ingredients together, such as ricotta. As with traditional spaghetti carbonara, the ingredients are few, but the result is a very tasty main course.
Instead of guanciale, a key ingredient in classic carbonara, we use vegetables. We chose onions, zucchini and carrots. But you can use any vegetables you like, such as peppers, peas or mushrooms. If fresh vegetables are in season, even better.
Eggs are also a must in the vegetarian carbonara recipe. And according to Roman tradition, one whole egg is used per person.
Finally, the cheese. If you are a true vegetarian, you cannot use pecorino romano or parmigiano. We suggest ricotta because it’s not made with animal rennet and is therefore suitable for a vegetarian diet.
As for the pasta, we will stay with the classic spaghetti. But you can use any type of long pasta, such as linguine or bucatini, or even short pasta, such as rigatoni or farfalle.
Now we are going to show you how to make the recipe for vegetarian carbonara, a rich, complete and very appetizing dish.
See also:
- Lemon Spaghetti | Easy Pasta al Limone Recipe
- Smoked Salmon Carbonara
- Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni | Cannelloni di Magro
How to Make Vegetarian Carbonara Recipe
- Prep Time: 15 Min
- Cook Time: 15 Min
- Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 350 g (12 oz) of spaghetti
- 1 little onion
- 2 medium zucchini
- 2 medium carrots
- 4 whole eggs
- 100 g (1/2 cup) of ricotta cheese
- 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- fine salt
- ground black pepper
Directions
Step 1) – To make vegetarian carbonara, first cut the vegetables into julienne strips.
Then sauté the onion in oil in a large non-stick frying pan for about two minutes. Add the carrots and zucchini. Stir and cook over medium heat, uncovered, for about 10 to 15 minutes.
Stir and taste the vegetables occasionally, adding salt if necessary. The vegetables should remain fairly crisp, so be careful when cooking.
When cooked, turn off heat and set aside.
Step 2) – While the vegetables are cooking, prepare the cream of eggs and ricotta.
In a bowl, add the whole eggs, plenty of ground black pepper, a pinch of fine salt and the ricotta. Mix until creamy. When ready, set aside.
Step 3) – Cook the spaghetti in plenty of boiling salted water for the time indicated on the package. In addition to spaghetti, vegetable carbonara is excellent with bucatini or linguini.
Step 4) – Drain spaghetti al dente and add to vegetables. Place the pan over high heat and cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
Remove from heat and add ricotta and egg cream Stir quickly to combine the ingredients.
PLEASE NOTE: The heat under the frying pan must be OFF or the eggs will overcook and scramble.
Step 6) – Place the vegetarian carbonara on a plate and sprinkle with ground black pepper. Serve immediately.
How to Store Vegetarian Carbonara
We recommend that you eat the Vegetarian Carbonara as soon as it is ready.
Do not freeze.
Why do we use Ricotta and not Pecorino in the Vegetarian Carbonara?
It is well known that the authentic recipe for carbonara requires pecorino romano cheese. But this cheese is not suitable in a vegetarian diet because it is made with animal rennet.
Ricotta, on the other hand, can be used because it is a milk product made without animal rennet.
The word “ricotta” comes from the Latin word “recostus”, which means “curdled” (It: ricotto). This ricotta production technique is still used today, although some variations have been introduced.
At a temperature of about 80-95°C (176°F to 203°F), the whey proteins coagulate, retaining fats, minerals and lactose. They rise to the surface as white flakes. The soft, white layer is collected in small baskets and left to cool.
This process can be done with either cow’s milk or sheep’s milk.
Zucchini Carbonara
This recipe for Zucchini Carbonara is a tasty vegetarian version of the world-famous classic pasta dish.
Without bacon or guanciale, this pasta carbonara with zucchini is nutritious, creamy, and full of taste. It can be flavored with saffron or turmeric powder.
Follow the recipe, using only 4 zucchini as vegetables.
